Born Gail Mitchell, she was raised in Stone Mountain, Georgia.[1] She is the youngest of six and the only daughter amongst her parents' children.[2] She first became interested in acting in a drama class she took while she was a student at Stephenson High School. Bean received her bachelor's degree from Valdosta State University, where she joined the sorority Delta Sigma Theta.[3] She enrolled to study accounting but at the urging of one of her professors, she instead pursued acting.[4] Mitchell adopted the stage name Gail Bean due to the nickname "Bean" that she went by as a high school student.[3]
Bean received positive critical reception for her starring role in the 2015 film Unexpected, which debuted at Sundance Film Festival. In the film she plays a pregnant teen opposite Cobie Smulders. She was named one of 10 Sundance Breakout Stars by TheWrap for her performance.[5] Bean went on to appear in television series including Insecure, Love in the Time of Corona, Detroiters, Chicago P.D., Grey's Anatomy, and Paradise Lost.[6][7][8][9][5] She gained wider notoriety in 2018 as a main cast member on Snowfall, where she portrays Wanda Bell, a young woman who dates a drug dealer and later struggles with addiction.[10] As of 2022, she is also a cast member on P-Valley. Bean portrays Roulette, a rebellious new dancer at The Pynk.[10]
