Joana Santos was born on November 16, 1985 in Lisbon, Portugal. She is currently one of the best-known and most cherished Portuguese actresses by the public. Before becoming an actress, she did some work as model and it was through her agency that she did the casting for the NBP, which later opened the doors to the world of representation.

Her first role in television was in the soap opera Fala-me de Amor (2006) in 2006, but she became known in 2010 for the role of the evil Diana in the Emmy-winner soap opera Laços de Sangue (2010), for which Joana signed an exclusive contract with the TV channel SIC.