Keri Russell biography

Synopsis

Profile

Actress. Born March 23, 1976, in Fountain Valley, California. Initially interested in dance, Keri Russell has built a substantial career as an actress. Her first big break came when she was selected to join the cast of the latest revival of the classic Disney children??s variety show, The Mickey Mouse Club, in 1991. In addition to Russell, the show also featured a number of other budding young performers, including Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake, Christina Aguilera, and Ryan Gosling.

Around the same time, Russell made her film debut in the Disney comedy Honey, I Blew Up the Kid (1992). She left the All-New Mickey Mouse Club, or MMC as it was often called, in 1993 and appeared in a string of mostly forgettable television movies. After a few guest stints on such shows as Married . . . With Children, Russell tried her hand at nighttime drama with Aaron Spelling??s Malibu Shores in 1996. She played a rich high school student named Chloe who falls in love with a boy from the wrong side of the tracks. Unfortunately for Russell, her leading role did not last??the show was cancelled after two months on air.

Two years later, Russell found great success on Felicity as the title character, a young woman who decides to follow her crush to New York City to attend the same college. This coming-of-age drama was a hit with critics and developed a devoted following. In 1999, her earnest portrayal of a nave college student finding her way in the big city netted her a Golden Globe Award.

Through its four-year run, Felicity experienced many ups and downs with her personal and romantic life. It was not a storyline, but Russell??s hair that became headline fodder at the beginning of the show??s second season. Encouraged by the show??s creator J. J. Abrams and others, she sheared off her trademark wavy hair, which did not go over well with fans. Some television executives even blamed her new hairdo for a slide in the ratings in fall 1999.

Despite the temporary dip in ratings, Felicity continued to be popular and lasted for several more seasons. She had two main romantic interests over the years: Ben (Scott Speedman), her crush, and Noel (Scott Foley), her first-year dorm advisor. After the show ended in 2002, Russell moved from Los Angeles to New York City. She appeared in the war drama We Were Soldiers (2002) with Mel Gibson.

In 2005, Russell played Joan Allen??s daughter in the independent film The Upside of Anger with Kevin Costner, Erika Christensen, Alicia Witt, and Evan Rachel Wood.