Jennifer Carpenter
Encyclopedia
Jennifer Leann Carpenter (born December 7, 1979) is an American actress, known for her portrayal of Emily Rose in The Exorcism of Emily Rose
, Debra Morgan
on Dexter
, and the lead role in the 2008 horror movie Quarantine.
, the daughter of Catherine (née Mitchell) and Robert Carpenter. She attended St. Raphael the Archangel and then Sacred Heart Academy. She trained at the Walden Theatre Conservatory program, and later at the Juilliard School
in New York City
. Before graduation she was cast in the Broadway
revival of Arthur Miller
's The Crucible
starring Liam Neeson
and Laura Linney
.
. She took home the 2006 MTV
Movie Award for "Best Frightened Performance," and also received a Hollywood Life Breakthrough Award. She was also named "Breakout Performer" at the 2006 Scream Awards
.
Carpenter currently plays the role of Debra Morgan in the Showtime television series Dexter
which premiered October 1, 2006. Her portrayal of the title character
's sister has impressed some critics, with Australian journalist Jack Marx
describing her portrayal of "cool and clumsy" Debra as "so perfect that many viewers appear to have mistaken the character's flaws for the actor's."
In 2011, she starred in the Off-Broadway play Gruesome Playground Injuries at Second Stage Theatre
.
, who plays her character's adoptive brother. They elope
d on New Year's Eve
, 2008 in California
, and publicly appeared together for the first time as a married couple at the 66th Golden Globe Awards
in January 2009. In December 2010, Hall and Carpenter released a statement announcing that they had filed for divorce after having been separated "for some time".
The Exorcism of Emily Rose
The Exorcism of Emily Rose is a 2005 American courtroom drama horror film directed by Scott Derrickson. The film is loosely based on the story of Anneliese Michel and follows a self-proclaimed agnostic defense lawyer representing a parish priest who is accused by the state of negligent homicide...
, Debra Morgan
Debra Morgan
Debra Morgan is a fictional character created by Jeff Lindsay for his Dexter book series. She also appears in the television series, based on Lindsay's books, portrayed by Jennifer Carpenter. In Lindsay's novels, she first appeared in Darkly Dreaming Dexter, and has featured in every novel...
on Dexter
Dexter (TV series)
Dexter is an American television drama series, which debuted on Showtime on October 1, 2006. The sixth season premiered on October 2, 2011. The series centers on Dexter Morgan , a bloodstain pattern analyst for the Miami Metro Police Department who moonlights as a serial killer...
, and the lead role in the 2008 horror movie Quarantine.
Early life
Carpenter was born in Louisville, KentuckyLouisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
, the daughter of Catherine (née Mitchell) and Robert Carpenter. She attended St. Raphael the Archangel and then Sacred Heart Academy. She trained at the Walden Theatre Conservatory program, and later at the Juilliard School
Juilliard School
The Juilliard School, located at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City, United States, is a performing arts conservatory which was established in 1905...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. Before graduation she was cast in the Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
revival of Arthur Miller
Arthur Miller
Arthur Asher Miller was an American playwright and essayist. He was a prominent figure in American theatre, writing dramas that include plays such as All My Sons , Death of a Salesman , The Crucible , and A View from the Bridge .Miller was often in the public eye,...
's The Crucible
The Crucible
The Crucible is a 1952 play by the American playwright Arthur Miller. It is a dramatization of the Salem witch trials that took place in the Province of Massachusetts Bay during 1692 and 1693. Miller wrote the play as an allegory of McCarthyism, when the US government blacklisted accused communists...
starring Liam Neeson
Liam Neeson
Liam John Neeson, OBE is an Irish actor who has been nominated for an Oscar, a BAFTA and three Golden Globe Awards.He has starred in a number of notable roles including Oskar Schindler in Schindler's List, Michael Collins in Michael Collins, Peyton Westlake in Darkman, Jean Valjean in Les...
and Laura Linney
Laura Linney
Laura Leggett Linney is an American actress of film, television, and theatre. Linney has won three Emmy Awards, two Golden Globes, and a Screen Actors Guild Award. She has been nominated for three times for an Academy Award and once for a BAFTA Award...
.
Career
Carpenter first attracted critical attention for her performance in The Exorcism of Emily RoseThe Exorcism of Emily Rose
The Exorcism of Emily Rose is a 2005 American courtroom drama horror film directed by Scott Derrickson. The film is loosely based on the story of Anneliese Michel and follows a self-proclaimed agnostic defense lawyer representing a parish priest who is accused by the state of negligent homicide...
. She took home the 2006 MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
Movie Award for "Best Frightened Performance," and also received a Hollywood Life Breakthrough Award. She was also named "Breakout Performer" at the 2006 Scream Awards
Scream Awards
The Scream Awards is an award show dedicated to the horror, sci-fi, and fantasy genres of feature films. Originally only having Scream Queen and Heroic Performance awards for actors, the personnel awards have expanded to include actors and actresses of all three recognized genres. In addition,...
.
Carpenter currently plays the role of Debra Morgan in the Showtime television series Dexter
Dexter (TV series)
Dexter is an American television drama series, which debuted on Showtime on October 1, 2006. The sixth season premiered on October 2, 2011. The series centers on Dexter Morgan , a bloodstain pattern analyst for the Miami Metro Police Department who moonlights as a serial killer...
which premiered October 1, 2006. Her portrayal of the title character
Dexter Morgan
Dexter Morgan is a fictional character in a series of novels by Jeff Lindsay, including Darkly Dreaming Dexter , Dearly Devoted Dexter , Dexter in the Dark , Dexter by Design , Dexter is Delicious and Double Dexter...
's sister has impressed some critics, with Australian journalist Jack Marx
Jack Marx
Jackson Gregory Marx , known as Jack Marx, is an Australian journalist and author. He was born in Maitland, New South Wales and is the second youngest of four children.- Career :...
describing her portrayal of "cool and clumsy" Debra as "so perfect that many viewers appear to have mistaken the character's flaws for the actor's."
In 2011, she starred in the Off-Broadway play Gruesome Playground Injuries at Second Stage Theatre
Second Stage Theatre
Second Stage Theatre is an award-winning contemporary Off-Broadway theater company.-Mission:The theatre's mission is to give new life to contemporary American plays and to produce the world premiers of new plays by both established and emerging playwrights...
.
Personal life
In 2007, she began dating her Dexter co-star Michael C. HallMichael C. Hall
Michael Carlyle Hall is an American actor whose television roles include David Fisher on the HBO drama series Six Feet Under and Dexter Morgan on the Showtime series Dexter. In 2009, Hall won a Golden Globe award and a Screen Actors Guild Award for his role in Dexter.-Early life:Hall was born in...
, who plays her character's adoptive brother. They elope
Elope
To elope, most literally, merely means to run away with a girl and to not come back to the point of origination. More specifically, elopement is often used to refer to a marriage conducted in sudden and secretive fashion, usually involving hurried flight away from one's place of residence together...
d on New Year's Eve
New Year's Eve
New Year's Eve is observed annually on December 31, the final day of any given year in the Gregorian calendar. In modern societies, New Year's Eve is often celebrated at social gatherings, during which participants dance, eat, consume alcoholic beverages, and watch or light fireworks to mark the...
, 2008 in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, and publicly appeared together for the first time as a married couple at the 66th Golden Globe Awards
66th Golden Globe Awards
The 66th Golden Globe Awards Ceremony was broadcast on January 11, 2009, from the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California, United States on the NBC TV network...
in January 2009. In December 2010, Hall and Carpenter released a statement announcing that they had filed for divorce after having been separated "for some time".
Filmography
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | People Are Dead | Angela's Friend #2 | |
| 2003 | Ash Tuesday | Samantha | aka Beyond the Ashes |
| 2004 | DEBS | Hysterical Student | |
| White Chicks White Chicks White Chicks is a 2004 American film directed by Keenen Ivory Wayans and written and produced by Keenen Wayans, Shawn Wayans and Marlon Wayans. The film was produced by Columbia Pictures and Revolution Studios... |
Lisa | ||
| 2005 | Last Days of America | Friend in New York #2 | |
| Lethal Eviction | Sarah / Tessi / Beth | ||
| The Exorcism of Emily Rose The Exorcism of Emily Rose The Exorcism of Emily Rose is a 2005 American courtroom drama horror film directed by Scott Derrickson. The film is loosely based on the story of Anneliese Michel and follows a self-proclaimed agnostic defense lawyer representing a parish priest who is accused by the state of negligent homicide... |
Emily Rose | MTV Movie Award for Best Frightened Performance MTV Movie Award for Best Frightened Performance This is a following list for the MTV Movie Award winners for Best Frightened Performance. The award was firstgiven out in 2005 and then 2006. In 2010 this award was renamed Best Scared-As-S**t Performance.-References:... Nominated — MTV Movie Award for Best Breakthrough Performance MTV Movie Award for Best Breakthrough Performance This is a following list of the MTV Movie Award winners and nominees for Best Breakthrough Performance. In many years, the awards were split into Male and Female categories... Nominated — Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress |
|
| 2006 | The Dog Problem The Dog Problem The Dog Problem is a 2006 comedy film directed and written by Scott Caan and was produced by Thousand Words Films.Along with Caan, the film stars Giovanni Ribisi, Lynn Collins, Kevin Corrigan, Sarah Shahi, and Mena Suvari... |
Redheaded Waitress | |
| 2008 | Battle in Seattle Battle in Seattle Battle in Seattle is a 2007 film and the directorial debut of actor Stuart Townsend. It is based on the protest activity at the WTO Ministerial Conference of 1999... |
Sam | |
| Quarantine | Angela Vidal | 2009: Reaper Awards "Best Zombie Film" 2009: Saturn Award for Best Horror Film Saturn Award for Best Horror Film The following are a list of Saturn Award winners for Best Horror Film:-References:... nomination 2009: Fangoria Chainsaw Awards: 2nd Place for Best Make-Up/Creature FX |
|
| 2010 | Faster Faster (2010 film) Faster is a 2010 American action film directed by George Tillman, Jr. It stars Dwayne Johnson, Billy Bob Thornton, Carla Gugino, Moon Bloodgood, Oliver Jackson-Cohen, and Maggie Grace. It was released in the United States on November 24, 2010.-Plot:... |
Nan Porterman | |
| 2011 | Ex-Girlfriends | Kate | completed |
| The Factory The Factory (film) The Factory is an upcoming thriller film directed by Morgan O'Neill and distributed by Warner Bros.-Plot:A cop is with his partner, on the trail of a serial killer prowling the streets of Buffalo, New York but when his teenage daughter disappears, he drops any professional restraint to get the... |
Kelsey Walker | completed | |
| Seeking Justice | |||
| 2012 | Gone Gone (2012 film) Gone is an upcoming thriller film written and directed by Heitor Dhalia and Allison Burnett. The film is scheduled for a theatrical release on February 24, 2012... |
Post-production | |
Television
| Year | Show | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Queen B (TV pilot) | Kristen | |
| 2006–present | Dexter Dexter (TV series) Dexter is an American television drama series, which debuted on Showtime on October 1, 2006. The sixth season premiered on October 2, 2011. The series centers on Dexter Morgan , a bloodstain pattern analyst for the Miami Metro Police Department who moonlights as a serial killer... |
Debra Morgan Debra Morgan Debra Morgan is a fictional character created by Jeff Lindsay for his Dexter book series. She also appears in the television series, based on Lindsay's books, portrayed by Jennifer Carpenter. In Lindsay's novels, she first appeared in Darkly Dreaming Dexter, and has featured in every novel... |
Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress on Television Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress on Television The following are a list of Saturn Award nominees & winners for Best Supporting Actress on Television:*1999: Justina Vail - Seven Days**Charisma Carpenter - Angel**Virginia Hey - Farscape**Heather Matarazzo - Now and Again... (2009) Nominated — Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress on Television Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress on Television The following are a list of Saturn Award nominees & winners for Best Supporting Actress on Television:*1999: Justina Vail - Seven Days**Charisma Carpenter - Angel**Virginia Hey - Farscape**Heather Matarazzo - Now and Again... (2007, 2008, 2010) Nominated — Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series (2009, 2010) |
| 2009 | Dexter: Early Cuts | Debra Morgan (voice) | episode "Gene Marshall: Chapter Three" |
External links
- Jennifer Carpenter at FEARnet