Kristen Bell
Encyclopedia
Kristen Anne Bell is an American actress. Although her first film role was an uncredited appearance in Polish Wedding
, Bell previously acted in stage and musical productions. In 2001, she made her Broadway debut as Becky Thatcher in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
. After moving to Los Angeles, Bell landed various television guest appearances and small film parts before appearing in a lead role in the David Mamet
film Spartan
. She gained fame and critical praise as the title role
on the critically acclaimed television series Veronica Mars
from September 2004 to May 2007.
During her time on Veronica Mars, Bell appeared as Mary Lane in the film Reefer Madness: The Movie Musical, a reprise of the role she had played in the New York theatrical production of the musical on which the film was based
. She also portrayed the lead role in Pulse, a remake of a J-Horror
film. In 2007, she joined the cast of Heroes
playing the character Elle Bishop
, and Gossip Girl
as the off-screen titular narrator. In 2008, she played the title character in the comedy movie Forgetting Sarah Marshall
. She has since appeared in a number of comedy films, such as Fanboys, Couples Retreat
, and When in Rome. Bell was also the voice of Cora in Astro Boy
and is the voice and face of Lucy Stillman in the Assassin's Creed
video game series. Bell has received a Satellite Award and Saturn Award
, and has been nominated several times for Television Critics Association Awards and Teen Choice Awards
.
, a suburb of Detroit. Her mother, Lorelei (née Frygier), is a registered nurse
, and her father, Tom Bell, is the television news director for WOAI-TV
in San Antonio. Bell is of Polish and Scottish
descent. Her parents divorced when she was two years old, and she has two half sisters, Sara and Jody, from her father's second marriage. She has four step-siblings from her mother's second marriage to John Raymond Avedian, Laura, John, Matt Avedian, and Megan. Bell has strabismus
, which affects her right eye. She inherited it from her mother, who had it corrected as a child. Bell claims that if she does not get enough sleep, it aggravates the ailment. She calls her right eye "Wonky".
Bell stated that she did not like her first name at the age of four. Her mother convinced Bell to go by her middle name of Anne instead; she used the name Annie until high school. She attended Burton Elementary school in Huntington Woods.
Just before her freshman year of high school, Bell's parents decided to pull her from the public school system. She then attended Shrine Catholic High School
in nearby Royal Oak, where she took part in the drama and music club. During her time at the school, she won the starring role in the school's 1997 production of The Wizard of Oz
as Dorothy Gale
and also appeared in productions of Fiddler on the Roof
(1995), Lady Be Good
(1996), and Li'l Abner
(1998). In 1998, the year she graduated, Bell was named the yearbook's "Best Looking Girl" by senior class vote.
When Bell was seventeen, her best friend, whom she met at age 11 during a Detroit community theater production, was killed in an automobile accident. Bell said that it was "both the best and worst thing that has ever happened to me. [...] Once you learn not to take people for granted, you live a lot happier life".
Shortly after her high school graduation, Bell moved to New York City to attend the Tisch School of the Arts
at New York University
, majoring in musical theater. In 2001, during her senior year at New York University, Bell left a few credits shy of graduating to take a role in the Broadway musical version of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
.
.
In 2001, Bell left New York University
to take a key role as Becky Thatcher in the short-lived Broadway musical of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
. That same year, she made her credited film debut in Pootie Tang
. Her one line in the film was cut and her appearance exists only as a scene shown during the credit sequence.
Additionally, she auditioned for the television series Smallville
for the role of Chloe Sullivan
, a part eventually won by Allison Mack
.
In 2002, she appeared in the Broadway revival of The Crucible
with Liam Neeson
, Angela Bettis
and Laura Linney
. Bell then moved to Los Angeles, California in 2002 because of her friendship with writers Kevin Murphy
and Dan Studney, and appeared in a handful of television shows as a special guest, finding trouble gaining a recurring role in a television series. Bell had "tested like eight times and booked nothing and every show [she] tested for got picked up," including auditions for Skin
and a Norm Macdonald
series.
In 2003, she landed a role in the Hallmark Channel
movie The King and Queen of Moonlight Bay. Bell appeared on the show Punk'd
.
In 2004, Bell appeared in the Lifetime television movie Gracie's Choice
, which received one of the network's highest ratings. She made her debut in a theatrically released film, with David Mamet
's Spartan
, as Laura Newton, the kidnapped daughter of the U.S. President, acting alongside Val Kilmer
. Bell also guest-starred on the HBO's drama Deadwood
in a two-episode story arc ("Bullock Returns to the Camp" and "Suffer the Little Children").
At 24 she won the role of the title character in UPN
's drama Veronica Mars
, which was launched in the fall of 2004. Created by Rob Thomas
, the series starred Bell as the seventeen year old detective Veronica
, which put her alongside actors Enrico Colantoni
who played her father, Jason Dohring
, Percy Daggs III
and Ryan Hansen
. Bell noted the parallels between the character of Veronica and her own life — Bell's parents had divorced and her best friend had also died, like that of Veronica. The series earned positive reviews from television critics, as did Bell's performance. Some critics felt that she was overlooked, however, and deserved an Emmy Award nomination.
In 2005, Bell starred in Reefer Madness: The Movie Musical, reprising the role she played in the short-lived 2001 off-broadway musical. The musical was a spoof of the 1936 exploitation film of the same name
. Reefer Madness: The Movie Musical debuted on the Showtime network on April 16, 2005. On September 18, 2005, Bell performed the theme song from Fame
on the "Emmy Idol" portion of the 57th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards. She and the cast of Veronica Mars
were nominated for two Teen Choice Awards in 2005: "Choice Breakout Actress" and "Choice Breakout TV Show".
In 2006, Bell won the Saturn Award
for "Best Actress on Television" for her acting on Veronica Mars, while the series was nominated for "Best Network Television Show". Aside from working on Veronica Mars, in April, Bell starred as Gracie in Fifty Pills
, an entry for the Tribeca Film Festival
. She appeared in a short independent film called The Receipt and the horror film Roman, which was directed by her The Crucible co-star Angela Bettis. Released on August 11, 2006, Pulse starred Bell as the lead Mattie. A remake of the Japanese horror film Kairo
, the film grossed US$27.9 million worldwide, however it garnered negative response from critics. Frank Scheck of The Hollywood Reporter
commented, "despite the starring presence of Kristen Bell, [the] young actress has far less interesting material to work with here than she does as [the character] "Veronica Mars.""
. On January 19, 2007 CW Entertainment President Dawn Ostroff
announced that, while she was pleased with the gradual improvement of Veronica Mars's ratings, the series would be put on hiatus after February sweeps to air a new reality series, Pussycat Dolls Present
. On May 17, 2007 Ostroff announced the cancellation of the series. The two-hour series finale aired in the United States on May 22, 2007, and on June 11, 2007 Thomas officially announced in an email to TV Guide's Michael Ausiello that Veronica Mars had been canceled by the CW. A Veronica Mars feature film and comic book series continuation had been discussed, and for a short time there was talk of another collaboration between Bell and creator Thomas that would be unrelated to the Veronica Mars series.
Following the cancellation of Veronica Mars, Bell had voiced interest in appearing on Heroes because she was a fan prior to being cast. On July 29, 2007, during a train ride back to Los Angeles from the San Diego Comic-Con
with Heroes actors Zachary Quinto
and Masi Oka
, and writers from the series, the writers had mentioned that if she "ever want[ed] to come on Heroes, give us [writers] a call," to which Bell said she would "love to." She was also spoken to about a role on Lost
, but turned down the role to portray Charlotte Staples Lewis. Announced in August 2007, Bell was to portray Elle Bishop
, a "mysterious young lady" with an "awesome power". She did not have to audition for the role of Elle, who made her first appearance in an October 2007 episode, and will appear in at least thirteen episodes during the run of the series. The casting of Bell, as Heroes creator Tim Kring
explains, "was not easy to pull off", but because of the large ensemble cast of the series and multiple story arc
s, "we found a way to jump into a small window in [Bell's] schedule." Concurrently with filming on Heroes, she narrates as title character in the CW series Gossip Girl
.
Shortly after the cancellation of Veronica Mars in early 2007, Bell filmed on location in Hawaii for her starring role as the title character in the Judd Apatow
comedy Forgetting Sarah Marshall
. She noted that the improvisational comedy in the film was "a lovely experience". The film, written by and also starring Jason Segel
, was released theatrically on April 18, 2008. Bell lent her voice and likeness to the video game Assassin's Creed
which was released on November 13, 2007 for the PlayStation 3
and Xbox 360
and April 8, 2008 for the PC
. Bell reprises her role of Lucy in Assassin's Creed II
released on November 17, 2009, and again in Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood
, released on 16 November 2010. In the spring of 2006, she finished filming the Star Wars
-themed comedy Fanboys, which had its release date pushed to January 14, 2008. This was due to additional funding given to director Kyle Newman
to shoot new scenes, however, the busy schedules of the actors only allowed for filming in September 2007, thus moving the release date to accommodate that. Bell will voice the character of Marybelle in the animated feature Sheepish, which also has a 2008 release date. She also starred in the 2009 comedies Serious Moonlight
, alongside Meg Ryan
, and Couples Retreat
, which chronicled four couples who partake in therapy sessions at a tropical island resort. Jason Bateman
played her husband. On March 31, 2008, Bell began shooting for the Mark Steven Johnson
-written Disney film When in Rome in locations in Rome and New York; the film was released in 2010. Bell reprised her role as Sarah Marshall for a cameo appearance in the film Get Him to the Greek
, a spin-off sequel
from Forgetting Sarah Marshall, released June 4, 2010.
Bell has also said that when she is free from film and television roles, she would like to perform on stage again. She co-starred with singers Christina Aguilera
and Cher
in the movie-musical Burlesque
which was released on Thanksgiving in 2010.
Bell had a cameo in Scream 4
, which was released on April 15, 2011. She is also attached to the films Everybody Loves Whales and Dance of the Mirlitons.
She has also appeared in the music video for "Madder Red" by Brooklyn experimental rock
band Yeasayer
.
Bell portrays the role of "Mary Magdalene" in "The Truth & Life Dramatized Audio New Testament Bible," a 22-hour, celebrity-voiced, fully dramatized audio New Testament which uses the RSV-CE translation.
She is the female lead on the new series House of Lies
directed by Stephen Hopkins
. The show is expected to premiere on Showtime on January 8, 2012.
magazine as "one of the 11 people you'd most like to see naked", and in 2006, Bell was selected "World's Sexiest Vegetarian" on PETA
's yearly poll. She was placed #68 on Maxim
' s 2005 "Hot 100" list, #11 in Maxim' s 2006 "Hot 100" list, and #46 in Maxim' s 2007 "Hot 100" list in which she was stated to have "single-handedly saved the CW from becoming the worst network ever." In 2006, Maxim also placed Bell at the top of the "Fall TV's Criminally Sexy Investigators" List. In 2008, she was featured at #59 on Ask Mens Top 99 Women of 2008 List. Reflecting on her admitted popularity with "geeks", Bell was voted the fourth sexiest woman on TV by the staff at Wizard magazine
.
She stated to have never thought of herself as womanly because she "always play[ed roles] and look[ed] and act[ed] 10 years younger than [she is]", however as she explains, "Something magical happened when I turned 25 — I looked in the mirror and was like, You might not get carded for an R-rated movie anymore. Like I didn't have a little stick figure anymore." Bell has said that many of the characters she has played are tomboy
s because she was "not homely enough to play the nerd
y girl and not nearly pretty enough to play the pretty girl".
Bell has been associated with the idea that "nerdy is the new cool", and she explains, "what was previously perceived as nerdy is now viewed as original. What I like about nerdiness, geek
iness, is it doesn't really matter what you're into — it just means you're not a follower." She has also said, "I love nerds. Comic-Con
junkies are the tastemakers of tomorrow. Isn't that funny? The tables have turned." Vanessa Juarez of Entertainment Weekly
commented that Bell's role on Veronica Mars, Heroes and as a Star Wars
fanatic in Fanboys has "solidif[ied] her placement at the center of the geek universe", while Rodney Rothman
stated, "I guess she's cornered the market on losers." Bell's work is often compared to Sarah Michelle Gellar
's portrayal of the titular character
on the cult
television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Frank Scheck of The Hollywood Reporter
stated that Bell was "arguably the television successor [to Gellar's portrayal of Buffy] when it comes to fighting bad guys." Bell is sometimes confused with Lauren Conrad
from the show The Hills
. "Yeah, sometimes fans yell, 'Hey, Lauren' to me, but usually from a distance," said Kristen.
Despite "new celebrity" status, Bell claims that she is not concerned because "no one ever recognizes [her] anyway". As Bell explains, "I hang out with Hayden
quite a bit — they never take pictures of me. I just step to the side, and I push myself in front of her when she wants to get out of it, or put her in the car." Bell is a recurring guest on The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson
, appearing in interviews as well as sketches. On the Late Late Show, she is shown to have garnered a humorous hostility towards Craig's robot skeleton sidekick Geoff Peterson, claiming that she had wanted to be Craig's sidekick on his show and taking it upon herself to cut Geoff down every chance she gets. Both Bell and Geoff Peterson appeared with Ferguson during the five Late Late shows filmed in France.
In January 2011 it was announced that Bell would be the new face of Neutrogena
.
At age 11, Bell became a vegetarian
. In an interview with PETA, Bell stated, "I have always been an animal lover. I had a hard time disassociating the animals I cuddled with — dogs and cats, for example — from the animals on my plate, and I never really cared for the taste of meat. I always loved my Brussels sprout
s!" During her time in Michigan, Bell fostered animals from Michigan Humane Society
and she now supports the San Diego-based Helen Woodward Animal Center. Bell often attends fund raisers for the ASPCA and other non-profit organizations dedicated to protecting animals. She owns a Welsh Corgi
-Chow Chow
mix named Lola, a Welsh Corgi
-Chihuahua
mix named Shakey, and a black Labrador Retriever
named Sadie, who was 11 years old when she was rescued from Hurricane Katrina
and adopted by Bell in 2005.
She and many of those who worked on Veronica Mars, including personal friend Ryan Hansen
, are involved with the charity organization Invisible Children Inc. The goal of the organization is to create awareness regarding the plight of Northern Ugandans
who are caught in the midst of a civil war
between the government and Joseph Kony
's Lord's Resistance Army
. Bell has also done a public service announcement for Do Something
's Healthy Living Campaign.
Bell supported and campaigned for Barack Obama
during the 2008 presidential election. Along with Rashida Jones
, she visited college campuses in Missouri
to discuss the candidates and encourage voter registration. Bell has shown her support for the Writers Guild of America
in the writer's strike, appearing in the picket lines in December 2007 stating, "the writers are just looking for some fairness."
In 2007, Bell ended a five-year relationship with former fiancé Kevin Mann
, and went on to date actor Dax Shepard
. As of January 2010, she is engaged to Shepard. She told Complex magazine that dating "makes me want to vomit. And not out of grossness — OK, a little bit out of grossness, but just nerves." Bell explains, "I've always been a serial monogamist."
As she is a Detroit native, she is also an avid fan of the Detroit Red Wings
hockey team.
Theatre
Video games
, for Veronica Mars
2005 :Satellite Award, for Reefer Madness: The Movie Musical
2008 :Teen Choice Award, for Forgetting Sarah Marshall
2007 :Saturn Award
, for Veronica Mars
2006 :Satellite Award, for Veronica Mars
2005 :Satellite Award, for Veronica Mars
Polish Wedding
Polish Wedding is a 1998 comedy/drama film written and directed by Theresa Connelly.It was screened at the Sundance Film Festival on January 16, 1998 and at the Berlin International Film Festival on February 12...
, Bell previously acted in stage and musical productions. In 2001, she made her Broadway debut as Becky Thatcher in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain is an 1876 novel about a young boy growing up along the Mississippi River. The story is set in the Town of "St...
. After moving to Los Angeles, Bell landed various television guest appearances and small film parts before appearing in a lead role in the David Mamet
David Mamet
David Alan Mamet is an American playwright, essayist, screenwriter and film director.Best known as a playwright, Mamet won a Pulitzer Prize and received a Tony nomination for Glengarry Glen Ross . He also received a Tony nomination for Speed-the-Plow . As a screenwriter, he received Oscar...
film Spartan
Spartan (film)
Spartan is a 2004 American political thriller film written and directed by David Mamet. It features Val Kilmer, Derek Luke, Tia Texada, Ed O'Neill, William H. Macy, and Kristen Bell. It was released in The United States and Canada on 12 March 2004....
. She gained fame and critical praise as the title role
Veronica Mars (character)
Veronica Mars is a fictional character in UPN/The CW the television series, Veronica Mars, which aired on the UPN and CW networks from 2004 to 2007. She is portrayed by Kristen Bell.- Background and details of plot :...
on the critically acclaimed television series Veronica Mars
Veronica Mars
Veronica Mars is an American television series created by Rob Thomas. The series premiered on September 22, 2004, during television network UPN's final two years, and ended on May 22, 2007, after a season on UPN's successor, The CW Television Network. Veronica Mars was produced by Warner Bros...
from September 2004 to May 2007.
During her time on Veronica Mars, Bell appeared as Mary Lane in the film Reefer Madness: The Movie Musical, a reprise of the role she had played in the New York theatrical production of the musical on which the film was based
Reefer Madness (musical)
Reefer Madness is a musical satire of the 1936 cult classic Reefer Madness that opened in Los Angeles in 1998. The book and lyrics were written by Kevin Murphy and the music by Dan Studney. Directed by Andy Fickman, it was initially shown at the Hudson Theater on Santa Monica Boulevard in Los...
. She also portrayed the lead role in Pulse, a remake of a J-Horror
J-Horror
Japanese horror, or J-Horror, is Japanese horror fiction in popular culture, noted for its unique thematic and conventional treatment of the horror genre in light of western treatments...
film. In 2007, she joined the cast of Heroes
Heroes (TV series)
Heroes is an American science fiction television drama series created by Tim Kring that appeared on NBC for four seasons from September 25, 2006 through February 8, 2010. The series tells the stories of ordinary people who discover superhuman abilities, and how these abilities take effect in the...
playing the character Elle Bishop
Elle Bishop
Eleanor Zoe Bishop, mostly known as Elle, is a fictional character on the NBC series Heroes. She is portrayed by Kristen Bell. Elle appeared as one of the new characters introduced in Season Two and according to contract, would continue on the series for at least 13 episodes into Season Three.Elle...
, and Gossip Girl
Gossip Girl (TV series)
Gossip Girl is an American teen drama television series based on the book series of the same name written by Cecily von Ziegesar. The series was created by Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage, and premiered on The CW on September 19, 2007...
as the off-screen titular narrator. In 2008, she played the title character in the comedy movie Forgetting Sarah Marshall
Forgetting Sarah Marshall
Forgetting Sarah Marshall is a 2008 American romantic comedy film directed by Nicholas Stoller and starring Jason Segel, Kristen Bell, Mila Kunis and Russell Brand...
. She has since appeared in a number of comedy films, such as Fanboys, Couples Retreat
Couples Retreat
Couples Retreat is a 2009 American comedy film written and directed by Peter Billingsley with contributions to the script by Jon Favreau, Vince Vaughn, Dana Fox, Curtis Hanson, and Greg Beeman. Vaughn and Favreau star with Faizon Love, Jason Bateman, Kristin Davis, Kristen Bell, Malin Åkerman and...
, and When in Rome. Bell was also the voice of Cora in Astro Boy
Astro Boy (film)
Astro Boy, also called in Japan, is a 2009 computer-animated film loosely based on the long-running Japanese series of the same name by Osamu Tezuka. It was produced by Imagi Animation Studios, the animation production company of TMNT. The studio announced the project in September 2006...
and is the voice and face of Lucy Stillman in the Assassin's Creed
Assassin's Creed (series)
Assassin's Creed is a historical science fiction Action Adventure game series that as of 2011 consists of four main games and a number of supporting materials. The games have appeared on the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation Vita, Mac OS X, Nintendo DS, PlayStation Portable,...
video game series. Bell has received a Satellite Award and Saturn Award
Saturn Award
The Saturn Award is an award presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films to honor the top works in science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, television, and home video. The Saturn Awards were devised by Dr. Donald A. Reed in 1972, who felt that films within...
, and has been nominated several times for Television Critics Association Awards and Teen Choice Awards
Teen Choice Awards
The Teen Choice Awards, are an annual awards show that air on the Fox cable channel, that honor the year's biggest biggest achievements in music, movies, sports, television, fashion and more, voted by teen viewers aged 14 through 17. Winners receive an authentic full size surfboard designed with...
.
Early life and family
Bell was born and raised in Huntington Woods, MichiganHuntington Woods, Michigan
Huntington Woods is a city in southern Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 6,238 at the 2010 census. Huntington Woods is an inner suburb of Detroit and is bounded by Ten Mile and Eleven Mile Roads to the north and south, and by Coolidge Highway and Woodward Avenue to...
, a suburb of Detroit. Her mother, Lorelei (née Frygier), is a registered nurse
Registered nurse
A registered nurse is a nurse who has graduated from a nursing program at a university or college and has passed a national licensing exam. A registered nurse helps individuals, families, and groups to achieve health and prevent disease...
, and her father, Tom Bell, is the television news director for WOAI-TV
WOAI-TV
WOAI-TV, virtual channel 4 , is the NBC affiliate television station serving the San Antonio, Texas metropolitan area. Its transmitter is located in Elmendorf, Texas, with its studios located in downtown San Antonio....
in San Antonio. Bell is of Polish and Scottish
Scottish people
The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
descent. Her parents divorced when she was two years old, and she has two half sisters, Sara and Jody, from her father's second marriage. She has four step-siblings from her mother's second marriage to John Raymond Avedian, Laura, John, Matt Avedian, and Megan. Bell has strabismus
Strabismus
Strabismus is a condition in which the eyes are not properly aligned with each other. It typically involves a lack of coordination between the extraocular muscles, which prevents bringing the gaze of each eye to the same point in space and preventing proper binocular vision, which may adversely...
, which affects her right eye. She inherited it from her mother, who had it corrected as a child. Bell claims that if she does not get enough sleep, it aggravates the ailment. She calls her right eye "Wonky".
Bell stated that she did not like her first name at the age of four. Her mother convinced Bell to go by her middle name of Anne instead; she used the name Annie until high school. She attended Burton Elementary school in Huntington Woods.
Just before her freshman year of high school, Bell's parents decided to pull her from the public school system. She then attended Shrine Catholic High School
Shrine Catholic High School
Shrine Catholic High School is a private, co-educational, Roman Catholic secondary high school located in Royal Oak, Michigan, affiliated with National Shrine of the Little Flower Church. It has an attached middle school called the "Academy"...
in nearby Royal Oak, where she took part in the drama and music club. During her time at the school, she won the starring role in the school's 1997 production of The Wizard of Oz
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is a children's novel written by L. Frank Baum and illustrated by W. W. Denslow. Originally published by the George M. Hill Company in Chicago on May 17, 1900, it has since been reprinted numerous times, most often under the name The Wizard of Oz, which is the name of...
as Dorothy Gale
Dorothy Gale
Dorothy Gale is the protagonist of many of the Oz novels by American author L. Frank Baum, and the best friend of Oz's ruler Princess Ozma. Dorothy first appears in Baum's classic children's novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and reappears in most of its sequels...
and also appeared in productions of Fiddler on the Roof
Fiddler on the Roof
Fiddler on the Roof is a musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book by Joseph Stein, set in Tsarist Russia in 1905. It is based on Tevye and his Daughters by Sholem Aleichem...
(1995), Lady Be Good
Lady Be Good (musical)
Lady, Be Good is a musical written by Guy Bolton and Fred Thompson with music by George and lyrics by Ira Gershwin. It was first presented on Broadway in 1924; the West End production followed in 1926...
(1996), and Li'l Abner
Li'l Abner (musical)
Li'l Abner is a musical with a book by Norman Panama and Melvin Frank, music by Gene De Paul, and lyrics by Johnny Mercer.Based on the comic strip Li'l Abner by Al Capp, the show is, on the surface, a broad spoof of hillbillies but is also a pointed satire taking on any number of topics, ranging...
(1998). In 1998, the year she graduated, Bell was named the yearbook's "Best Looking Girl" by senior class vote.
When Bell was seventeen, her best friend, whom she met at age 11 during a Detroit community theater production, was killed in an automobile accident. Bell said that it was "both the best and worst thing that has ever happened to me. [...] Once you learn not to take people for granted, you live a lot happier life".
Shortly after her high school graduation, Bell moved to New York City to attend the Tisch School of the Arts
Tisch School of the Arts
Tisch School of the Arts is one of the 15 schools that make up New York University ....
at New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
, majoring in musical theater. In 2001, during her senior year at New York University, Bell left a few credits shy of graduating to take a role in the Broadway musical version of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (musical)
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer is a musical comedy based on the novel by Mark Twain with the book by Ken Ludwig and music and lyrics by Don Schlitz....
.
Early work (1992–2003)
In 1992, Bell went to her first audition and won a dual role as a banana and a tree in a suburban Detroit theater's production of Raggedy Ann and Andy. Her mother had established her with an agent before Bell was 13, which allowed her to appear in newspaper advertisements for several Detroit retailers and television commercials. She also began private acting lessons. In 1998, she appeared with an uncredited role in the locally filmed movie Polish WeddingPolish Wedding
Polish Wedding is a 1998 comedy/drama film written and directed by Theresa Connelly.It was screened at the Sundance Film Festival on January 16, 1998 and at the Berlin International Film Festival on February 12...
.
In 2001, Bell left New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
to take a key role as Becky Thatcher in the short-lived Broadway musical of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (musical)
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer is a musical comedy based on the novel by Mark Twain with the book by Ken Ludwig and music and lyrics by Don Schlitz....
. That same year, she made her credited film debut in Pootie Tang
Pootie Tang
Pootie Tang is an American comedy film written and directed by Louis C.K. and released in 2001. It was adapted from a comedy sketch that first appeared on The Chris Rock Show. The character Pootie Tang is a satire of the stereotyped characters who appeared in old blaxploitation films...
. Her one line in the film was cut and her appearance exists only as a scene shown during the credit sequence.
Additionally, she auditioned for the television series Smallville
Smallville (TV series)
Smallville is an American television series developed by writers/producers Alfred Gough and Miles Millar based on the DC Comics character Superman, originally created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. The television series was initially broadcast by The WB Television Network , premiering on October...
for the role of Chloe Sullivan
Chloe Sullivan
Chloe Sullivan is a fictional character from the television series Smallville. Series regular Allison Mack has portrayed the character since the pilot episode; two other actresses performed the role of Chloe Sullivan as a child. The character was created exclusively for Smallville, by series...
, a part eventually won by Allison Mack
Allison Mack
Not to be confused with Alison MacAllison Mack is an American actress. She is best known for her role of Chloe Sullivan on the Superman-inspired television series Smallville.-Early life:...
.
In 2002, she appeared in the Broadway revival of 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...
with 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...
, Angela Bettis
Angela Bettis
Angela Marie Bettis is an American actress, film producer and director best known for her lead roles in the 2002 TV remake of the Stephen King film Carrie, the title character in May , and in Girl, Interrupted as the anorexic girl Janet Webber.-Early life:Bettis was born in Austin, Texas to Mary...
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...
. Bell then moved to Los Angeles, California in 2002 because of her friendship with writers Kevin Murphy
Kevin Murphy (screenwriter)
Kevin Murphy is an American screenwriter, television producer, lyricist and composer. He wrote the book and lyrics of the musical Reefer Madness, as well as its television adaptation...
and Dan Studney, and appeared in a handful of television shows as a special guest, finding trouble gaining a recurring role in a television series. Bell had "tested like eight times and booked nothing and every show [she] tested for got picked up," including auditions for Skin
Skin (TV series)
Skin is a television serial drama which aired at 9:00 p.m. Monday on Fox in 2003. It followed the tale of two teenagers who came from feuding families on opposite sides of the moral and legal spectrum. Adam is the son of the Los Angeles District Attorney, and Jewel is the daughter of a pornographer...
and a Norm Macdonald
Norm MacDonald
Norman Gene "Norm" Macdonald is a Canadian stand-up comedian, writer and actor. He is best known for his five seasons as a cast member on Saturday Night Live, which included anchoring Weekend Update for three years...
series.
In 2003, she landed a role in the Hallmark Channel
Hallmark Channel
The Hallmark Channel is a cable television network that broadcasts across the United States. Their programming includes a mix of television movies/miniseries, syndicated series, and lifestyle shows that are appropriate for the whole family...
movie The King and Queen of Moonlight Bay. Bell appeared on the show Punk'd
Punk'd
Punk'd is an American hidden camera/practical joke reality television series that first aired on MTV in 2003 and was created by Ashton Kutcher and Jason Goldberg, produced and hosted by Ashton Kutcher. It bore a resemblance to both the classic hidden camera show Candid Camera and to TV's Bloopers...
.
Breakout (2004–06)
Gracie's Choice
Gracie's Choice is a 2004 television movie that premiered on Lifetime, written by Joyce Eliason and directed by Peter Werner, and starring Kristen Bell Anne Heche Diane Ladd and Kristin Fairlie...
, which received one of the network's highest ratings. She made her debut in a theatrically released film, with David Mamet
David Mamet
David Alan Mamet is an American playwright, essayist, screenwriter and film director.Best known as a playwright, Mamet won a Pulitzer Prize and received a Tony nomination for Glengarry Glen Ross . He also received a Tony nomination for Speed-the-Plow . As a screenwriter, he received Oscar...
's Spartan
Spartan (film)
Spartan is a 2004 American political thriller film written and directed by David Mamet. It features Val Kilmer, Derek Luke, Tia Texada, Ed O'Neill, William H. Macy, and Kristen Bell. It was released in The United States and Canada on 12 March 2004....
, as Laura Newton, the kidnapped daughter of the U.S. President, acting alongside Val Kilmer
Val Kilmer
Val Edward Kilmer is an American actor. Originally a stage actor, Kilmer became popular in the mid-1980s after a string of appearances in comedy films, starting with Top Secret! , then the cult classic Real Genius , as well as blockbuster action films, including a supporting role in Top Gun and a...
. Bell also guest-starred on the HBO's drama Deadwood
Deadwood (TV series)
Deadwood is an American Western drama television series created, produced and largely written by David Milch. The series aired on the premium cable network HBO from March 21, 2004, to August 27, 2006, spanning three 12-episode seasons. The show is set in the 1870s in Deadwood, South Dakota, before...
in a two-episode story arc ("Bullock Returns to the Camp" and "Suffer the Little Children").
At 24 she won the role of the title character in UPN
UPN
United Paramount Network was a television network that was broadcast in over 200 markets in the United States from 1995 to 2006. UPN was originally owned by Viacom/Paramount and Chris-Craft Industries, the former of which, through the Paramount Television Group, produced most of the network's...
's drama Veronica Mars
Veronica Mars
Veronica Mars is an American television series created by Rob Thomas. The series premiered on September 22, 2004, during television network UPN's final two years, and ended on May 22, 2007, after a season on UPN's successor, The CW Television Network. Veronica Mars was produced by Warner Bros...
, which was launched in the fall of 2004. Created by Rob Thomas
Rob Thomas (writer)
Rob Thomas is an American author, producer, and screenwriter, best known as the author of the 1996 novel Rats Saw God and creator of the critically acclaimed television programs Veronica Mars and Party Down.-Education and early career:Thomas graduated from San Marcos High School in 1983 and went...
, the series starred Bell as the seventeen year old detective Veronica
Veronica Mars (character)
Veronica Mars is a fictional character in UPN/The CW the television series, Veronica Mars, which aired on the UPN and CW networks from 2004 to 2007. She is portrayed by Kristen Bell.- Background and details of plot :...
, which put her alongside actors Enrico Colantoni
Enrico Colantoni
Enrico Colantoni is a Canadian actor, probably best known for portraying Elliot DiMauro in the sitcom Just Shoot Me!, Keith Mars on the television series Veronica Mars, and Sergeant Greg Parker on the television series Flashpoint. He has also had supporting roles in such films as The Wrong Guy, ...
who played her father, Jason Dohring
Jason Dohring
Jason William Dohring is an American actor who is best known for his role as Logan Echolls on the 2004 television show Veronica Mars and for his role as Josef Kostan on the 2007 series Moonlight.-Personal life:...
, Percy Daggs III
Percy Daggs III
Percy Daggs III is an American actor best known for his role as Wallace Fennel in the Rob Thomas television series Veronica Mars. He is also known for starring in television commercials for Hot Pockets and Orbit Gum...
and Ryan Hansen
Ryan Hansen
Ryan Hansen is an American actor, best known for having portrayed Dick Casablancas on Veronica Mars and Nolan in Friday the 13th...
. Bell noted the parallels between the character of Veronica and her own life — Bell's parents had divorced and her best friend had also died, like that of Veronica. The series earned positive reviews from television critics, as did Bell's performance. Some critics felt that she was overlooked, however, and deserved an Emmy Award nomination.
In 2005, Bell starred in Reefer Madness: The Movie Musical, reprising the role she played in the short-lived 2001 off-broadway musical. The musical was a spoof of the 1936 exploitation film of the same name
Reefer Madness
Reefer Madness is a well-known 1936 American propaganda exploitation film revolving around the melodramatic events that ensue when high school students are lured by pushers to try "marijuana" — from a hit and run accident, to manslaughter, suicide, attempted rape, and descent into madness...
. Reefer Madness: The Movie Musical debuted on the Showtime network on April 16, 2005. On September 18, 2005, Bell performed the theme song from Fame
Fame (1982 TV series)
Fame is an American television series originally produced between 1982 and 1987. The show was based on the 1980 motion picture of the same name. Using a mixture of drama and music, it followed the lives of the students and faculty at the New York City High School for the Performing Arts. Although...
on the "Emmy Idol" portion of the 57th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards. She and the cast of Veronica Mars
Veronica Mars
Veronica Mars is an American television series created by Rob Thomas. The series premiered on September 22, 2004, during television network UPN's final two years, and ended on May 22, 2007, after a season on UPN's successor, The CW Television Network. Veronica Mars was produced by Warner Bros...
were nominated for two Teen Choice Awards in 2005: "Choice Breakout Actress" and "Choice Breakout TV Show".
In 2006, Bell won the Saturn Award
Saturn Award
The Saturn Award is an award presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films to honor the top works in science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, television, and home video. The Saturn Awards were devised by Dr. Donald A. Reed in 1972, who felt that films within...
for "Best Actress on Television" for her acting on Veronica Mars, while the series was nominated for "Best Network Television Show". Aside from working on Veronica Mars, in April, Bell starred as Gracie in Fifty Pills
Fifty Pills
Fifty Pills is the debut feature film of director Theo Avgerinos, which premiered at the 2006 Tribeca Film Festival.-Plot:...
, an entry for the Tribeca Film Festival
Tribeca Film Festival
The Tribeca Film Festival is a film festival founded in 2002 by Jane Rosenthal, Robert De Niro and Craig Hatkoff in a response to the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center and the consequent loss of vitality in the TriBeCa neighborhood in Lower Manhattan.The mission of the festival...
. She appeared in a short independent film called The Receipt and the horror film Roman, which was directed by her The Crucible co-star Angela Bettis. Released on August 11, 2006, Pulse starred Bell as the lead Mattie. A remake of the Japanese horror film Kairo
Kairo (film)
is a 2001 Japanese horror film directed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa. The film was based on his novel of the same name, and was released in the United States in 2005 as Pulse. The film was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival...
, the film grossed US$27.9 million worldwide, however it garnered negative response from critics. Frank Scheck of The Hollywood Reporter
The Hollywood Reporter
Formerly a daily trade magazine, The Hollywood Reporter re-launched in late 2010 as a unique hybrid publication serving the entertainment industry and a consumer audience...
commented, "despite the starring presence of Kristen Bell, [the] young actress has far less interesting material to work with here than she does as [the character] "Veronica Mars.""
Recent and future roles (2007–present)
Veronica Mars continued on UPN until the third season, in which the show was renewed and returned on the newly created The CWThe CW Television Network
The CW Television Network is a television network in the United States launched at the beginning of the 2006–2007 television season. It is a joint venture between CBS Corporation, the former owners of United Paramount Network , and Time Warner's Warner Bros., former majority owner of The WB...
. On January 19, 2007 CW Entertainment President Dawn Ostroff
Dawn Ostroff
Dawn Tarnofsky-Ostroff was the former President of Entertainment of The CW Television Network. She was in charge of all creative efforts of the network and oversees such areas as current programming, series development, scheduling, research, marketing and publicity.-Career:Ostroff began her career...
announced that, while she was pleased with the gradual improvement of Veronica Mars's ratings, the series would be put on hiatus after February sweeps to air a new reality series, Pussycat Dolls Present
Pussycat Dolls Present: The Search For the Next Doll
Pussycat Dolls Present: The Search for the Next Doll is the first season of Pussycat Dolls Present: that premiered on March 6, 2007 on The CW, and took place over the course of eight weeks...
. On May 17, 2007 Ostroff announced the cancellation of the series. The two-hour series finale aired in the United States on May 22, 2007, and on June 11, 2007 Thomas officially announced in an email to TV Guide's Michael Ausiello that Veronica Mars had been canceled by the CW. A Veronica Mars feature film and comic book series continuation had been discussed, and for a short time there was talk of another collaboration between Bell and creator Thomas that would be unrelated to the Veronica Mars series.
Following the cancellation of Veronica Mars, Bell had voiced interest in appearing on Heroes because she was a fan prior to being cast. On July 29, 2007, during a train ride back to Los Angeles from the San Diego Comic-Con
Comic-Con International
San Diego Comic-Con International, also known as Comic-Con International: San Diego , and commonly known as Comic-Con or the San Diego Comic-Con, was founded as the Golden State Comic Book Convention and later the San Diego Comic Book Convention in 1970 by Shel Dorf and a group of San Diegans...
with Heroes actors Zachary Quinto
Zachary Quinto
Zachary John Quinto is an American actor and producer. Quinto grew up in Pennsylvania and was active in high school musical theater. In the early 2000s he guest starred in television series and appeared in a recurring role in the serial drama 24 from 2003 to 2004...
and Masi Oka
Masi Oka
Masayori "Masi" Oka is a Japanese-American actor and digital effects artist.He has performed in numerous feature films and TV series, most prominently as Hiro Nakamura in the NBC TV series Heroes from 2006 until its cancellation in May 2010. He resides in Los Angeles, California.-Early life:Oka...
, and writers from the series, the writers had mentioned that if she "ever want[ed] to come on Heroes, give us [writers] a call," to which Bell said she would "love to." She was also spoken to about a role on Lost
Lost (TV series)
Lost is an American television series that originally aired on ABC from September 22, 2004 to May 23, 2010, consisting of six seasons. Lost is a drama series that follows the survivors of the crash of a commercial passenger jet flying between Sydney and Los Angeles, on a mysterious tropical island...
, but turned down the role to portray Charlotte Staples Lewis. Announced in August 2007, Bell was to portray Elle Bishop
Elle Bishop
Eleanor Zoe Bishop, mostly known as Elle, is a fictional character on the NBC series Heroes. She is portrayed by Kristen Bell. Elle appeared as one of the new characters introduced in Season Two and according to contract, would continue on the series for at least 13 episodes into Season Three.Elle...
, a "mysterious young lady" with an "awesome power". She did not have to audition for the role of Elle, who made her first appearance in an October 2007 episode, and will appear in at least thirteen episodes during the run of the series. The casting of Bell, as Heroes creator Tim Kring
Tim Kring
Richard Timothy "Tim" Kring is an American screenwriter and television producer, best known for his creation of the television series Strange World, Crossing Jordan, and Heroes.Kring is Jewish...
explains, "was not easy to pull off", but because of the large ensemble cast of the series and multiple story arc
Story arc
A story arc is an extended or continuing storyline in episodic storytelling media such as television, comic books, comic strips, boardgames, video games, and in some cases, films. On a television program, for example, the story would unfold over many episodes. In television, the use of the story...
s, "we found a way to jump into a small window in [Bell's] schedule." Concurrently with filming on Heroes, she narrates as title character in the CW series Gossip Girl
Gossip Girl (TV series)
Gossip Girl is an American teen drama television series based on the book series of the same name written by Cecily von Ziegesar. The series was created by Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage, and premiered on The CW on September 19, 2007...
.
Shortly after the cancellation of Veronica Mars in early 2007, Bell filmed on location in Hawaii for her starring role as the title character in the Judd Apatow
Judd Apatow
Judd Apatow is an American film producer, director, and screenwriter. He is well known for his work in comedy films, especially for films he has been involved with throughout the latter half of the 2000s. He is the founder of Apatow Productions, a film production company that also developed the...
comedy Forgetting Sarah Marshall
Forgetting Sarah Marshall
Forgetting Sarah Marshall is a 2008 American romantic comedy film directed by Nicholas Stoller and starring Jason Segel, Kristen Bell, Mila Kunis and Russell Brand...
. She noted that the improvisational comedy in the film was "a lovely experience". The film, written by and also starring Jason Segel
Jason Segel
Jason Jordan Segel is an American television and film actor, screenwriter, composer, puppeteer and musician, known for his work with producer Judd Apatow on the short-lived television series Freaks and Geeks and Undeclared, the films Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Knocked Up, I Love You, Man,...
, was released theatrically on April 18, 2008. Bell lent her voice and likeness to the video game Assassin's Creed
Assassin's Creed
Assassin's Creed is an award-winning historical third person, stealth action-adventure video game developed by Ubisoft for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Microsoft Windows. The bulk of the game takes place during the Third Crusade, with the plot revolving around a sect known as the Secret Order of...
which was released on November 13, 2007 for the PlayStation 3
PlayStation 3
The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
and Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
and April 8, 2008 for the PC
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
. Bell reprises her role of Lucy in Assassin's Creed II
Assassin's Creed II
Assassin's Creed II is a historical third-person action-adventure video game developed by Ubisoft Montreal and published by Ubisoft for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X. It is the second video game installment of the Assassin's Creed series, and is a sequel to the 2007 video...
released on November 17, 2009, and again in Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood
Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood
Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood is a historical third person, stealth action-adventure video game developed by Ubisoft for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X. It was released for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in November 2010, Microsoft Windows in March 2011 and Mac OS X in May 2011...
, released on 16 November 2010. In the spring of 2006, she finished filming the Star Wars
Star Wars
Star Wars is an American epic space opera film series created by George Lucas. The first film in the series was originally released on May 25, 1977, under the title Star Wars, by 20th Century Fox, and became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon, followed by two sequels, released at three-year...
-themed comedy Fanboys, which had its release date pushed to January 14, 2008. This was due to additional funding given to director Kyle Newman
Kyle Newman
Kyle Newman is an American film producer, director, writer, editor and actor. He is brother to The Simpsons and Futurama designer Kevin Newman. In January 2005, while working on the set of Fanboys, he met actress and model Jaime King. Within three months of dating, the two moved in together...
to shoot new scenes, however, the busy schedules of the actors only allowed for filming in September 2007, thus moving the release date to accommodate that. Bell will voice the character of Marybelle in the animated feature Sheepish, which also has a 2008 release date. She also starred in the 2009 comedies Serious Moonlight
Serious Moonlight (2009 film)
Serious Moonlight is a 2009 black comedy film directed by Cheryl Hines. It stars Meg Ryan, Timothy Hutton, Kristen Bell, and Justin Long. It was released by Magnolia Pictures on 4 December 2009.-Plot:...
, alongside Meg Ryan
Meg Ryan
Margaret Mary Emily Anne Hyra , professionally known as Meg Ryan, is an American actress and producer. Raised in Bethel, Connecticut, Ryan began her acting career in 1981 in minor roles, before joining the cast of the CBS soap opera As the World Turns in 1982...
, and Couples Retreat
Couples Retreat
Couples Retreat is a 2009 American comedy film written and directed by Peter Billingsley with contributions to the script by Jon Favreau, Vince Vaughn, Dana Fox, Curtis Hanson, and Greg Beeman. Vaughn and Favreau star with Faizon Love, Jason Bateman, Kristin Davis, Kristen Bell, Malin Åkerman and...
, which chronicled four couples who partake in therapy sessions at a tropical island resort. Jason Bateman
Jason Bateman
Jason Kent Bateman is an American television and film actor. After appearing in several 1980s and 1990s sitcoms including It's Your Move, and The Hogan Family, Bateman came to prominence in the early 2000s for playing Michael Bluth on Arrested Development, for which he won a TV Land, a Golden...
played her husband. On March 31, 2008, Bell began shooting for the Mark Steven Johnson
Mark Steven Johnson
Mark Steven Johnson is an American film director and writer.Johnson was born in Hastings, Minnesota and attended California State University, Long Beach. He has directed and co-written the two comic book based films Daredevil and Ghost Rider. His early writing credits are for the film Grumpy Old...
-written Disney film When in Rome in locations in Rome and New York; the film was released in 2010. Bell reprised her role as Sarah Marshall for a cameo appearance in the film Get Him to the Greek
Get Him to the Greek
Get Him to the Greek is a 2010 American comedy film written, produced, and directed by Nicholas Stoller and starring Jonah Hill and Russell Brand. The film was released on June 4, 2010. Get Him to the Greek is a spin-off sequel of Stoller's 2008 film Forgetting Sarah Marshall, reuniting director...
, a spin-off sequel
Sequel
A sequel is a narrative, documental, or other work of literature, film, theatre, or music that continues the story of or expands upon issues presented in some previous work...
from Forgetting Sarah Marshall, released June 4, 2010.
Bell has also said that when she is free from film and television roles, she would like to perform on stage again. She co-starred with singers Christina Aguilera
Christina Aguilera
Christina María Aguilera is an American recording artist and actress. Aguilera first appeared on national television in 1990 as a contestant on the Star Search program, and went on to star in Disney Channel's television series The Mickey Mouse Club from 1993–1994...
and Cher
Cher
Cher is an American recording artist, television personality, actress, director, record producer and philanthropist. Referred to as the Goddess of Pop, she has won an Academy Award, a Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, three Golden Globes and a Cannes Film Festival Award among others for her work in...
in the movie-musical Burlesque
Burlesque (film)
Burlesque is a 2010 musical film directed and written by Steven Antin and starring Christina Aguilera and Cher. The film was released on November 24, 2010 in North America....
which was released on Thanksgiving in 2010.
Bell had a cameo in Scream 4
Scream 4
Scream 4 is a 2011 American slasher horror film and the fourth installment in the Scream film series. Directed by Wes Craven and written by Kevin Williamson, writer of Scream and Scream 2, the film stars an ensemble cast which includes David Arquette, Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, Emma Roberts,...
, which was released on April 15, 2011. She is also attached to the films Everybody Loves Whales and Dance of the Mirlitons.
She has also appeared in the music video for "Madder Red" by Brooklyn experimental rock
Experimental rock
Experimental rock or avant-garde rock is a type of music based on rock which experiments with the basic elements of the genre, or which pushes the boundaries of common composition and performance technique....
band Yeasayer
Yeasayer
-History:The band's three core members, Chris Keating, Ira Wolf Tuton, and Anand Wilder, first came to attention after appearing at the SXSW festival in early 2007. Their first single consisted of a double A-side of the tracks "Sunrise" and "2080"...
.
Bell portrays the role of "Mary Magdalene" in "The Truth & Life Dramatized Audio New Testament Bible," a 22-hour, celebrity-voiced, fully dramatized audio New Testament which uses the RSV-CE translation.
She is the female lead on the new series House of Lies
House of Lies
House of Lies is an upcoming American comedy television series created by Matthew Carnahan. The show, which will premiere on Showtime on January 8, 2012, is based on Martin Kihn's book, House of Lies: How Management Consultants Steal Your Watch and Then Tell You the Time.-Cast:*Don Cheadle as Marty...
directed by Stephen Hopkins
Stephen Hopkins (director)
Stephen Hopkins is a Jamaican-born film director and producer. He is best-known for his continuation of the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise with A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child and the Predator franchise with Predator 2...
. The show is expected to premiere on Showtime on January 8, 2012.
In the media
In 2005, Bell was named by JaneJane (magazine)
Jane was an American magazine created to appeal to the women who grew up reading Sassy Magazine, both of which had Jane Pratt as founding editor. Its original target audience was aged 18–34, and was designed to appeal to women who are irreverent...
magazine as "one of the 11 people you'd most like to see naked", and in 2006, Bell was selected "World's Sexiest Vegetarian" on PETA
Peta
Peta can refer to:* peta-, an SI prefix denoting a factor of 1015* Peta, Greece, a town in Greece* Peta, the Pāli word for a Preta, or hungry ghost in Buddhism* Peta Wilson, an Australian actress and model* Peta Todd, English glamour model...
's yearly poll. She was placed #68 on Maxim
Maxim (magazine)
Maxim is an international men's magazine based in the United Kingdom and known for its pictorials featuring popular actresses, singers, and female models, sometimes pictured dressed, often pictured scantily dressed but not fully nude....
Wizard (magazine)
Wizard or Wizard: The Magazine of Comics, Entertainment and Pop Culture was a magazine about comic books, published monthly in the United States by Wizard Entertainment from July 1991 to January 2011...
.
She stated to have never thought of herself as womanly because she "always play[ed roles] and look[ed] and act[ed] 10 years younger than [she is]", however as she explains, "Something magical happened when I turned 25 — I looked in the mirror and was like, You might not get carded for an R-rated movie anymore. Like I didn't have a little stick figure anymore." Bell has said that many of the characters she has played are tomboy
Tomboy
A tomboy is a girl who exhibits characteristics or behaviors considered typical of the gender role of a boy, including the wearing of typically masculine-oriented clothes and engaging in games and activities that are often physical in nature, and which are considered in many cultures to be the...
s because she was "not homely enough to play the nerd
Nerd
Nerd is a derogatory slang term for an intelligent but socially awkward and obsessive person who spends time on unpopular or obscure pursuits, to the exclusion of more mainstream activities. Nerds are considered to be awkward, shy, and unattractive...
y girl and not nearly pretty enough to play the pretty girl".
Bell has been associated with the idea that "nerdy is the new cool", and she explains, "what was previously perceived as nerdy is now viewed as original. What I like about nerdiness, geek
Geek
The word geek is a slang term, with different meanings ranging from "a computer expert or enthusiast" to "a carnival performer who performs sensationally morbid or disgusting acts", with a general pejorative meaning of "a peculiar or otherwise dislikable person, esp[ecially] one who is perceived to...
iness, is it doesn't really matter what you're into — it just means you're not a follower." She has also said, "I love nerds. Comic-Con
Comic-Con International
San Diego Comic-Con International, also known as Comic-Con International: San Diego , and commonly known as Comic-Con or the San Diego Comic-Con, was founded as the Golden State Comic Book Convention and later the San Diego Comic Book Convention in 1970 by Shel Dorf and a group of San Diegans...
junkies are the tastemakers of tomorrow. Isn't that funny? The tables have turned." Vanessa Juarez of Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
commented that Bell's role on Veronica Mars, Heroes and as a Star Wars
Star Wars
Star Wars is an American epic space opera film series created by George Lucas. The first film in the series was originally released on May 25, 1977, under the title Star Wars, by 20th Century Fox, and became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon, followed by two sequels, released at three-year...
fanatic in Fanboys has "solidif[ied] her placement at the center of the geek universe", while Rodney Rothman
Rodney Rothman
Rodney Rothman is an American screenwriter, television producer, and author.In 2005, he wrote the book Early Bird: A Memoir of Premature Retirement. He wrote currently the storybook of the horror comedy film The Something.-Filmography:...
stated, "I guess she's cornered the market on losers." Bell's work is often compared to Sarah Michelle Gellar
Sarah Michelle Gellar
Sarah Michelle Prinze , known professionally by her birth name of Sarah Michelle Gellar , is an American actress, singer and executive producer...
's portrayal of the titular character
Buffy Summers
Buffy Summers is a fictional character from Joss Whedon's Buffy the Vampire Slayer franchise. She first appeared in the 1992 film Buffy the Vampire Slayer before going on to appear in the television series and subsequent comic book of the same name...
on the cult
Cult following
A cult following is a group of fans who are highly dedicated to a specific area of pop culture. A film, book, band, or video game, among other things, will be said to have a cult following when it has a small but very passionate fan base...
television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Frank Scheck of The Hollywood Reporter
The Hollywood Reporter
Formerly a daily trade magazine, The Hollywood Reporter re-launched in late 2010 as a unique hybrid publication serving the entertainment industry and a consumer audience...
stated that Bell was "arguably the television successor [to Gellar's portrayal of Buffy] when it comes to fighting bad guys." Bell is sometimes confused with Lauren Conrad
Lauren Conrad
Lauren Katherine Conrad is an American television personality, celebutante, and fashion designer. She came to prominence with her starring roles on the MTV reality series Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County and its spin-off series, The Hills, which at one point followed her personal and...
from the show The Hills
The Hills
The Hills is a reality television series which originally aired on MTV from May 31, 2006 until July 13, 2010. The show uses a reality television format, following the personal lives of several young adults living in Los Angeles, California, but tends towards a narrative format more commonly found...
. "Yeah, sometimes fans yell, 'Hey, Lauren' to me, but usually from a distance," said Kristen.
Despite "new celebrity" status, Bell claims that she is not concerned because "no one ever recognizes [her] anyway". As Bell explains, "I hang out with Hayden
Hayden Panettiere
Hayden Leslie Panettiere is an American actress and singer, best known as cheerleader Claire Bennet on the NBC television series Heroes. She began her acting career by playing Sarah Roberts on One Life to Live , and Lizzie Spaulding on Guiding Light , before starring at age 10 as Sheryl Yoast in...
quite a bit — they never take pictures of me. I just step to the side, and I push myself in front of her when she wants to get out of it, or put her in the car." Bell is a recurring guest on The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson
The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson
The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson is a Peabody Award-winning American late-night talk show hosted by Scottish American comedian Craig Ferguson. Ferguson, the third regular host of the Late Late Show franchise, follows Late Show with David Letterman in the CBS late-night lineup...
, appearing in interviews as well as sketches. On the Late Late Show, she is shown to have garnered a humorous hostility towards Craig's robot skeleton sidekick Geoff Peterson, claiming that she had wanted to be Craig's sidekick on his show and taking it upon herself to cut Geoff down every chance she gets. Both Bell and Geoff Peterson appeared with Ferguson during the five Late Late shows filmed in France.
In January 2011 it was announced that Bell would be the new face of Neutrogena
Neutrogena
Neutrogena is an American brand of premium-priced skin care, hair care and cosmetics, that is headquartered at Los Angeles, California. According to product advertising at their website, Neutrogena products are distributed in more than 70 countries....
.
Personal life
Vegetarianism
Vegetarianism encompasses the practice of following plant-based diets , with or without the inclusion of dairy products or eggs, and with the exclusion of meat...
. In an interview with PETA, Bell stated, "I have always been an animal lover. I had a hard time disassociating the animals I cuddled with — dogs and cats, for example — from the animals on my plate, and I never really cared for the taste of meat. I always loved my Brussels sprout
Brussels sprout
The Brussels sprout is a cultivar of wild cabbage grown for its edible buds. The leafy green vegetables are typically 2.5–4 cm in diameter and look like miniature cabbages. The sprout is Brassica oleracea, in the "gemmifera" group of the family Brassicaceae...
s!" During her time in Michigan, Bell fostered animals from Michigan Humane Society
Michigan Humane Society
The Michigan Humane Society is a private, non-profit organization providing animal welfare and sheltering services to the metropolitan Detroit area...
and she now supports the San Diego-based Helen Woodward Animal Center. Bell often attends fund raisers for the ASPCA and other non-profit organizations dedicated to protecting animals. She owns a Welsh Corgi
Welsh Corgi
The Welsh corgi is a small type of herding dog that originated in Wales. Two distinct breeds are recognized: the Pembroke Welsh corgi and the Cardigan Welsh corgi, with the Pembroke being the more common..-Description:...
-Chow Chow
Chow Chow
Chow chow is a breed of dog that was developed in China, where it is referred to as Songshi Quan , which literally means "puffy-lion dog".- Appearance :...
mix named Lola, a Welsh Corgi
Welsh Corgi
The Welsh corgi is a small type of herding dog that originated in Wales. Two distinct breeds are recognized: the Pembroke Welsh corgi and the Cardigan Welsh corgi, with the Pembroke being the more common..-Description:...
-Chihuahua
Chihuahua (dog)
The ' is the smallest breed of dog and is so named for the state of Chihuahua in Mexico. Chihuahuas come in a wide variety of sizes, head shapes, colors and coat lengths.-History:...
mix named Shakey, and a black Labrador Retriever
Labrador Retriever
The Labrador Retriever is one of several kinds of retriever, a type of gun dog. A breed characteristic is webbed paws for swimming, useful for the breed's original purpose of retrieving fishing nets. The Labrador is the most popular breed of dog by registered ownership in Canada, the United...
named Sadie, who was 11 years old when she was rescued from Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...
and adopted by Bell in 2005.
She and many of those who worked on Veronica Mars, including personal friend Ryan Hansen
Ryan Hansen
Ryan Hansen is an American actor, best known for having portrayed Dick Casablancas on Veronica Mars and Nolan in Friday the 13th...
, are involved with the charity organization Invisible Children Inc. The goal of the organization is to create awareness regarding the plight of Northern Ugandans
Uganda
Uganda , officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. Uganda is also known as the "Pearl of Africa". It is bordered on the east by Kenya, on the north by South Sudan, on the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the southwest by Rwanda, and on the south by...
who are caught in the midst of a civil war
Civil war
A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same nation state or republic, or, less commonly, between two countries created from a formerly-united nation state....
between the government and Joseph Kony
Joseph Kony
Joseph Kony is an African terrorist who is the head of the Lord's Resistance Army , a guerrilla group that is engaged in a violent campaign to establish theocratic government based on the Ten Commandments in Uganda...
's Lord's Resistance Army
Lord's Resistance Army
The Lord's Resistance Army insurgency is an ongoing guerrilla campaign waged since 1987 by the Lord's Resistance Army rebel group, operating mainly in northern Uganda, but also in South Sudan and eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo...
. Bell has also done a public service announcement for Do Something
Do Something
Do Something is a non-profit organization that motivates young people to take action around social changes through national campaigns and grants for projects that make an impact. The organization's CEO is Nancy Lublin, who founded Dress for Success in 1996.-History:The organization was co-founded...
's Healthy Living Campaign.
Bell supported and campaigned for Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
during the 2008 presidential election. Along with Rashida Jones
Rashida Jones
Rashida Leah Jones is an American film and television actress, comic book author, screenwriter and occasional singer. She played Louisa Fenn on Boston Public and Karen Filippelli on The Office as well as roles in the films I Love You, Man and The Social Network...
, she visited college campuses in Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
to discuss the candidates and encourage voter registration. Bell has shown her support for the Writers Guild of America
Writers Guild of America
The Writers Guild of America is a generic term referring to the joint efforts of two different US labor unions:* The Writers Guild of America, East , representing TV and film writers East of the Mississippi....
in the writer's strike, appearing in the picket lines in December 2007 stating, "the writers are just looking for some fairness."
In 2007, Bell ended a five-year relationship with former fiancé Kevin Mann
Kevin Mann
Kevin Mann is a producer best known for the feature films Fanboys, Fifty Pills, What We Do Is Secret, and More Than a Game. His latest film, Cold Light of Day, finished filming in Spain in November, 2010 and is currently in post production....
, and went on to date actor Dax Shepard
Dax Shepard
Dax Randall Shepard is an American actor.- Early life :Shepard was born in Milford, Michigan and attended Muir Junior High and Walled Lake Central High School, before enrolling in The Groundlings school. He later received a degree in anthropology at UCLA...
. As of January 2010, she is engaged to Shepard. She told Complex magazine that dating "makes me want to vomit. And not out of grossness — OK, a little bit out of grossness, but just nerves." Bell explains, "I've always been a serial monogamist."
As she is a Detroit native, she is also an avid fan of the Detroit Red Wings
Detroit Red Wings
The Detroit Red Wings are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League , and are one of the Original Six teams of the NHL, along with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, New York...
hockey team.
Filmography
Film and television| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Polish Wedding Polish Wedding Polish Wedding is a 1998 comedy/drama film written and directed by Theresa Connelly.It was screened at the Sundance Film Festival on January 16, 1998 and at the Berlin International Film Festival on February 12... |
Teenage Girl (uncredited) | |
| 2001 | Pootie Tang Pootie Tang Pootie Tang is an American comedy film written and directed by Louis C.K. and released in 2001. It was adapted from a comedy sketch that first appeared on The Chris Rock Show. The character Pootie Tang is a satire of the stereotyped characters who appeared in old blaxploitation films... |
Record Executive's Daughter | |
| 2002 | The Cat Returns The Cat Returns is a Japanese animated fantasy film directed by Hiroyuki Morita, produced by Studio Ghibli and theatrically released in Japan in 2002 and in 2003 in the United States through Walt Disney Pictures.... |
Hiromi (voice) | English version |
| 2002 | People Are Dead | Angela's Friend #1 | |
| 2003 | The Shield The Shield The Shield is an American television drama series starring Michael Chiklis which premiered on March 12, 2002 on FX in the United States and concluded on November 25, 2008 after seven seasons... |
Jessica Hintel | Episode: "The Quick Fix" |
| 2003 | American Dreams American Dreams American Dreams is an American television comedy-drama program broadcast on the NBC television network, produced by Once A Frog and Dick Clark Productions in association with Universal Network Television and NBC Studios... |
Amy Fielding | Episode: "Act of Contrition" |
| 2003 | The O'Keefes The O'Keefes The O'Keefes is an American television sitcom, that aired on The WB Television Network. It premiered on May 22, 2003 and ended on June 12, 2003.-Premise:... |
Virginia's Owner | Episode: "Substitute Teacher" Episode: "Jobs" |
| 2003 | The King and Queen of Moonlight Bay | Alison Dodge | TV movie |
| 2003 | Everwood Everwood Everwood is an American drama television series that initially aired in the United States on The WB. The series is set in the fictional small town of Everwood, Colorado, and was filmed in Ogden, South Salt Lake, and Draper, Utah, except the series pilot which was filmed in Canmore, Alberta,... |
Stacey Wilson | Episode: "Extra Ordinary" |
| 2004 | Gracie's Choice Gracie's Choice Gracie's Choice is a 2004 television movie that premiered on Lifetime, written by Joyce Eliason and directed by Peter Werner, and starring Kristen Bell Anne Heche Diane Ladd and Kristin Fairlie... |
Gracie Thompson | TV movie |
| 2004 | Spartan Spartan (film) Spartan is a 2004 American political thriller film written and directed by David Mamet. It features Val Kilmer, Derek Luke, Tia Texada, Ed O'Neill, William H. Macy, and Kristen Bell. It was released in The United States and Canada on 12 March 2004.... |
Laura Newton | |
| 2004 | Deadwood Deadwood (TV series) Deadwood is an American Western drama television series created, produced and largely written by David Milch. The series aired on the premium cable network HBO from March 21, 2004, to August 27, 2006, spanning three 12-episode seasons. The show is set in the 1870s in Deadwood, South Dakota, before... |
Flora Anderson | Episode: "Bullock Returns to the Camp" Episode: "Suffer the Little Children" |
| 2004–2007 | Veronica Mars Veronica Mars Veronica Mars is an American television series created by Rob Thomas. The series premiered on September 22, 2004, during television network UPN's final two years, and ended on May 22, 2007, after a season on UPN's successor, The CW Television Network. Veronica Mars was produced by Warner Bros... |
Veronica Mars Veronica Mars (character) Veronica Mars is a fictional character in UPN/The CW the television series, Veronica Mars, which aired on the UPN and CW networks from 2004 to 2007. She is portrayed by Kristen Bell.- Background and details of plot :... |
64 episodes |
| 2005 | Last Days of America | Friend in New York #1 | Video |
| 2005 | Reefer Madness: The Movie Musical Reefer Madness (2005 film) Reefer Madness premiered on April 16, 2005 on the Showtime cable network. It is a television movie version of the 1998 musical, and stars Alan Cumming as the Lecturer, Ana Gasteyer as Mae, and Kristen Bell as Mary. The movie also stars siblings Christian and Neve Campbell as Jimmy Harper and Miss... |
Mary Lane | |
| 2005 | Deepwater Deepwater (film) Deepwater is a 2005 neo-noir film directed and written by David S. Marfield. It is based on a novel of the same name written by Matthew F. Jones. It was screened at the Seattle International Film Festival on June 9, 2005 and the München Fantasy Filmfest in Germany on June 28, 2005... |
Nurse Laurie | |
| 2005 | The Receipt | Pretty Girl | Short film |
| 2006 | Fifty Pills Fifty Pills Fifty Pills is the debut feature film of director Theo Avgerinos, which premiered at the 2006 Tribeca Film Festival.-Plot:... |
Gracie | |
| 2006 | Pulse | Mattie Webber | |
| 2006 | Roman Roman (film) Roman is a 2006 suspense-horror film starring Lucky McKee and Kristen Bell with Angela Bettis directing. The movie is a spin-off of 2002 cult hit May. In May, Angela Bettis played the title role and Lucky McKee directed, roles which have been switched for Roman... |
The Girl / Isis | |
| 2007 | Flatland: The Movie Flatland: The Movie Flatland: The Movie is a short animated film which was released to video in 2007. The cast includes the voices of actors Martin Sheen, Kristen Bell and Tony Hale. The story is based on the 1884 science fiction novella Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions written by Edwin A... |
Hex (voice) | Short film |
| 2007–2008 | Heroes Heroes (TV series) Heroes is an American science fiction television drama series created by Tim Kring that appeared on NBC for four seasons from September 25, 2006 through February 8, 2010. The series tells the stories of ordinary people who discover superhuman abilities, and how these abilities take effect in the... |
Elle Bishop Elle Bishop Eleanor Zoe Bishop, mostly known as Elle, is a fictional character on the NBC series Heroes. She is portrayed by Kristen Bell. Elle appeared as one of the new characters introduced in Season Two and according to contract, would continue on the series for at least 13 episodes into Season Three.Elle... |
12 episodes |
| 2007–present | Gossip Girl Gossip Girl (TV series) Gossip Girl is an American teen drama television series based on the book series of the same name written by Cecily von Ziegesar. The series was created by Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage, and premiered on The CW on September 19, 2007... |
Gossip Girl (voice) | 87+ episodes |
| 2008 | Forgetting Sarah Marshall Forgetting Sarah Marshall Forgetting Sarah Marshall is a 2008 American romantic comedy film directed by Nicholas Stoller and starring Jason Segel, Kristen Bell, Mila Kunis and Russell Brand... |
Sarah Marshall | |
| 2008 | Fanboys | Zoe | |
| 2009 | Serious Moonlight Serious Moonlight (2009 film) Serious Moonlight is a 2009 black comedy film directed by Cheryl Hines. It stars Meg Ryan, Timothy Hutton, Kristen Bell, and Justin Long. It was released by Magnolia Pictures on 4 December 2009.-Plot:... |
Sara | |
| 2009 | The Cleveland Show The Cleveland Show The Cleveland Show is an American animated television series that premiered on September 27, 2009, as a part of the "Animation Domination" lineup on Fox in the United States... |
Mandy (voice) | Episode: "Da Doggone Daddy-Daughter Dinner Dance Da Doggone Daddy-Daughter Dinner Dance "Da Doggone Daddy-Daughter Dinner Dance" is the second episode of The Cleveland Show. The episode aired on October 4, 2009 on Fox. In the episode, Cleveland tries to make inroads with his new stepdaughter Roberta by asking her to accompany him to the school’s father/daughter dance.The episode was... " |
| 2009 | Astro Boy Astro Boy (film) Astro Boy, also called in Japan, is a 2009 computer-animated film loosely based on the long-running Japanese series of the same name by Osamu Tezuka. It was produced by Imagi Animation Studios, the animation production company of TMNT. The studio announced the project in September 2006... |
Cora (voice) | |
| 2009 | Couples Retreat Couples Retreat Couples Retreat is a 2009 American comedy film written and directed by Peter Billingsley with contributions to the script by Jon Favreau, Vince Vaughn, Dana Fox, Curtis Hanson, and Greg Beeman. Vaughn and Favreau star with Faizon Love, Jason Bateman, Kristin Davis, Kristen Bell, Malin Åkerman and... |
Cynthia | |
| 2009–2010 | Party Down Party Down Party Down is an American comedy television series created and primarily written by John Enbom, Rob Thomas, Dan Etheridge, and Paul Rudd that aired on the Starz network in the United States.-Conception:... |
Uda Bengt | Episode: "Stennheiser-Pong Wedding Reception" Episode: "Party Down Company Picnic" |
| 2010 | When in Rome | Beth Martin | |
| 2010 | Astro Boy vs. The Junkyard Pirates | Cora (voice) | Video short |
| 2010 | Get Him to the Greek Get Him to the Greek Get Him to the Greek is a 2010 American comedy film written, produced, and directed by Nicholas Stoller and starring Jonah Hill and Russell Brand. The film was released on June 4, 2010. Get Him to the Greek is a spin-off sequel of Stoller's 2008 film Forgetting Sarah Marshall, reuniting director... |
Sarah Marshall | Cameo |
| 2010 | Lost Masterpieces of Pornography | June Crenshaw | Video short |
| 2010 | You Again You Again You Again is a 2010 American comedy film directed by Andy Fickman and written by Moe Jelline. The film stars Kristen Bell, Jamie Lee Curtis, Sigourney Weaver, Odette Yustman, and Betty White... |
Marni Olivia Olsen | |
| 2010 | Burlesque Burlesque (film) Burlesque is a 2010 musical film directed and written by Steven Antin and starring Christina Aguilera and Cher. The film was released on November 24, 2010 in North America.... |
Nikki | |
| 2011 | Scream 4 Scream 4 Scream 4 is a 2011 American slasher horror film and the fourth installment in the Scream film series. Directed by Wes Craven and written by Kevin Williamson, writer of Scream and Scream 2, the film stars an ensemble cast which includes David Arquette, Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, Emma Roberts,... |
Chloe | Cameo Cameo appearance A cameo role or cameo appearance is a brief appearance of a known person in a work of the performing arts, such as plays, films, video games and television... |
| 2011 | Dance of the Mirlitons | Corinne | Post-production |
| 2012 | Movie 43 | Supergirl | Post-production |
| 2012 | Big Miracle Big Miracle Big Miracle is an upcoming romantic drama film starring Drew Barrymore and John Krasinski. The film, directed by Ken Kwapis, is based on the 1989 book Freeing the Whales by Tom Rose, which covers Operation Breakthrough, the 1988 international effort to rescue gray whales from being trapped in ice... |
Jill Gerard | Post-production |
| 2012 | House of Lies House of Lies House of Lies is an upcoming American comedy television series created by Matthew Carnahan. The show, which will premiere on Showtime on January 8, 2012, is based on Martin Kihn's book, House of Lies: How Management Consultants Steal Your Watch and Then Tell You the Time.-Cast:*Don Cheadle as Marty... |
Jeannie Van Der Hooven | Filming |
Theatre
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | The Adventures of Tom Sawyer The Adventures of Tom Sawyer The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain is an 1876 novel about a young boy growing up along the Mississippi River. The story is set in the Town of "St... |
Becky Thatcher | |
| 2002 | 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... |
Susanna Walcott | |
| 2003 | Sneaux | ||
| 2004 | A Little Night Music A Little Night Music A Little Night Music is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by Hugh Wheeler. Inspired by the Ingmar Bergman film Smiles of a Summer Night, it involves the romantic lives of several couples. Its title is a literal English translation of the German name for Mozart's Serenade... |
Video games
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Assassin's Creed Assassin's Creed Assassin's Creed is an award-winning historical third person, stealth action-adventure video game developed by Ubisoft for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Microsoft Windows. The bulk of the game takes place during the Third Crusade, with the plot revolving around a sect known as the Secret Order of... |
Lucy Stillman | Voice & likeness |
| 2009 | Assassin's Creed II Assassin's Creed II Assassin's Creed II is a historical third-person action-adventure video game developed by Ubisoft Montreal and published by Ubisoft for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X. It is the second video game installment of the Assassin's Creed series, and is a sequel to the 2007 video... |
Lucy Stillman | Voice & likeness |
| 2009 | Astro Boy: The Video Game Astro Boy: The Video Game Astro Boy: The Video Game is an action video game based on the 2009 CG animated film of the same name. The game was released in worldwide on October 20, 2009 to coincide with the theatrical release of the film on October 23, 2009. It features the voices of Freddie Highmore and Kristen Bell,... |
Cora | |
| 2010 | Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood is a historical third person, stealth action-adventure video game developed by Ubisoft for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X. It was released for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in November 2010, Microsoft Windows in March 2011 and Mac OS X in May 2011... |
Lucy Stillman | Voice & likeness |
Wins
2006 :Saturn AwardSaturn Award
The Saturn Award is an award presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films to honor the top works in science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, television, and home video. The Saturn Awards were devised by Dr. Donald A. Reed in 1972, who felt that films within...
, for Veronica Mars
Veronica Mars
Veronica Mars is an American television series created by Rob Thomas. The series premiered on September 22, 2004, during television network UPN's final two years, and ended on May 22, 2007, after a season on UPN's successor, The CW Television Network. Veronica Mars was produced by Warner Bros...
- Jury Prize at the Austin Fantastic Fest, for RomanRoman (film)Roman is a 2006 suspense-horror film starring Lucky McKee and Kristen Bell with Angela Bettis directing. The movie is a spin-off of 2002 cult hit May. In May, Angela Bettis played the title role and Lucky McKee directed, roles which have been switched for Roman...
- Family Film Award, for Veronica MarsVeronica MarsVeronica Mars is an American television series created by Rob Thomas. The series premiered on September 22, 2004, during television network UPN's final two years, and ended on May 22, 2007, after a season on UPN's successor, The CW Television Network. Veronica Mars was produced by Warner Bros...
(shared with Enrico ColantoniEnrico ColantoniEnrico Colantoni is a Canadian actor, probably best known for portraying Elliot DiMauro in the sitcom Just Shoot Me!, Keith Mars on the television series Veronica Mars, and Sergeant Greg Parker on the television series Flashpoint. He has also had supporting roles in such films as The Wrong Guy, ...
)
2005 :Satellite Award, for Reefer Madness: The Movie Musical
Nominations
2009 :Teen Choice Award, for HeroesHeroes (TV series)
Heroes is an American science fiction television drama series created by Tim Kring that appeared on NBC for four seasons from September 25, 2006 through February 8, 2010. The series tells the stories of ordinary people who discover superhuman abilities, and how these abilities take effect in the...
- Saturn AwardSaturn AwardThe Saturn Award is an award presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films to honor the top works in science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, television, and home video. The Saturn Awards were devised by Dr. Donald A. Reed in 1972, who felt that films within...
, for HeroesHeroes (TV series)Heroes is an American science fiction television drama series created by Tim Kring that appeared on NBC for four seasons from September 25, 2006 through February 8, 2010. The series tells the stories of ordinary people who discover superhuman abilities, and how these abilities take effect in the... - MTV Movie Award, for Forgetting Sarah MarshallForgetting Sarah MarshallForgetting Sarah Marshall is a 2008 American romantic comedy film directed by Nicholas Stoller and starring Jason Segel, Kristen Bell, Mila Kunis and Russell Brand...
2008 :Teen Choice Award, for Forgetting Sarah Marshall
Forgetting Sarah Marshall
Forgetting Sarah Marshall is a 2008 American romantic comedy film directed by Nicholas Stoller and starring Jason Segel, Kristen Bell, Mila Kunis and Russell Brand...
2007 :Saturn Award
Saturn Award
The Saturn Award is an award presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films to honor the top works in science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, television, and home video. The Saturn Awards were devised by Dr. Donald A. Reed in 1972, who felt that films within...
, for Veronica Mars
Veronica Mars
Veronica Mars is an American television series created by Rob Thomas. The series premiered on September 22, 2004, during television network UPN's final two years, and ended on May 22, 2007, after a season on UPN's successor, The CW Television Network. Veronica Mars was produced by Warner Bros...
2006 :Satellite Award, for Veronica Mars
Veronica Mars
Veronica Mars is an American television series created by Rob Thomas. The series premiered on September 22, 2004, during television network UPN's final two years, and ended on May 22, 2007, after a season on UPN's successor, The CW Television Network. Veronica Mars was produced by Warner Bros...
- Teen Choice Award, for Veronica MarsVeronica MarsVeronica Mars is an American television series created by Rob Thomas. The series premiered on September 22, 2004, during television network UPN's final two years, and ended on May 22, 2007, after a season on UPN's successor, The CW Television Network. Veronica Mars was produced by Warner Bros...
2005 :Satellite Award, for Veronica Mars
Veronica Mars
Veronica Mars is an American television series created by Rob Thomas. The series premiered on September 22, 2004, during television network UPN's final two years, and ended on May 22, 2007, after a season on UPN's successor, The CW Television Network. Veronica Mars was produced by Warner Bros...
- Saturn AwardSaturn AwardThe Saturn Award is an award presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films to honor the top works in science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, television, and home video. The Saturn Awards were devised by Dr. Donald A. Reed in 1972, who felt that films within...
, for Veronica MarsVeronica MarsVeronica Mars is an American television series created by Rob Thomas. The series premiered on September 22, 2004, during television network UPN's final two years, and ended on May 22, 2007, after a season on UPN's successor, The CW Television Network. Veronica Mars was produced by Warner Bros... - Teen Choice Award, for Veronica MarsVeronica MarsVeronica Mars is an American television series created by Rob Thomas. The series premiered on September 22, 2004, during television network UPN's final two years, and ended on May 22, 2007, after a season on UPN's successor, The CW Television Network. Veronica Mars was produced by Warner Bros...
- TCA Award, for Veronica MarsVeronica MarsVeronica Mars is an American television series created by Rob Thomas. The series premiered on September 22, 2004, during television network UPN's final two years, and ended on May 22, 2007, after a season on UPN's successor, The CW Television Network. Veronica Mars was produced by Warner Bros...