Jessica Steen
Jessica Steen | |
---|---|
Born | |
Occupation | Actress |
Years active | 1974, 1981–present |
Jessica Steen (born December 19, 1965) is a Canadian film and television actress, noted for her roles in Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future, Homefront, Earth 2, Armageddon, Left Behind: World at War, NCIS, Flashpoint and the CBC series Heartland.
Personal life
Jessica Steen was born in Toronto, Ontario, the daughter of Joanna Noyes, an actress, and Jan Steen, a director and actor.[1] She is of Dutch and Scottish ancestry.
Aside from her entertainment career, Steen is an environmentalist and animal rights supporter. She supports David Suzuki, the World Society for the Protection of Animals and the Western Canadian Wilderness Committee, among others. She is a certified diver, and is skilled at several circus arts – including stilt-walking, and fire-twirling.
Career
At the age of eight, Steen was cast in her first role in the Canadian children's television series, The Sunrunners, co-starring with her mother. In the 1986 TV movie Young Again, she portrayed Tracy Gordon, the daughter of a character portrayed by Lindsay Wagner.[2]
In 1987, she was the only female regular on the syndicated series Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future, which lasted one year. For her performance in the Captain Power episode, "Judgment", she was nominated for the Gemini Award in the "Best Performance by a Lead Actress in a Continuing Dramatic Role" category in 1988. In 1987, she played Tracy Steelgrave on THE WISEGUY. In 1989, Steen broke onto the big screen with the movie musical Sing.[2]
While in Toronto, Steen garnered roles on Canadian series and American made-for-TV movies until 1991, when she elected to move to New York City. Six weeks after arriving there, she was chosen to replace actress Noelle Beck, who was on maternity leave, on the soap opera Loving. Her portrayal of Patricia Alden Sowolsky Hartman McKenzie caught the attention of ABC's casting department and led to her being cast in the series Homefront. Set in a small Cleveland suburb immediately after World War II, Homefront was critically acclaimed for its writing, ensemble cast, and historical insights. The series lasted two seasons.[2]
In 1994, she was cast as Dr. Julia Heller, a genetically enhanced doctor, in the NBC science fiction series Earth 2. While the show was canceled in 1995, the attention brought by the show allowed Steen to land guest appearances on other series, including The Outer Limits, ER, Murder One, The Pretender, The Practice, Due South, and Touched by an Angel. In 1994, she won the "Best Actress" Gemini Award, Canada's version of Emmy Awards, for her portrayal of Nora in the TV movie, Small Gifts.[2]
In 1997, she was cast as District Attorney Elizabeth Gardner in the movie Trial & Error, working with Jeff Daniels and Michael Richards, to whom she gave his first screen kiss. She prepared for the role with the help of a friend who was going through law school and by watching the closing arguments of Marcia Clark during the O. J. Simpson trial. Her performance earned a rave review from Roger Ebert on his syndicated show, Siskel & Ebert.[2]
Producer Jerry Bruckheimer recommended her for the role of the shuttle pilot in 1998's Armageddon because he remembered her portrayal of Cpl. Jennifer 'Pilot' Chase in Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future. In 2004 Steen played Dr. Elizabeth Weir in "Lost City", the two-part finale of season 7 of Stargate SG-1. In Stargate Atlantis the part was instead played by Torri Higginson. She played lead roles in Slap Shot 2: Breaking the Ice and the Disney TV movies Smart House and Principal Takes a Holiday.[2]
She played Myra Teal in a 2002 episode ("Mr. Monk and the Billionaire Mugger") of Monk. She played a recurring character on the CBS crime drama NCIS, that of Special Agent Paula Cassidy, from 2004–07. In the fall of 2007 she landed featured multi-episode roles on two Canadian series, jPod and Heartland, both based on popular books of the same names.[2]
In 2009, Steen appeared in six episodes of the Canadian TV police drama Flashpoint (which is also broadcast on CBS in the U.S) as Strategic Response Unit Specialist Donna Sabine, filling in for Julianna 'Jules' Callaghan (played by Amy Jo Johnson), who was shot. She is currently playing the same character during a 2011 episode where she gets married and her husband's friend is shot the same day, though the shot was intended for her. She reprised the role in the final episode of the third season and appeared in the finale of Flashpoint. In the fall of 2010, she was nominated for a Gemini Award for the season two episodes.
She also played Sheriff's Deputy Kathleen Hudak in the Supernatural season 1 episode "The Benders".[2]
As of March 2019[update], Steen continues to appear in the supporting role of Lisa Stillman on the CBC television series Heartland—the longest-running one-hour scripted drama in the history of Canadian television. The character first appeared in the 2007 season 1 episode "Breaking Free", married series patriarch Jack Bartlett in the 2014 season 7 episode "Be Careful What You Wish For", and has been absent from roughly half of the episodes due to her world-traveling career as a horse breeder.
Filmography
Year | Title | Role | Notes | |
---|---|---|---|---|
1981 | Threshold | Tracy Vrain | ||
1983 | Gentle Sinners | Donna | ||
1986 | A Judgment in Stone | Melinda Coverdale | ||
1986 | Flying | Carly Simmons | ||
1987 | John and the Missus | Faith | ||
1989 | Sing | Hannah Gottschalk | ||
1990 | Still Life: The Fine Art of Murder | Nellie Ambrose | ||
1996 | Dog Watch | Janet | Video | |
1997 | Trial and Error | Elizabeth | ||
1998 | Armageddon | Co-Pilot Jennifer Watts | ||
1999 | Question of Privilege | Andrea Roberts | ||
2000 | The Ride Home | Clara | Short film | |
2001 | Apocalypse IV: Judgment | Victoria Thorne | ||
2002 | Slap Shot 2: Breaking the Ice | Jessie Dage | Video | |
2003 | Flip Phone | Sue | Short film | |
2005 | Chaos | Karen Cross | ||
2005 | Left Behind: World at War | Carolyn Miller | ||
2008 | Transit Lounge | Roberta | Short film | |
2020 | Chateau Christmas | Renee | Hallmark |
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1983 | Hangin' In | Darcy | Episode: "I've Got a Secret" |
1983 | SCTV Channel | College Student | Episode: "It's a Wonderful Film" |
1984 | When We First Met | Gail Pennoyer | TV movie |
1984 | The Edison Twins | Elaine | Episode: "Enemy of Weston" |
1985 | Workin' for Peanuts | Mellisa Stotts | TV movie |
1985 | Home Free | Daughter | TV movie |
1985 | The Littlest Hobo | Leslie 'Torque' Davidson | Episode: "Torgue" |
1985 | Striker's Mountain | Lowni Striker | TV movie |
1985 | Night Heat | Michelle Parker | Episode: "The Source" |
1986 | Night Heat | Angela Rivera | Episode: "Fighting Back" |
1986 | Kay O'Brien | Lindsay | Episode: "Little White Lies" |
1986 | The Truth About Alex | Kay | TV movie |
1986 | The Edison Twins | Elaine | Episode: "What Goes Up" |
1986 | The Campbells | Amanda Sims | Episode: "Blinded by Love" |
1986 | Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color | Tracy Gordon | Episode: "Young Again" |
1986 | Easy Prey | Wendy Robinson | TV movie |
1987 | CBS Schoolbreak Special | Kate | Episode: "The Day They Came to Arrest the Book" |
1987 | Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Sally Carlyle | Episode: "Man on the Edge" |
1987 | Wiseguy | Tracy Steelgrave | Episode: "Pilot" |
1987–1988 | Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future | Corporal Jennifer 'Pilot' Chase | 22 episodes |
1989 | C.B.C.'s Magic Hour | Jennifer McPhail | Episode: "High Country" |
1989 | The Rocket Boy | The Rocket Boy's Girlfriend | TV movie |
1990 | Christmas in America | Eileen Morgan | TV movie |
1990 | Knights of the Kitchen Table | Marla McDermott | TV movie |
1990 | Street Legal | Karen MacNeil | Episode: "Softsell" |
1991 | The Great Pretender | Kate Hightower | TV movie |
1991 | Tropical Heat | Patricia Poston Phd. | Episode: "Dead Men Tell" |
1991 | Loving | Patricia 'Trisha' Alden Sowolsky Hartman McKenzie | TV series |
1991–1993 | Homefront | Linda Metcalf | 42 episodes |
1993 | Herman's Head | Heather | Episode: "When Hairy Met Hermy" |
1994 | Small Gifts | Nora | TV movie |
1994 | To Save the Children | Kathi Davidson | TV movie |
1994–1995 | Earth 2 | Dr. Julia Heller | 21 episodes |
1996 | ER | Karen Hardy | Episode: "True Lies" |
1996 | The Outer Limits | Gina Beaumont | Episode: "The Refuge" |
1997 | Murder One | Paige Weikopf | 4 episodes |
1997 | Touched by an Angel | Sarah Bingham | Episode: "Full Moon" |
1998 | Principal Takes a Holiday | Celia Shine | TV movie |
1999 | The Pretender | Rachel | Episode: "The Assassin" |
1999 | Due South | Constable Maggie MacKenzie | Episode: "Hunting Season" |
1999 | Smart House | Sara Barnes | TV movie |
1999 | The Practice | Brianna Hatfield | Episode: "Marooned" |
1999 | The Outer Limits | Stephanie Sawyer | Episode: "Essence of Life" |
2000 | On Hostile Ground | Allison Beauchamp | TV movie |
2000 | The Outer Limits | Kathrine | Episode: "The Grid" |
2001 | The Practice | Dr. Sarah Ford | Episode: "Inter Arma Silent Leges" |
2002 | Society's Child | Terry Best | TV movie |
2002 | Untitled Secret Service Project | Maureen Gage | TV movie |
2002 | Monk | Myra Teal | Episode: "Mr. Monk and the Billionaire Mugger" |
2002 | The Pact | Det. Anne-Marie Marrone | TV movie |
2003 | The Paradise Virus | Susan Holme | TV movie |
2003 | L.A. Dragnet | Amy Wenzel | Episode: "The Cutting of the Swath" |
2003 | Mutant X | Dr. Sara Stanton | Episode: "The Taking of Crows" |
2003–2007, 2015 |
NCIS | NCIS Special Agent Paula Cassidy | 6 episodes |
2004 | Stargate SG-1 | Dr. Elizabeth Weir | Episode: "Lost City: Part 1" Episode: "Lost City: Part 2" |
2004 | Nip/Tuck | Amy Connors | Episode: "Kimber Henry" |
2005 | Charmed | Ruth Brody | Episode: "Ordinary Witches" |
2005 | Kojak | Kate | Episode: "Pilot" |
2005 | Eyes | Holly Gibson | Episode: "Shots" |
2005 | Killer Instinct | Dr. Francine Klepp | 7 episodes |
2006 | Supernatural | Deputy Kathleen Hudak | Episode: "The Benders" |
2006 | CSI: Crime Scene Investigation | Donna Basset | Episode: "Toe Tags" |
2006 | Rapid Fire | Linda | TV movie |
2007–present | Heartland | Lisa Stillman | 80 episodes |
2008 | Canooks | Katherine 'Kat' Baines | Episode: "Pilot" Episode: "The City LA" |
2008 | jPod | Freedom | 3 episodes |
2008 | Vipers | Dr. Collins | TV movie |
2009 | My Nanny's Secret | Julia | TV movie |
2009–2012 | Flashpoint | Donna Sabine | 10 episodes |
2012 | Republic of Doyle | Sonja Sterling | 3 episodes |
2012 | Bullet in the Face | Eva Braden | 6 episodes |
2018 | Grey’s Anatomy | Dr. Rebecca Froy | Episode: “Beautiful Dreamer” |
2020 | Chateau Christmas | Rene | Hallmark TV Movie |
References
External links
- 1965 births
- Actresses from Toronto
- Actresses of Dutch descent
- 20th-century Canadian actresses
- 21st-century Canadian actresses
- Canadian expatriate actresses in the United States
- Canadian film actresses
- Canadian television actresses
- Canadian people of Dutch descent
- Canadian people of Scottish descent
- Living people