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Rachelle Lefevre

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Rachelle Lefevre
Lefevre at the 2013 San Diego Comic-Con
Born (1979-02-01) February 1, 1979 (age 45)
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
OccupationActress
Years active1999–present

Rachelle Marie Lefèvre (/ləˈfɛv/, French: [ʁaʃɛl maʁi ləfɛvʁ]; born February 1, 1979) is a Canadian actress. She has starred in the television series Big Wolf on Campus and had recurring roles in What About Brian, Boston Legal, and Swingtown. She played the vampire Victoria Sutherland in the first two films of the Twilight saga. In 2011, she starred in the ABC medical drama Off the Map, followed by the CBS series A Gifted Man (2011–2012) and Under the Dome (2013–2015).

Early life

Lefevre was born in Montreal, Quebec, where she was raised by an English teacher father and a psychologist mother.[1] Her father's family is originally from France and Northern Ireland, and her maternal grandparents are Jewish.[2][3] Her stepfather is a rabbi.[4] Lefevre was raised in a non-denominational household, and identifies as Jewish.[5] She has three sisters and speaks both English and French, though she grew up mostly speaking English.[6][7] Lefevre attended Centennial Academy, a private high school, and later studied creative arts at Dawson College.[8] She studied theater for two summers at the Walnut Hill School in Natick, Massachusetts, and began a degree in education and literature at McGill University.[9]

Career

Early acting career

While working as a waitress at a sushi bar in Westmount, a regular customer, a Canadian television producer, overheard Lefevre telling the hostess that she wanted to be an actress.[10] The producer got Lefevre her first audition, for a role in the sitcom Student Bodies. She didn't yet have a head shot, so she submitted a Polaroid picture.[11] She didn't land the part but got a call back from the casting director, leading to a role in the Canadian TV series Big Wolf on Campus in 1999, playing Stacey Hanson.[9] Lefevre continued attending McGill between shoots, but never finished a degree.[12][13]

Lefevre appeared in the film Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, directed by George Clooney, in 2002. She appeared in the television movies Picking Up and Dropping Off with Scott Wolf, and See Jane Date, and had a role in the romantic comedy Hatley High in 2003. In 2004, she played Etta Place in the Calgary-filmed TV movie The Legend of Butch and Sundance. Lefevre moved to West Hollywood, California that year and appeared in the films Noel, directed by Chazz Palminteri and starring Penélope Cruz, and Head in the Clouds, also starring Cruz and Charlize Theron. In April 2004, Lefevre filmed the mystery-thriller The River King in Halifax, opposite Edward Burns.[9]

Lefevre starred on the Fox sitcom Life on a Stick in 2005, playing Lily Ashton, a mall fast-food restaurant employee, and then appeared on the Fox series Pool Guys. She has guest-starred on numerous other TV series, including: Charmed, playing Olivia Callaway on the episode "Love's a Witch", playing Annie Isles in season five of Undressed, and appearing on the short-lived ABC series What About Brian for eleven episodes. Lefevre was cast as Annie Cartwright, the female lead in ABC's Life on Mars, a David E. Kelley remake of the original British TV series. She shot a pilot episode, but was replaced by Gretchen Mol when the series was revamped.[14]

Twilight

Lefevre played the renegade vampire Victoria Sutherland in the film Twilight (2008), based on the novel of the same name by Stephenie Meyer. Lefevre wrote an impassioned letter to the director, explaining her desire to work with the filmmaker.[15] Lefevre described the essence of her character as "pure evil, pure instinct, pure malice, and very feline".[16] After reading that the author used the word "feline" to describe her character's agility, Lefevre watched lion attacks on YouTube to separate the movements of her character from those of normal people.[17] She also took trapeze classes in preparation for the wire work in the film.[15] Lefevre spent hours working on the costumes for her character, and described herself as "obsessed" with vampires after reading Bram Stoker's Dracula at the age of 14.[18]

Lefevre was, at times, overwhelmed by the scrutiny she received from her involvement with Twilight. She participated in a promotional tour in November 2008, where she met and signed autographs for Twilight fans at Hot Topic stores in the U.S.[19] "It's the closest I will ever come in my life to being a rock star," she told The Canadian Press, describing an appearance on MuchMusic, where over 1,500 fans showed up in Toronto.[20] Over 2,500 fans showed up at a Wal-Mart in Salt Lake City, where Lefevre appeared to promote the DVD release of the film.[21] Overall though, Lefevre described herself as delighted by the attention and excitement of the fans.[20] She appeared in New Moon, the film's sequel, based on Meyer's second novel,[15] which she completed shooting in Vancouver in May 2009.

Lefevre did not reprise her role of Victoria in Eclipse, the third film of the Twilight series, and was replaced by Bryce Dallas Howard. Summit Entertainment, the studio behind the films, attributed the change to scheduling conflicts; Eclipse and Barney's Version, an independent Canadian feature Lefevre had signed on to, both began filming on August 17, 2009.[22] Lefevre responded that she was "stunned" by the decision and "greatly saddened" not to continue her portrayal of Victoria, and never thought she would "lose the role over a 10 day overlap", in a statement to Access Hollywood.[23] The studio responded in a counter-statement, "The Twilight Saga: Eclipse is an ensemble production that has to accommodate the schedules of numerous actors while respecting the established creative vision of the filmmaker and most importantly the story."[24] Lefevre had appeared at the 2009 San Diego Comic-Con to promote New Moon the weekend before she was replaced.[25]

Enthusiastic fans of the series reacted to the news of Lefevre's replacement with online petitions urging her return, and "Bring Back Rachelle" became a top-trending topic on Twitter on the afternoon of July 29, 2009.[24] Lefevre told Extra that she was "absolutely blown away" by support from fans, who also made her a tribute video on YouTube.[26] Lefevre did not attend the Los Angeles premiere of New Moon, tweeting that the event "was just 2 emotional 4 me & I couldn't manage it." (sic)[27]

2009–present

Lefevre at the film premiere for Push in January 2009

In 2009, Lefevre appeared in the CBC miniseries The Summit, filmed in Ontario, and completed the film Casino Jack, starring Kevin Spacey.[28] In Casino Jack, she plays Emily J. Miller, a former press secretary for U.S. congressman Tom DeLay, who helped convict lobbyist Jack Abramoff (Kevin Spacey) in a political scandal involving Native American tribes.[10]

Lefevre appeared in Barney's Version, a film adaptation of the award-winning Canadian novel by Mordecai Richler. Lefevre plays Clara, a manic depressive feminist poet who becomes the first wife of protagonist Barney Panofsky (Paul Giamatti). Her scenes were filmed in Rome in August 2009. The production continued on location in Montreal and New York City.[29] Soon after the shoot, in November 2009, Lefevre shot the suspense film The Caller in Puerto Rico along with actors Lorna Raver and Stephen Moyer.[30] She replaced Brittany Murphy, who had exited the project.[31]

Lefevre appeared in the pilot episode of the ABC drama series The Deep End on January 21, 2010.[32] She starred in the drama series Off the Map as Dr. Ryan Clark, a young doctor working in a South American medical clinic.[33] Developed by Grey's Anatomy creator Shonda Rhimes, the series was filmed in Hawaii, debuted on January 12, 2011 and ran for 13 episodes before being canceled.[34] Lefevre was the voice of the 31st annual Genie Awards in March 2011, along with host William Shatner.[35] She was also cast in the NBC pilot, Reconstruction (working title: The Crossing), a drama set during the American Civil War. Lefevre plays Anna, a widow who begins an affair with a soldier.[36]

In 2011, Lefevre joined the cast of the CBS TV drama, A Gifted Man, playing a doctor.[37] Beginning in June 2013, Lefevre starred in the CBS summer thriller, Under the Dome, based on the 2009 best-selling novel of the same name by Stephen King. Lefevre joined an ensemble cast. The series was filmed in Wilmington, North Carolina, which lasted for three seasons on the network ending in September 2015.

In 2017, Lefevre joined the cast of Global's critically acclaimed original TV series, Mary Kills People for Season 2, premiering in January 2018. The series stars Caroline Dhavernas as Mary. Lefevre plays Olivia, sister of a victim from Season 1, who attempts to blackmail Mary.

In 2019, she played the lead role of Madeline Scott in the Fox legal drama Proven Innocent.[38] The show was cancelled after one season.[39]

Personal life and charity work

In 2009, Lefevre donated $100 to Susan G. Komen for The Cure, a breast cancer charity, for every 10,000 people who followed her on Twitter. She also launched an eBay auction for the charity School On Wheels in August 2009, which provides tutoring to homeless children in Southern California. Lefevre sold t-shirts and other merchandise signed by her fellow cast members from Twilight.[40] She is also an active supporter of Best Friends Animal Society, appearing in a public service announcement on behalf of the organization in November 2009, urging the public to adopt their next pet.[41] Lefevre is a socialist.[42] Lefevre endorsed Senator Bernie Sanders for President in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.[43]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
2000 Stardom Catherine
2001 Life in the Balance Kristy Carswell
2001 Dead Awake Randi Baum
2002 Abandon Eager Beaver
2002 Confessions of a Dangerous Mind Tuvia, Age 25
2003 Deception Denise Straight-to-DVD film
2003 Hatley High Hyacinthe Marquez
2004 The Big Thing Sarah
2004 Head in the Clouds Alice
2004 Noel Holly
2005 The River King Carlin Leander
2005 Pure Julie
2007 Suffering Man's Charity Elaine
2007 Fugitive Pieces Naomi
2008 Prom Wars Sabina
2008 Twilight Victoria Sutherland
2009 The Twilight Saga: New Moon Victoria Sutherland Teen Choice Award for Choice Movie Villain
Teen Choice Award for Most Fanatic Fans (Shared with the Twilight cast)
2010 Barney's Version Clara Nominated — ACTRA Montreal Award for Outstanding Performance – Female
Premiered at 67th Venice International Film Festival
2010 Casino Jack Emily Miller also known as Bagman
2011 The Pool Boys Laura also known as American Summer
2011 The Caller Mary Kee
2012 Omertà Sophie also known as Omertà: The Movie
2012 The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 2 Victoria Sutherland (original incarnation) Archive footage
2013 White House Down Melanie
2013 Pawn Shop Chronicles Sandy
2013 Homefront Susan Hetch
2013 The Legend of Sarila Apik Voice role
2014 Reclaim Shannon
2016 Edge of Winter Karen also known as Backcountry
2017 Hollow in the Land Charlene

Television

Year Title Role Notes
1999 Big Wolf on Campus Stacey Hanson Main role (season 1)
1999 The Legend of Sleepy Hollow Katrina Van Tassel Television film
2000 The Hunger Smallpox Woman Episode: "Double"
2002 Bliss Marine Episode: "The Value of X"
2002 Galidor: Defenders of the Outer Dimension Tyreena Episode: "Relativity"
2002 Undressed Annie Isles 6 episodes
2003 Largo Winch Catarina Episode: "Skin Deep"
2003 See Jane Date Eloise Television film
2003 Charmed Olivia Callaway Episode: "Love's a Witch"
2003 Picking Up & Dropping Off Georgia Television film
2004 Petits mythes urbains Receptionist #1 Episode: "Scalpel illégitime"
2004 The Legend of Butch & Sundance Etta Place Television film
2005 Pool Guys Alana Unsold TV pilot
2005 Life on a Stick Lily Main role
2005 Bones Amy Morton Episode: "A Man on Death Row"
2006 Veronica Mars Marjorie Episode: "My Big Fat Greek Rush Week"
2006 The Class Sue 2 episodes
2006 Four Kings Lauren 2 episodes
2006 What About Brian Heather Main role (season 2), 11 episodes
2007 How I Met Your Mother Sarah Episode: "Moving Day"
2007 The Closer Michelle Morgan Episode: "Saving Face"
2007 CSI: NY Devon Maxford Episode: "You Only Die Once"
2008 Boston Legal Dana Strickland 3 episodes
2008 Life on Mars Annie Cartwright Unaired pilot
2008 Swingtown Melinda Recurring role, 5 episodes
2008 Eli Stone Candance Bonneville Episode: "Should I Stay or Should I Go?"
2008 The Summit Leonie Adderly Television miniseries
2009 Do You Know Me Elsa Carter / Sophie Marsaretti Television film
2009 Better Off Ted Rebecca Episode: "Secrets and Lives"
2009 CSI: Crime Scene Investigation Kumari Episode: "Leave Out All the Rest"
2010 The Deep End Katie Campbell 2 episodes
2011 Off the Map Dr. Ryan Clark Main role
2011 Reconstruction Anna Television film
2011–2012 A Gifted Man Dr. Kate Sykora Main role
2013–2015 Under The Dome Julia Shumway Main role
2015 King of the Nerds Herself Episode: "Nuclear Nerd Games"
2017 Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Nadine Lachere Episode: "Chasing Theo"
2017 Philip K. Dick's Electric Dreams Katie Episode: "Real Life"
2017 Battle of the Network Stars Herself Episode: "Doctors vs. Famous TV Families"
2018 Mary Kills People Olivia Bloom Main role (season 2)
2019 Proven Innocent Madeline Scott Main role
2020 The Sounds Maggie Cabbott Main role

References

  1. ^ Castillo, Sara (August 12, 2008). "Love Totally Bites! We Talk with 'Twilight's' Edward and Victoria!". Fearnet. Retrieved on August 14, 2008.
  2. ^ Loughrey-Grant, Taragh (April 1, 2009). "Twilight Interview – Rachelle Lefevre". RTÉ Ten: The Entertainment Network. Archived from the original on June 19, 2010. Retrieved October 27, 2010.
  3. ^ Friede, Eva (September 15, 2010). "Urban Expressions: Rachelle's Montreal". The Gazette. Retrieved September 18, 2010.
  4. ^ VeniceMag.com. "Sales Inquiry VeniceMag.com || DomainNameSales.com". Venicemag.com. Archived from the original on March 24, 2012. Retrieved October 28, 2013.
  5. ^ "Hollywood Now: Our Favorite New Onscreen Couples (Paul Rudd & Am – InterfaithFamily". interfaithfamily.com. Retrieved April 11, 2015.
  6. ^ Kelly, Brendan (April 20, 2008). "Montreal-born actress Rachelle Lefevre taking a bite out of Hollywood Archived 2011-11-04 at the Wayback Machine". Canwest News Service. Retrieved on April 1, 2009.
  7. ^ Handley, Cassandra (November 1, 2008). "Q&A: Twilight’s Rachelle Lefevre". Vanity Fair. Retrieved on November 15, 2008. Archived November 9, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  8. ^ Miller, Andrea (November 25, 2008). "Twilight Q&A Part Two: Fiery Canuck takes a bite out of vampire franchise". Cineplex Entertainment. Retrieved on January 7, 2009.
  9. ^ a b c "Canada's hottest up-and-coming directors, actors and writers". Playback. July 5, 2004. Retrieved on August 23, 2009.
  10. ^ a b Malcom, Shawna (October 29, 2009). "'Twilight' boosts Rachelle Lefevre's career". Variety. Retrieved on November 5, 2009.
  11. ^ Merrin, Tara (March 19, 2005). "Sticking up for success". Calgary Sun. Retrieved on April 1, 2009.
  12. ^ Williamson, Kevin (November 22, 2008). "'Twilight' star enjoys villainous role Archived 2013-01-01 at archive.today". Jam!. Retrieved on November 23, 2008.
  13. ^ Aurthur, Kate (August 26, 2013). "Cake Decorating With "Under The Dome" Star Rachelle Lefevre". BuzzFeed. Retrieved August 30, 2013.
  14. ^ Dos Santos, Kristin (June 23, 2008). "Spoiler Chat: Heroes, Daisies, Gossip and More". E! Online. Retrieved on June 28, 2008.
  15. ^ a b c Thompson, Bob (November 26, 2008). "Bob Thompson: Rachelle Lefevre's Victoria will reign in Twilight sequels [dead link]". National Post. Retrieved on December 1, 2008.
  16. ^ Chen, David (July 26, 2008). "Twilight's Rachael Lefevre Describes Method Acting, Pretended To Be a Cat To Prepare for Role". Slashfilm.com. Retrieved on July 26, 2008.
  17. ^ Legel, Laremy (November 13, 2008). "Taylor Lautner, Rachelle Lefevre, and Edi Gathegi on Twilight[dead link]". Film.com. Retrieved on November 15, 2008.
  18. ^ "TWILIGHT's Rachelle Lefevre goes shopping with MySpace Celebrity". MySpace Celebrity. November 14, 2008. Retrieved on November 15, 2008.
  19. ^ Zajac, Mandy. (November 10, 2008). "Fans to line up for ‘Twilight’ autographs in E.V.". East Valley Tribune. Retrieved on November 15, 2008. Archived January 11, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  20. ^ a b Szklarski, Cassandra (November 15, 2008). "Fervor, shrieks, mania greet cast of teen vampire movie 'Twilight' in Toronto[dead link]". The Canadian Press. Retrieved on November 17, 2008.
  21. ^ Magiera, Marcy (March 30, 2009). "Twilight year's best-selling DVD so far". Video Business. Retrieved on March 31, 2009.
  22. ^ Zeitchik, Steven (July 29, 2009). "Howard to replace Lefevre in 3rd "Twilight" film". Reuters. Retrieved on July 29, 2009.
  23. ^ "Rachelle Lefevre ‘Stunned’ Over ‘Eclipse’ Recasting". July 29, 2009. Access Hollywood. Retrieved on July 29, 2009.
  24. ^ a b Lemire, Christy (July 29, 2009). "Lefevre 'stunned' Howard has her role in 'Eclipse'". Associated Press. Retrieved on July 29, 2009. Archived August 2, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  25. ^ "Canada's top stars at Comic-Con with Ryan's love Scarlett showing off svelte shape". July 27, 2009. Hellomagazine.ca. Retrieved on July 29, 2009. Archived August 2, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  26. ^ Quirk, Mary Beth (September 18, 2009). "Rachelle Lefevre “Blown Away” by Fan Support". OK!. Retrieved on September 23, 2009. Archived September 25, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  27. ^ Collins, Leah (November 17, 2009). "Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart were there, but jilted Rachelle Lefevre kisses off New Moon gala[dead link]". Vancouver Sun. Retrieved on November 20, 2009.
  28. ^ Ahearn, Victoria (June 18, 2009). ""Twilight" star Rachelle Lefevre juggling several projects in Canada[dead link]". The Canadian Press. Retrieved on July 5, 2009.
  29. ^ "Barney's Version film gets rolling in Rome". August 20, 2009. CBC News. Retrieved on August 23, 2009. Archived August 23, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  30. ^ Brugueras, Melba (November 25, 2009). "Ardientes escenas de sexo en filme The Caller". Primera Hora. Retrieved on November 25, 2009.
  31. ^ Angus, Kat (December 1, 2009). "Twilight New Moon actress replaces Brittany Murphy, who 'was not' fired from movie[dead link]". The Vancouver Sun. Retrieved on December 6, 2009.
  32. ^ Wilonsky, Robert (December 10, 2009). "Next Month, You'll Find Out How ABC Managed to Make Dallas Look Like Los Angeles". Dallas Observer. Retrieved on December 17, 2009.
  33. ^ Duboff, Josh (July 23, 2010). "Industry Roundup: Shatner Gets Co-Star For $#*!, Burn Notice Prequel Planned". New York. Retrieved on July 23, 2010.
  34. ^ Kelly, Brendan (November 28, 2010). "Rachelle Lefevre, Caroline Dhavernas to star in new ABC medical drama Archived 2010-12-02 at the Wayback Machine". Montreal Gazette. Retrieved on December 1, 2010.
  35. ^ Barnard, Linda (March 7, 2011). "Genies up the star power for awards gala". Toronto Star. Retrieved on March 9, 2011.
  36. ^ Stanhope, Kate (March 1, 2011). "Rachelle Lefevre Cast in NBC Pilot – What Does It Mean for Off the Map?". TV Guide. Retrieved on March 9, 2011.
  37. ^ Eng, Joyce (July 8, 2011). "Off the Map's Rachelle Lefevre Checks Into A Gifted Man". TV Guide. Retrieved on August 27, 2011.
  38. ^ Ratledge, Ingela (January 8, 2019). "'Proven Innocent': Kelsey Grammer & Rachelle Lefevre on Facing Off in the New Legal Drama". TV Insider. Retrieved June 12, 2019.
  39. ^ Ramos, Dino-Ray (May 11, 2019). "'Proven Innocent' Canceled At Fox After One Season". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved June 12, 2019.
  40. ^ Barnes, Bronwyn & Levy, Karen (August 4, 2009). "First Look: Rachelle Lefevre's ebay Charity Auction". InStyle. Retrieved on August 4, 2009.
  41. ^ "'Twilight' actress Rachelle Lefevre films PSA for Best Friends Animal Society". November 1, 2009. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on November 6, 2009.
  42. ^ "@Aaron_Frost12 yup! I'm a socialist- never denied it!". Twitter. Retrieved October 28, 2013.
  43. ^ Rachelle Lefevre [@RachelleLefevre] (July 23, 2015). "Sen. Bernie Sanders making me wish I could vote in the U.S. #Skimm #FeelTheBern #SkimmLife theskimm.com/2015/07/21/ski … via @theSkimm" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
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