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Melissa Marie Benoist (/bəˈnɔɪst/; born October 4, 1988) is an American actress and singer. She is known for her portrayal of the title character in the CBS/CW superhero drama series Supergirl.

She rose to prominence for her portrayal of Marley Rose on the fourth and fifth seasons of the Fox musical comedy-drama television series Glee, and has appeared in a number of television series including Homeland, The Good Wife and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. Benoist has also appeared in films such as Danny Collins, The Longest Ride, Lowriders, Patriots Day and the Oscar-winning 2014 film Whiplash.

Early life

Benoist was born in Littleton, Colorado. Her paternal great-grandfather was of French descent. The rest of her ancestry is German, English, and Scottish. She has two sisters, Jessica and Kristina. She was four years old when her aunt put her in a church play she was directing. As a teen, Benoist performed anonymously at Disneyland for three summers with the Academy of Theatre Arts a musical theatre school located in Littleton, Colorado run by Paul Dwyer and Alann Worley. She performed locally in productions including Cinderella and Bye Bye Birdie at Town Hall Arts Center, and Evita at the Country Dinner Playhouse. In 2006, The Denver Post named Benoist one of Colorado’s five "Can't Miss Kids". She graduated from Arapahoe Hight School in Centennial, Colorado, in 2007, and from Marymount Manhattan College in New York City in 2011 with a Bachelor of arts in theatre arts.

Career

Benoist's first film was in singer Mariah Carey's Tennessee in 2008.

In May 2012, she auditioned for Glee in New York at the Roundabout Theatre Company, singing a different song for each of her five auditions including: "Fidelity" by Regina Spektor, "King of Anything" by Sara Bareilles, a Colbie Caillat song, and several musical theater pieces. In July, she had two screen tests in California for series creator/writer, Ryan Murphy, the casting directors, and executive producers.

She and Glee co-star Darren Criss appeared with Josh Duhamel in the opening of the 2013 Kids' Choice Awards. That same year, she was selected as an ambassador for Coca-Cola's new product, P10 300 ml Coke Mismo. In June 2013, they were flown to Manila, Philippines, to endorse the product by visiting various malls and meeting with fans.

Benoist played Nicole, the love interest of Miles Teller's Andrew Neiman, in the 2014 film Whiplash, which won top prizes (Grand Jury and Audience awards) at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival.

In June 2014, Benoist joined Nicholas Sparks' film adaption The Longest Ride as Marcia.

She had a role in the 2015 film Danny Collins, starring Al Pacino. She played the part of Jamie, a desk clerk at a hotel frequented by one of Jamie's all-time favorite rock stars.

In May 2015, it was announced that Benoist will be playing Lorelai in the film Lowriders, replacing Lily Collins and Nicola Peltz, who were in talks for the role previously.

In August 2015, Benoist landed the leading role in the Screen Gems drama feature film Oxford, with Sam Heughan as her leading man.

In October 2015, the first episode of the superhero adventure series, Supergirl with Benoist in the lead role of Kara Zor-El aired on CBS. The second season of the series moved to The CW.

She appeared as a presenter in the 42nd People's Choice Awards, which aired on January 6, 2016, on CBS, and at the 73rd Golden Globe Awards, broadcast January 10, 2016, she presented along with The Flash star Grant Gustin. In June of that year, the Human Rights Campaign released a video in tribute to the victims of the 2016 Orlando gay nightclub shooting; in the video, Benoist and others told the stories of the people killed there.

In May 2016, Benoist was cast as Katherine Russell, the widow of deceased Boston Marathon bomber Tamerlan Tsarnaev, in Patriots Day.

Personal life

Benoist married her former Glee co-star Blake Jenner in 2015. She filed for divorce, citing irreconcilable differences, in late December 2016.

Filmography

Film

Television

Web

Stage

Soundtrack performances

Awards and nominations

References

1. "Melissa Benoist". TV Guide. Archived from the original on May 4, 2016. Retrieved 2016-09-16.
2. Rose, Lacey; O'Connell, Michael; Sandberg, Bryn Elise; Stanhope, Kate; Goldberg, Lesley (August 28, 2015). "Next Gen Fall TV: 10 Stars Poised for Breakouts". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on November 29, 2016. Retrieved 2015-12-02. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
3. Roberts, Michael (2015-03-09). "Melissa Benoist, Arapahoe High Grad, Is Supergirl: See Her in Costume". Westword. Retrieved 2017-05-18.
4. Roberts, Michael (2015-10-27). "Melissa Benoist: Before Supergirl, She Was Cinderella (and More) in Littleton". Westword. Retrieved 2017-05-18.
5. ^ Moore, John (September 22, 2006). "Can't Miss Kids". Denver Post. Retrieved 2015-11-01.
6. "Arapahoe High School – Warriors, Always Take Care of One Another". Arapahoe High School. Retrieved 2015-03-06.
7. Jacobs, Laura (December 8, 2015). "Why Supergirl Star Melissa Benoist Is the "Annie Hall of Superheroes"". Vanity Fair.
8. ^ Moore, John (September 6, 2012). "Glee adds a new cast member from Colorado: Melissa Benoist". The Denver Post. Archived from the original on October 26, 2016. Retrieved August 12, 2017. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
9. "Congratulations, Arapahoe High School grads". May 2007. Archived from the original on March 8, 2012. Retrieved May 16, 2017. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
10. Kardell, Kelli (October 4, 2012). "From MMC to McKinley High: Alumna Melissa Benoist". MMC The Monitor. Retrieved May 16, 2017.
11. Coryell, Katie (March 1, 2016). "Amazing Alumni: MMC Edition!".
12. "Melissa Benoist". Retrieved March 25, 2017.
13. "Who Is Melissa Benoist? All About Glee Season 4's Marley". wetpaint.com. November 2012.
14. "Darren Criss & Melissa Benoist With Josh Duhamel on Kids Choice Awards 2013 23/03/13". YouTube. March 24, 2013. Retrieved 2015-03-06.
15. "The Cast of GLEE for Coke, raindeocampo.com, June 2013.
16. Butler, Peppermint (June 10, 2013). "Shaken, Not Stirred: Coke Launch with Glee Stars". Status Magazine online. Retrieved 2015-03-06.
17. "‘Glee’ cast members invade 3 malls", rappler.com, June 2013. Accessed 2014-08-19.
18. Yang, Tatin (June 9, 2013). "Newest Glee stars overwhelmed by Pinoys' welcome". Philippine Daily Inquirer.
19. "'Fast & Furious 7' Adds Djimon Hounsou; 'Glee's Melissa Benoist Gets 'Whiplash'; Liana Liberato Joins 'If I Stay'". Deadline Hollywood. September 11, 2013. Retrieved 2015-11-01.
20. Yamato, Jen (June 24, 2014). "'Glee's Melissa Benoist Joins 'The Longest Ride'; 'Sicario' Adds 'Captain America 2's Maximiliano Hernandez; Shane Black Rebooting 'Predator'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 2015-11-01.
21. "Melissa Benoist Joins 'Imagine'; Natalie Dormer Cast In 'Posh'; Carter Jenkins Leads 'Skate God'". Deadline Hollywood. July 11, 2013. Retrieved 2015-03-06.
22. Hipes, Patrick (May 21, 2015). "'Supergirl' Star Melissa Benoist Climbs Into 'Lowriders' Movie". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 2015-09-05.
23. Fleming, Mike Jr (August 27, 2015). "'Supergirl's Melissa Benoist, 'Outlander's Sam Heughan Set For Screen Gems Love Story 'Oxford'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 2015-11-01.
24. "CBS Fall 2015 Schedule: 'Supergirl' Opens Monday, 'Life In Pieces' Follows 'Big Bang'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 2015-12-11.
25. "People's Choice Awards 2016 highlights". Retrieved March 25, 2017.
26. "Golden Globe Awards 2016 highlights". Retrieved March 25, 2017.
27. "49 Celebrities Honor 49 Victims of Orlando Tragedy | Human Rights Campaign". Hrc.org. Retrieved 2016-06-30.
28. Rothaus, Steve (June 12, 2016). "Pulse Orlando shooting scene a popular LGBT club where employees, patrons 'like family'". The Miami Herald. Retrieved 2016-06-15.
29. McNary, Dave (May 5, 2016). "'Supergirl's' Melissa Benoist, Khandi Alexander Join Mark Wahlberg's 'Patriots Day'". Variety. Retrieved August 15, 2017.
30. "Glee stars Melissa Benoist and Blake Jenner split after just 21 months of marriage".
31. Toomey, Alyssa (July 13, 2015). "Glee's Melissa Benoist and Blake Jenner Are Married! | E! News". Eonline.com. Retrieved 2017-01-02.
32. Mizoguchi, Karen (December 29, 2016). "Supergirl's Melissa Benoist Files for Divorce from Blake Jenner: Report". People. Retrieved 2017-01-03.
33. "Melissa Benoist & Julia Garner To Co-Star In 'Waco' Event Series For Par Network".
34. Hogan, John (2017). "A Ray of Hope". TV Guide Comic-Con Special 2017. p. 83. And while the show is focused on The Ray, his teammates will appear too. "It's called Freedom Fighters: The Ray for a very specific reason," Guggenheim explains, "which is we knew we wanted to establish the Freedom Fighters and Earth-X. In Multiversity, Grant Morrison came up with an idea we really responded to: The Freedom Fighters are made up of various minorities targeted by Nazis-women, gay men, Jews. We wanted to honor that idea. At the same time, it's an origin story about the Earth-1 iteration of The Ray." Some familiar voices will be dropping by, like Supergirl's Melissa Benoist as Overgirl, the Earth-X version of the Girl of Steel... Other supervillains The Ray will take on include evil Nazi counterparts of The Flash and Green Arrow... guest appearances by... The Flash's Cisco, Arrow's Mr. Terrific and fellow CW Seed star Vixen."
35. Maglio, Tony (July 1, 2013). "'Glee,' 'Pitch Perfect' Lead Second Wave of Teen Choice Awards Nominations". The Wrap. Retrieved January 3, 2017.
36. McClendon, Lamarco (May 11, 2016). "'Better Call Saul,' Melissa Benoist, Nichelle Nichols To Be Honored at Saturn Awards". Variety. Retrieved January 3, 2017.
37. Bryant, Jacob (February 24, 2016). "'Star Wars,' 'Mad Max,' 'Walking Dead' Lead Saturn Awards Nominations". Variety. Retrieved January 3, 2017.
38. McNary, Dave (March 2, 2017). "Saturn Awards Nominations 2017: 'Rogue One,' 'Walking Dead' Lead". Variety. Retrieved March 2, 2017.
39. Ceron, Ella (June 19, 2017). "Teen Choice Awards 2017: See the First Wave of Nominations". Teen Vogue. Retrieved June 19, 2017.

External links

• Melissa Benoist at IMDb
• Melissa Benoist on Twitter
• Melissa Benoist on Instagram

• 1988 births
• 21st-century American actresses
• Actresses from Colorado
• American child actresses
• American female singers
• American film actresses
• American stage actresses
• American television actresses
• Living people
• Marymount Manhattan College alumni
• People from Littleton, Colorado