Jennifer
Birthname Jennifer Leann Carpenter (Middle name might be Alice)
Birthdate December 7, 1979
Birthplace Louisville, Kentucky, USA
Residence Los Angeles, CA, USA
Family Mother, Father, siblings (?)
Spouse Michael C. Hall
Hair / Eyes Brown / Brown
Height 5' 9½" / 1.77 cm
Age 32
Jennifer Leann Carpenter was born 7th December 1979 at 3AM in Louisville, Kentucky. For education she went to St. Raphael Elementary School, Walden School and Sacred Heart Academy. Jennifer always knew that acting was something that she wanted to pursue. Her aunt would actively encourage her to pursue this dream. "She used to babysit my sister and myself when I was eight. I think she dropped us off at an audition, thinking that if we got the parts they would watch us during rehearsals. I accidentally fell in love with it and never considered doing anything else. In fact, I think my dad really wanted me to have a backup and I told him, 'If I thought I really needed a backup I'd do something else'".
While at the Walden School she played Helena in "A Midsummer Night's Dream". At age 8 she played Tiny Tim at the annual Dickens on Main Street celebration and held the role for three years. For college, Jennifer attended Juilliard in New York City since the age of 18. "I went to school. I went to Juilliard. You spend 13 hours a day on voice and speech. Now I realize why. I was really specific about every sound, which I think helped me protect myself", Jennifer said later on. In 2002 Jennifer portrayed Mary Warren in the Broadway production of Arthur Miller's "The Crucible", also starring Liam Neeson and Laura Linney. Linney, calling her the finest young actress she's ever known, was so taken by Carpenter's performance that she suggested her to the casting directors of "The Exorcism of Emily Rose". "Laura has been a guardian angel to me with her friendship, watching her work and being able to call her when I get a little lost or lose my footing. She's always there", Jennifer describes the acclaimed actress. Carpenter says that while she loves acting for television and film productions, it is theatre that is her first and true love. "I will always do theater. I think they're two totally different games, gratifying for two totally different reasons, two totally different challenges. I love New York, and I love being a part of something where you get to come in every night and do something from start to finish, ride the ride with a bunch of people watching. I love it."
After her work in "The Crucible", Jennifer Carpenter moved to Los Angeles to pursue acting in films. Life was sometimes hard for the struggling actress. "It was really hard living at first. I think you feel the highs a lot more out here and the lows a lot more as well. So when I first got out here, I was stretching $20 to last for a week and waiting tables. I did that for about six months. And I don't mind it at all. I was really happy for the experience, but it made me get really aggressive about what I want. You know, I've been doing this since I was 8, and I've never considered doing anything else, so I knew I had to kick it in gear." And so she did, starting her film career acting in independent movies, such as "Ash Tuesday" (2003), "Last Days of America" (2005) and "Lethal Eviction" (2005). Jennifer also had a small cameo role in "D.E.B.S" (2004) and streched her comedy muscles in "White Chicks" (2004). While she is best known for dramatic roles, Jennifer says that she loved this role and the experience of working in "White Chicks". "I loved doing "White Chicks". I feel just as comfortable in comedy as I do in drama, and you know, I learned a lot doing that movie, made some of my best friends in the whole world too. I'm really proud of it." The film lead Carpenter to her first TV series, Danny DeVito's "Queen B" (2003), in which she co-starred alongside Alicia Silverstone. Unfortunately only a pilot was filmed because Fox did not end up picking up the show.
Carpenter moved on to star in "The Exorcism of Emily Rose" (2005) alongside close friend Laura Linney in a role that made her both a household name as well as an acclaimed character actress. Her impressive performance made TV produces take notice and so she was shortly cast as Debra Morgan in Showtime's risque and brilliant new series, "Dexter". The successful series will start filming its second season in May 2007. Meanwhile, Jennifer has been acting in "The Dog Problem" (2006) where she has a small part as a waitress and also in Stuart Townsend's "The Battle in Seattle" (2007).
Later in 2008 she made the horror movie "Quarantine" (2008) where she plays the TV reporter Angela Vidal who is going to interview and make a reportage of some fire fighters. She and her cameraman follows the fire fighers to a small apartment building and that's when stuff starts to become frightening. This was a remake of the Spanish film "[Rec]" (2007) and both versions got a lot of viewers and people were positive about Jennifer's part.
The series "Dexter" has been very successfull and has a lot of viewers. So far has 4 seasons been filmed and the last season aired in the autumn 2009 and Jennifer has gotten screen time to play the lovely and funny Debra Morgan.
Coming next is the film "The Factory" (2011) co-starring John Cusack and it seems like Jennifer's career is going straight up!
Jennifer Carpenter is a talented young actress on the rise. She is passionate about her profession and a very hard worker. She knows what she wants and goes after it. When asked about what the workaholic enjoys doing on her freetime, Jennifer replied: "I don't keep like thirty friends. I keep five really close friends. And I hang out with them. I think in LA, your friends become your family, and I've got a really good family here. I like to go dancing and partying every once awhile. But I'm a lot quieter than most, I guess." Talking about future ambitions, Jennifer says: "I'd like to fly a plane. I can shoot a gun, so I'd like to shoot a gun sometime. I want to do a little bit of everything. I would love to play a singer. Coal Miner's Daughter...that's one of my favorite movies in the world. I'd love to play a country singer at some point. I can't believe I'm saying this out loud!"
At 31 December 2008 Jennifer and her co-star and boyfriend Michael C. Hall got married and we hope the couple gets many happy years together. They met at the set of the TV Series "Dexter".
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