Charis Elisa Michelsen (born December 30, 1974) is an American actress, a former model and a make-up artist. Michelsen worked as a model in New York City in her early adulthood before becoming an actress. She appeared in supporting roles in the films ''

High Art High culture is a subculture that emphasizes and encompasses the cultural objects of aesthetic value, which a society collectively esteem as exemplary art, and the intellectual works of philosophy, history, art, and literature that a society con ...

'' (1998),

Martin Scorsese Martin Charles Scorsese ( , ; born November 17, 1942) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter and actor. Scorsese emerged as one of the major figures of the New Hollywood era. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominatio ...

's ''

Bringing Out the Dead ''Bringing Out the Dead'' is a 1999 American psychological drama film directed by Martin Scorsese and written by Paul Schrader, based on the novel of the same name by Joe Connelly. It stars Nicolas Cage, Patricia Arquette, John Goodman, Ving ...

'' (1999), and ''

Wonder Boys ''Wonder Boys'' is a 1995 novel by the American writer Michael Chabon. It was adapted into a film with the same title in 2000. Plot summary Pittsburgh professor and author Grady Tripp is working on an unwieldy 2,611-page manuscript that is mean ...

'' (2000).

Life and career

Charis (pronounced ''Chær-us'') Michelsen was raised in

Boring, Oregon Boring is an unincorporated community in Clackamas County, Oregon, United States. It is located along Oregon Route 212 in the foothills of the Cascade mountain range, approximately southeast of downtown Portland, and northeast of Oregon City. ...

, a small town east of

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: * Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States * Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...

. After high school, she moved to New York City to study art at

Parsons School of Design Parsons School of Design, known colloquially as Parsons, is a private art and design college located in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of New York City. Founded in 1896 after a group of progressive artists broke away from established Manhatt ...

, where a photographer for ''

Harper's Bazaar ''Harper's Bazaar'' is an American monthly women's fashion magazine. It was first published in New York City on November 2, 1867, as the weekly ''Harper's Bazar''. ''Harper's Bazaar'' is published by Hearst and considers itself to be the st ...

'' discovered her for modeling. While attending a rock concert, Michelsen was discovered by

Liv Tyler Liv Rundgren Tyler (born Liv Rundgren; July 1, 1977) is an American actress, producer, singer and former model. She began a modeling career at age 14. She later decided to focus on acting and made her film debut in ''Silent Fall'' (1994); she ...

's mother

Bebe Buell Beverle Lorence "Bebe" Buell (born July 14, 1953) is an American singer and model. She was ''Playboy'' magazine's November 1974 Playmate of the Month. Buell moved to New York in 1972 after signing a modeling contract with Eileen Ford, and garnere ...

, who became her career manager. Michelsen played the role of "Debby" in the 1998, award-winning film ''

'', and soon after appeared in

's film ''

''. Michelsen then went to work on the films ''

'' and ''Orphan''. She eventually relocated to Los Angeles. In 1997, Michelsen was the voice for the co-starring role of "Keri Boyer" in '' I Married A Strange Person'', directed by

Bill Plympton Bill Plympton (born April 30, 1946) is an American animator, graphic designer, cartoonist, and filmmaker best known for his 1987 Academy Awards-nominated animated short '' Your Face'' and his series of shorts featuring a dog character starting ...

. Film critics have declared Michelsen, "a bewitching young thing" -Michael Atkinson (

The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the crea ...

),"sensuous" -Michael Tunison (BoxOffice Magazine); have said that "Charis Michelsen is beautiful, her opaque blue eyes and internal acting make her someone who critics should continue to watch." -Mike Szymanski (

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

), and have said that she has "a fetching, fainty

Natalie Imbruglia Natalie Jane Imbruglia ( , ; born 4 February 1975) is an Australian singer and actress. In the early 1990s, she played Beth Brennan in the Australian soap opera '' Neighbours''. Three years after leaving the programme, she began a singing car ...

-ish screen presence" -Brent Simon (Entertainment Today). Besides Scorsese, Michelsen has worked with

Nicolas Cage Nicolas Kim Coppola (born January 7, 1964), known professionally as Nicolas Cage, is an American actor and film producer. Born into the Coppola family, he is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Screen Actors Gu ...

Michael Douglas Michael Kirk Douglas (born September 25, 1944) is an American actor and film producer. He has received numerous accolades, including two Academy Awards, five Golden Globe Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, the Cecil B. DeMille Award, and the AF ...

Tobey Maguire Tobias Vincent Maguire (born June 27, 1975) is an American actor and film producer. He is best known for playing Peter Parker (Sam Raimi film series), the title character from Sam Raimi's Spider-Man in film#Sam Raimi films, ''Spider-Man'' tril ...

Robert Downey Jr. Robert John Downey Jr. (born April 4, 1965) is an American actor and producer. His career has been characterized by critical and popular success in his youth, followed by a period of substance abuse and legal troubles, before a resurgence of ...

Katie Holmes Kate Noelle Holmes (born December 18, 1978) is an American actress. She first achieved fame as Joey Potter on the television series ''Dawson's Creek'' (1998–2003). Holmes made her feature film debut in 1997 with a supporting role in Ang Lee ...

Ving Rhames Irving Rameses Rhames (born May 12, 1959) is an American actor. He is best known for his supporting roles as IMF Agent Luther Stickell in the ''Mission: Impossible'' film series and gang kingpin Marsellus Wallace in ''Pulp Fiction''. He also ap ...

, and others. Michelsen played Mrs. Wyatt Cooper (

Eric Dane Eric William Dane (born November 9, 1972) is an American actor. After multiple television roles in the 1990s and 2000s, which included his recurring role as Jason Dean in ''Charmed'', Dane was cast as Dr. Mark Sloan on the ABC medical drama tel ...

's wife) on an episode of the ABC television drama ''

Gideon's Crossing ''Gideon's Crossing'' is an American medical drama starring Andre Braugher. The series is loosely based on the experience of real-life physician Jerome Groopman and his book ''The Measure of Our Days''. It premiered on October 10, 2000, and ran ...

''. She also starred with

Peter Steele Petrus Thomas Ratajczyk (January 4, 1962 – April 14, 2010), known professionally as Peter Steele, was an American musician, singer, and songwriter. He was best known as the lead vocalist, bassist and composer of the gothic metal band Type O N ...

in his band

Type O Negative Type O Negative were an American gothic metal band formed in Brooklyn, New York City in 1989 by Peter Steele (bass, lead vocals), Kenny Hickey (guitar, co-lead vocals), Josh Silver (keyboards, backing vocals), and Sal Abruscato (drums, percussi ...

's music video "

My Girlfriend's Girlfriend "My Girlfriend's Girlfriend" is a song from American gothic metal band Type O Negative's 1996 album ''October Rust''. The first single off of the aforementioned album, it describes a polyamorous relationship. According to an interview in Livewire ...

," and with

in the music video "If" by

Coyote Shivers Francis "Coyote" Shivers is a Canadian-American musician and actor. Music and acting Shivers co-produced the first single for the band Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet. The B-side to that single, "Having an Average Weekend," became the theme to ...

. She was married to actor and director Josh Evans from 2003 to 2011, and is the former daughter-in-law of the late movie producer

Robert Evans Robert Evans (born Robert J. Shapera; June 29, 1930October 26, 2019) was an American film producer, studio executive, and actor, best known for his work on '' Rosemary's Baby'' (1968), ''Love Story'' (1970), ''The Godfather'' (1972), and ''Chi ...

and actress

Ali MacGraw Elizabeth Alice MacGraw (born April 1, 1939) is an American actress and activist. She gained attention with her role in the film ''Goodbye, Columbus'' (1969), for which she won the Golden Globe Award for Most Promising Newcomer. She gained an ...

Filmography

Film

Music videos

References

External links

*
''Los Angeles Times'', Review, ''Erosion'', April 21, 2006

''The New York Times'', "Film in Review," ''The Price of Air'', September 29. 2000

''The New Yorker'', "The Film File," ''I Married a Strange Person'', September 7, 1998
{{DEFAULTSORT:Michelsen, Charis 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American actresses Actresses from California People from Boring, Oregon American film actresses American make-up artists American television actresses Living people Actresses from Oregon 1974 births Evans family (Paramount Pictures)