Jennifer Carpenter is an American actress who is known for her role as Debra Morgan in the Showtime series '' Dexter'', for which she earned a Saturn Award in 2009, and also for playing Rebecca Harris in the

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

television series '' Limitless''. In 2019, she began playing Erica Shepherd, the lead role in the NBC drama '' The Enemy Within''. In 2020, Carpenter voiced

Sonya Blade Sonya Blade is a character (arts), fictional player character, character in the ''Mortal Kombat'' fighting game franchise by Midway Games and NetherRealm Studios. She debuted in the Mortal Kombat (1992 video game), original 1992 game as the roste ...

in the direct-to-video martial arts film '' Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion's Revenge'' (2020), a role she reprised in the sequel '' Mortal Kombat Legends: Battle of the Realms'' (2021).

Early life

Carpenter was born in

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...

, the daughter of Catherine (née Mitchell) and Robert Carpenter. She attended St. Raphael the Archangel and then Sacred Heart Academy. She trained at the Walden Theatre Conservatory program, and later at New York City's

Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most elit ...

(Drama Division ''Group 31'': 1998–2002). Before graduation, she was cast in the 2002

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

revival of

Arthur Miller Arthur Asher Miller (October 17, 1915 – February 10, 2005) was an American playwright, essayist and screenwriter in the 20th-century American theater. Among his most popular plays are ''All My Sons'' (1947), '' Death of a Salesman'' (1 ...

's ''

The Crucible ''The Crucible'' is a 1953 play by American playwright Arthur Miller. It is a dramatized and partially fictionalized story of the Salem witch trials that took place in the Massachusetts Bay Colony during 1692–93. Miller wrote the play as ...

'' starring

Liam Neeson William John Neeson (born 7 June 1952) is an actor from Northern Ireland. He has received several accolades, including nominations for an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, and two Tony Awards. In 2020, he was placed 7th on ''The I ...

and Laura Linney.

Career

Carpenter first attracted critical attention for her performance in '' The Exorcism of Emily Rose''. She took home the 2006

MTV Movie Award The MTV Movie & TV Awards (formerly the MTV Movie Awards) is a film and television awards show presented annually on MTV. The first MTV Movie Awards were presented in 1992. The ceremony was renamed the MTV Movie & TV Awards for its 26th editio ...

for "Best Frightened Performance", and received a "Hollywood Life Breakthrough Award". She was named "Breakout Performer" at the 2006

Scream Awards The Scream Awards was an award show dedicated to the horror, sci-fi, and fantasy genres of feature films. Originally only having ''Scream Queen'' and ''Heroic Performance'' awards for actors, the personnel awards have expanded to include actors a ...

. In 2008, she starred in ''

Quarantine A quarantine is a restriction on the movement of people, animals and goods which is intended to prevent the spread of disease or pests. It is often used in connection to disease and illness, preventing the movement of those who may have been ...

'', an American remake of the 2007 Spanish horror film EC about a deadly zombie virus outbreak in an apartment complex. Carpenter played the role of Debra Morgan in the Showtime crime drama television series '' Dexter'', which premiered October 1, 2006. Her portrayal of the title character's adoptive sister impressed a number of critics, with Australian journalist Jack Marx describing her portrayal of "cool and clumsy" Debra as "so perfect that many viewers appear to have mistaken the character's flaws for the actor's." In 2011, she starred in the off-Broadway play ''Gruesome Playground Injuries'' at

Second Stage Theatre Second Stage Theater is a theater company founded in 1979 by Robyn Goodman and Carole Rothman and located in Manhattan, New York City. It produces both new plays and revivals of contemporary American plays by new playwrights and established wri ...

and had a guest appearance on the CBS drama ''

The Good Wife ''The Good Wife'' is an American legal and political drama television series that aired on CBS from September 22, 2009, to May 8, 2016. It focuses on Alicia Florrick, the wife of the Cook County State's Attorney, who returns to her career in l ...

''. In January 2014, it was announced that Carpenter would star in a new ABC drama ''Sea of Fire'', playing FBI Agent Leah Pierce. However, the show was not picked up as a series. In August 2014, it was announced that she would provide the voice of Juli Kidman in the

survival horror Survival horror is a subgenre of survival of the players as the game tries to frighten them with either horror graphics or scary ambience. Although combat can be part of the gameplay, the player is made to feel less in control than in typical ac ...

video game ''

The Evil Within ''The Evil Within'' is a survival horror video game developed by Tango Gameworks and published by Bethesda Softworks. The game was directed by ''Resident Evil'' series creator Shinji Mikami and was released worldwide in October 2014 for PlayStat ...

'', marking her first video game appearance. The game was released in October 2014, and Carpenter provided voicework for two of ''The Evil Withins DLC chapters, "The Assignment" and "The Consequence", which featured Juli Kidman as the playable protagonist. However, Carpenter did not reprise the role in the game's sequel, ''

The Evil Within 2 ''The Evil Within 2'' is a survival horror video game developed by Tango Gameworks and published by Bethesda Softworks for PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One. It was released worldwide in October 2017 and is the sequel to 2014's ''The Evil ...

'', and her character was recast. In early 2015, Carpenter was cast in the CBS drama series '' Limitless'' in which she co-starred with

Jake McDorman John Allen McDorman IV (born July 8, 1986) is an American actor. On television, he headlined the CBS comedy-drama '' Limitless'' (2015–2016) and was the male lead of the sitcoms '' Are You There, Chelsea?'' (2012) and ''Manhattan Love Story'' ...

. On July 13, 2021, Showtime confirmed that Carpenter would reprise her role of Debra Morgan in a 10-episode limited series, with Clyde Phillips returning as showrunner. The series premiered on November 7, 2021.

Personal life

In 2007, she began dating her ''Dexter'' co-star Michael C. Hall. They eloped on New Year's Eve 2008 in California and publicly appeared together for the first time as a married couple at the

66th Golden Globe Awards The 66th Golden Globe Awards, honoring the best in film and television of 2008, was broadcast on January 11, 2009, from the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California, United States on the NBC TV network. The broadcast was watched by approx ...

in January 2009. In December 2010, Hall and Carpenter released a statement announcing that they had filed for divorce, citing irreconcilable differences, after having been separated "for some time". The divorce was finalized in December 2011; the two remain very close friends. On February 10, 2015, it was announced that Carpenter and musician

Seth Avett Timothy Seth Avett (born July 30, 1980) is one of the lead singers and founding members of the American folk-rock band The Avett Brothers. Avett sings and plays guitar, drums, and piano for the band based out of Concord, North Carolina. In 2008, ...

were engaged and expecting their first child. In August 2015, it was revealed that Carpenter had given birth in May to a son and admitted that she was eight-and-a-half months pregnant when shooting the pilot episode of '' Limitless''. Carpenter and Avett married in May 2016.

Filmography

Film

Television

Video games

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Carpenter, Jennifer Living people Actresses from Louisville, Kentucky American film actresses American stage actresses American television actresses American voice actresses Juilliard School alumni 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American actresses Year of birth missing (living people)