Julie Benz

JULIE BENZ

Date of Birth: May 1, 1972

Born in Pennsylvania, Julie Benz was once ranked the number 12 ice skater in the United States. The daughter of a surgeon and a figure skater, Julie began skating at age three. By 1989 at age 17, with her figure skating career over due to an injury, Julie turned to acting in local theater.

She soon landed her first movie role in the horror film Due occhi diabolici (1990) opposite Harvey Keitel. Still in high school, she landed a role on the ABC-TV sitcom Hi Honey, I'm Home.

After graduating from the acting program at NYU, Julie moved to Los Angeles, where she soon landed guest appearances on well-known series such as Married With Children, Boy Meets World, Diagnosis Murder and Step by Step.

Although she didn't land the lead role in the TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, she was cast as a vampire named Darla. For a time she even did double duty, playing her character on the popular Buffy spinoff, Angel concurrently. When both series ended, she played a recurring role as Kathleen Topolsky on the sci-fi teen series Roswell, then Rita Bennett in the cable series Dexter, for which she won a Satellite award as "Best Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series."

Since playing a receptionist in the major motion picture As Good as it Gets (1997) starring Jack Nicholson, Julie has been landing supporting and starring roles in films such as Rambo, Saw V and Punisher War Zone.

Divorced from her husband of nine years, actor John Kassir, Julie lives in the Los Angeles area with her dog, Bamboo.

Filmography:

Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day (2009)
Punisher: War Zone (2008)
Saw V (2008)
Rambo (2008)
The Brothers (2001)
As Good as It Gets (1997)
Inventing the Abbotts (1997)
Due occhi diabolici (1990)