Best Known As: Jacqueline "Jack" Barrett in TV's Jack & Jill
Amanda Peet is a brilliantly blue-eyed actress who rose to fame with a five-year string of TV and movie roles beginning in 1996. These included TV guest turns on Law & Order and Seinfeld (as Linette, a high-maintenance girlfriend for Jerry) and a starring role in the romantic sitcom Jack & Jill (1999-2001). Her special blend of goofy, cockeyed sex appeal was on prominent display in the comedy The Whole Nine Yards (2000, as a love interest for Bruce Willis), and she also appeared in films including She's the One (1996, with Jennifer Aniston), Grind (1997), and Simply Irresistible (1999). She's worked steadily since then, with appearances on the TV series Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip and in films including the sequel The Whole Ten Yards (2004), A Lot Like Love (2005), Syriana (2005, with George Clooney), The X Files: I Want to Believe (2008) and 2012 (2009). She has also dabbled in the New York stage scene: off-Broadway, in Awake and Sing! and This is How it Goes; and in a 2006 Broadway revival of Barefoot in the Park.
She married screenwriter and novelist David Benioff in 2006. Their daughter, Frances Pen Benioff, whom they call Frankie, was born in 2007... Peet was raised primarily in New York City, where she went to high school at Friends Seminary, graduated from Columbia University with a history degree in 1994, and studied with famous acting teacher Uta Hagen... Her parents are Manhattan lawyer Charles D. Peet Jr. and social worker Penny Peet (nee Levy)... In 2008, she drew the ire of child-vaccination opponents when she endorsed a pro-vaccination campaign sponsored by the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Born on January 11th, 1972, Amanda Peet grew up in New York and made a decidedly unconventional debut into showbiz: At three-years-old, a thoroughly uninvited Peet jumped onto a stage during the middle of a play. Despite the auspicious beginning, Peet treated acting as more of a hobby than anything else, and only began to consider it a potential career after her drama professor at Columbia University encouraged her to audition for renowned acting teacher Uta Hagen. Peet studied with Hagen for four years, during which time she participated in the off-Broadway revival Awake and Sing. Though she would eventually be voted one of the year's 50 most beautiful people in a 2000 issue of People magazine -- not to mention participate with the likes of Susan Sarandon, Samuel L. Jackson, and Jack Nicholson -- Peet worked as a waitress during the first few years of her acting career.
The sloe-eyed brunette made her onscreen debut in Craig Singer's Animal Room (1996). That same year, she could also be seen in an episode of Law & Order, and went on to play a role in Grind (1996), a crime drama starring Billy Crudup. Before long, Peet landed a small role in the Michelle Pfeiffer-George Clooney romantic comedy One Fine Day. Since then, the actress has continued to build both her film and television credits: in 1997, she appeared in the AIDS drama Touch Me, and the following year she had sizable roles in South Boston crime drama Southie with Donnie Wahlberg and Rose McGowan, which won the American Independent award at the 1998 Seattle Film Festival. On television, she could be seen guest starring on a number of shows including Seinfeld and Ellen Foster. In 1999, she got her own television show, Jack & Jill, on the WB network. That same year, she could be seen playing Sean Patrick Flanery's fiancée in Simply Irresistible and then acting as his bedmate in Body Shots, another in the long line of explorations into pre-millennial twentysomething dating angst.
After starring in director Neil Turitz's debut Two Ninas, Peet landed a leading role in Peter M. Cohen's independent comedy Whipped. While the film itself performed dismally, Peet met her boyfriend, Brian Van Holt, on the set. Despite it's independent status, Whipped was given a solid amount of mainstream marketing, and Peet was praised for a game performance in the face of an admittedly weak script.
The next year, Peet starred alongside Ashton Kutcher in the romantic comedy A Lot Like Love, before joining the cast of the politically charged thriller Syriana. Then, in 2006, the actress accepted a recurring role on the one-hour drama Studio 60 On the Sunset Strip. The Aaron Sorkin written series received major critical acclaim but was cancelled after just one season. Undeterred, Peet next teamed up with John Cusack for the quirky, heartfelt drama Martian Child. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, Rovi
Amanda Peet (born January 11, 1972) is an American actress, who has appeared on film, stage, and television. After studying with Uta Hagen at Columbia University, Peet began her career in television commercials, and progressed to small roles on television, before making her film debut in 1995. Featured roles in films such as the 2000 comedy film The Whole Nine Yards brought her to a much wider recognition.[1]
Amanda Peet was born in New York City, the daughter of Penny (née Levy), a social worker, and Charles Peet, a corporate lawyer.[2] The two are now divorced. Her father is a Quaker and her mother is Jewish.[3][4] Peet attended Friends Seminary, then studied history at and graduated from Columbia University,[5] where she auditioned for acting teacher Uta Hagen and decided to become an actress after taking Hagen's class.[6] During her four-year period of study with Hagen, Peet appeared in the off-Broadwayrevival of Clifford Odets's Awake and Sing with Stephen Lang.
Peet had a supporting role in the biographical filmIsn't She Great, in which she appeared with Bette Midler and Nathan Lane. The film was released in January 2000. Peet's first role in a widely-released feature film came in 2000, with the mafia comedy film The Whole Nine Yards, starring Bruce Willis and Matthew Perry. She portrayed the character of Jill St. Claire, who had a nude scene in the film. The film received several favorable reviews from critics[9] and was a big hit at the worldwide box office, with a $106,371,651 gross.[10] Critic Roger Ebert called Peet's performance "Perfect" because "it exactly matches what is required, and then adds a level of heedless glee."[11] She received a nomination for the "Favorite Supporting Actress: Comedy" award at the 2001 Blockbuster Entertainment Awards and for the "Choice Film Liar" award at the 2000 Teen Choice Awards. That same year, landed the starring role, Mia, in the independent film Whipped, won the Young Hollywood Award at the category of "Best New Style Maker", and was voted one of the 50 Most Beautiful People in the World by People magazine.
Peet appeared, playing a psychologist and romantic interest of Jason Biggs's character in the American comedy Saving Silverman (2001). The film was largely panned by critics,[12] but had a minor box office success grossing over $26 million worldwide.[13]Jack Black and Steve Zahn also co-starred in the film. Later, she appeared as Rachel in the 2002 American comedy-drama filmIgby Goes Down. In an interview, she explained her character in the film: "She's not very successful at it and she certainly doesn't seduce the right things" and "She seduces all the wrong things and is seduced by all the wrong things, as well."[14]
Peet portrayed a supporting role in the thriller filmChanging Lanes (2002) as Ben Affleck's wife. In 2003, Peet co-starred with Diane Keaton, Jack Nicholson and Keanu Reeves in the romantic comedy Something's Gotta Give, directed by Nancy Meyers. Her role was Marin Barry, the daughter of Keaton's character, who is a 29-year-old auctioneer, working for Christie's. The film was a commercial and critical success and was nominated for and won several awards. Peet appeared in the 2003 horror and psychological thriller film Identity. She played the role of Paris Nevada, a Las Vegas prostitute who is killed by Timmy (played by Bret Loehr) at the end of the movie. Identity afforded her the chance to work with such actors as John Cusack, Ray Liotta and John Hawkes.[15] The film was a modest box office success worldwide however received much critical acclaim.[15] The following year, she starred in The Whole Ten Yards, the sequel to The Whole Nine Yards. The film was not well received by critics and audience.[16]
2005–2007
In 2005, Peet appeared in the play This Is How It Goes,[17] filling in for Marisa Tomei at the last minute after six days of rehearsal.[citation needed] The same year, was released Woody Allen's tragicomedyMelinda and Melinda – starring Peet – which was given a limited release in the United States on March 18, 2005. Peet had the lead role with Ashton Kutcher in the romantic comedy film A Lot Like Love. The film is about two people whose relationship slowly evolves from lust to friendship to romance over the course of seven years. A Lot Like Love received mixed reviews and was a box office success. Los Angeles Times stated that Peet "is charming and charismatic without being cloying or artificial." Her on screen chemistry with Kutcher was either criticized or praised by a number of critics. Peet was nominated for the "Choice Movie Actress: Comedy" at the 2005 Teen Choice Awards.
She co-starred alongside George Clooney in the thriller film Syriana, which was based loosely on former Central Intelligence Agency agent Robert Baer and his memoirs of being an agent in the Middle East. In Syriana her character was Julie Woodman, the wife of Brian (played by Matt Damon). The film was released theatrically in November 2005.
In February 2006, she performed in Neil Simon's Broadway production of Barefoot in the Park. Later in 2006, she starred in the romantic drama filmGriffin & Phoenix, a remake of a 1976 ABC TV movie, where she played the role of Sarah Phoenix, a terminally-ill woman living life to the fullest. Peet was a member of the cast of the television series Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, which premiered on NBC on September 18, 2006. She starred with Matthew Perry, with whom she had worked in The Whole Nine Yards and The Whole Ten Yards, and Sarah Paulson, with whom she previously co-starred in Jack & Jill. In Studio 60, Peet's character Jordan McDeere was the newly-appointed president of the National Broadcasting System (NBS). In 2007, she received a Satellite Award nomination for Best Actress – Television Series Drama for her performance in the show.
In 2007's The Ex, a romantic comedy, Peet played an attorney who stays home to raise a new baby. The film was released on May 11, 2007 and also starred Zach Braff, Charles Grodin and Jason Bateman. The film generally received negative reviews from critics[18] and had an international gross of $5,142,074.[19]
Peet starred in 2012, a 2009 disaster film directed by Roland Emmerich, alongside John Cusack and Danny Glover. In the film, she portrayed the character of Kate Curtis, a medical student and Jackson's ex-wife.[25][26][27] The film received mixed or average reviews from critics,[28] but had a $769,679,473 worldwide gross,[29] becoming Peet's biggest success at the box office.[30] In an interview with Femail, she said about the film: "this movie is like going on a roller coaster. Though I can't anymore myself, I get sick! But it's a controlled way of scaring yourself. So in a safe, controlled environment, you can really enjoy being scared. In a masochistic way."[31]
In 2010's independent comedy-drama film Please Give, Peet co-starred with Catherine Keener and Rebecca Hall; she played a self-centered cosmetologist named Mary. Please Give received a limited release in March 2010 after it was screened out of competition at the 60th Berlin International Film Festival. The film received critical acclaim; Ethan Alter of Film Journal International wrote that Peet "does career-best work here [the film]."[32] Peet and the other Please Give cast members received a Gotham Award nomination for Best Ensemble Cast.[33] She guest appeared in the television series How I Met Your Mother episode "Jenkins", playing the title character.[34]
Peet next provided the voice for Rayna, one of the main characters of the 2010 animated educational sci-fi adventure filmQuantum Quest: A Cassini Space Odyssey, which was opened on January 13, 2010 in the United States. Peet joined the cast of the live-action family adventure film Gulliver's Travels. She appears with Jack Black, Jason Segel and Emily Blunt.[35] The film was released on December 22, 2010 in 3D.[36] Her character is Darcy Silverman, Jack's editor, and potential love interest.[37]
In 2008, Peet volunteered to be a spokeswoman for Every Child By Two (ECBT), a non-profit organization that advocates childhood vaccination. Peet began working with the group after becoming concerned by the "amount of misinformation floating around [about vaccines], particularly in Hollywood."[43] In an interview with Cookie, Peet stated: "Frankly, I feel that parents who don't vaccinate their children are parasites," referring to the benefit unvaccinated children derive from herd immunity and the concern that dropping vaccination rates may put all children at increased risk of preventable disease.[43] Peet's comments stirred controversy; in response, she apologized for using the term "parasites", but affirmed her position on the importance and safety of vaccinations.[44][45]
The 3rd Annual Independent Investigative Group IIG Awards recognizing the promotion of science in popular media was held on May 18, 2009. The IIG presented an award to Peet for her work campaigning for vaccines.[46]
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