Elizabeth Reaser Biography
Born: June 15, 1975
Date of Birth: June 15, 1975
Actress Elizabeth Reaser was born in Bloomfield, Michigan and grew up in rural Milford. Her mother and father divorced, and her mother remarried the billionaire Detroit Pistons owner William Davidson. She attended Birmingham Seaholm High School and Avondale High School, and worked odd jobs including being a caddy at a country club. She knew at a young age she wanted to be an actor, having "subjected her family to really bad shows in the living room." She attended college at Oakland University in Rochester Hills, Michigan for one year before deciding to apply at the Juilliard School of Drama. After being accepted, she relocated to New York City and graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 1999.
Elizabeth began receiving parts in shows such as Guiding Light, The Sopranos, Law & Order: Criminal Intent and Saved. She then landed the role of pregnant amnesiac Jane Doe in Grey's Anatomy, which earned her a Primetime Emmy Award nomination. In October of 2004, Interview magazine named her as one of the "14 To Be" emerging creative women.
Her feature film debut was Stay (2005), followed by the drama Sweet Land (2005), for which she received rave reviews for her expressive portrayal of a Russian mail-order bride. Reaser was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead for her performance. She then appeared in The Family Stone (2005), Shut Up and Sing (2006), Puccini for Beginners (2006) and Purple Violets (2007) before landing the role of Esme Cullen in Twilight (2008). Although she has appeared in successful films and TV shows, she is not too concerned with ratings, having once acted in a play in London with only two people in the audience.
Elizabeth starred in the short-lived sitcom The Ex List (2008), followed by a regular role on the crime drama series The Good Wife (2010 to 2011), alongside Julianna Margulies and Chris Noth. Elizabeth reprised her role in The Twilight Saga: New Moon (2009), The Twilight Saga: Eclipse (2010), The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 1 and The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2. Most recently, she played a supporting role alongside Sally Field in Hello, My Name is Doris (2016), as well as a lead role in the horror flick Ouija: Origin of Evil (2016).
She is currently in a relationship, but likes to keep her personal life private. Elizabeth, who plays a vampire-style "vegetarian" in the Twilight movies, is an actual vegetarian in real life.
Filmography:
Ouija: Origin of Evil (2016)
Hello, My Name is Doris (2016)
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2 (2012)
Young Adult (2011)
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 1 (2011)
The Art of Getting By (2011)
The Twilight Saga: Eclipse (2010)
The Twilight Saga: New Moon (2009)
Against the Current (2009)
Twilight (2008)
Purple Violets (2007)
Puccini for Beginners (2006)
The Wedding Weekend (2006)
The Family Stone (2005)
Sweet Land (2005)
Stay (2005)
Mind the Gap (2004)
Emmett's Mark (2002)
Thirteen Conversations About One Thing (2001)
The Believer (2001)