Keri Russell
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Keri Lynn Russell (born March 23, 1976) is an American actress and dancer, most known for playing the title role on the television series Felicity. She was born in Fountain Valley, California and grew up in Mesa, Arizona and Denver, Colorado.
Russell first found her way onto television as a cast member of the New Mickey Mouse Club variety show on the Disney Channel. She was on the show from 1991 to 1993, with her final year seeing the introduction of soon-to-be pop singers Christina Aguilera, Britney Spears, and Justin Timberlake.
Several appearances on film and TV followed, with one of her most significant pre-Felicity roles coming in the 1996's The Babysitter's Seduction. However, it was a fairly stereotypical TV movie, with melodramatic overtones. She had a role in the shortlived soap opera series Malibu Shores the same year. Russell also had an appearance on Jon Bon Jovi's music video "Always" with Jack Noseworthy.
A major attraction for many fans of the actress is her (usually) long and curly hair. A drastic hairstyle change at the beginning of Felicity's second season was considered to be the cause of a significant drop in the show's ratings. This reportedly led to a new policy at The WB where major changes in appearance by on-screen talent must be approved by the network.
The filming of Felicity had left Russell somewhat drained, so she went on hiatus when the series ended and considered quitting acting. Her next role was as part of the Mel Gibson-led bio-pic We Were Soldiers in 2002, where she played the wife of an American serviceman who became involved in the first major battle between U.S. and Viet Cong forces in the Vietnam War. After that, she moved to New York City and took about two years to avoid the business of Hollywood, spending time with friends.
The actress made her Broadway stage debut in 2004, appearing with Jeremy Piven, Andrew McCarthy, and Ashlie Atkinson in Neil LaBute's Fat Pig. In 2005 she returned to television and film, first with an appearance in the Hallmark Hall of Fame TV movie Magic of Ordinary Days. In theatrical release was The Upside of Anger, where she appeared alongside Kevin Costner and Joan Allen. She will be in the mid-year miniseries Into the West.
A number of her Felicity co-stars went on to appear in J.J. Abrams's next TV series, Alias, but Russell has declined invitations to be part of the show. In a seminar at the Museum of Television and Radio, Abrams said, "I've asked Keri if she would ever do it [Alias], and I usually get this, sort of like, giggle—and then she hangs up." In 2005, he asked her to join the cast of Mission: Impossible III, and she accepted. The film is due for release in 2006.
Russell has been baptized into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. However, she does not currently participate in LDS practices or worship services. She currently resides in Manhattan.