Michelle Krusiec

Raven-haired beauty Michelle Krusiec was a burgeoning star at an age when most are at their most awkward. At the age of 12, she was spotted by a talent scout in her hometown of Virginia Beach. It wasn't long before she was enrolled in a prestigious magnet school geared toward the arts, and soon afterward walking the halls of Virginia Tech, where she picked up degrees in theater and English. Travel would dominate the coming months for Krusiec, as she completed additional studies at Oxford and, in 1996, became the host of the Discovery Channel's Travelers, which took her to 50 destinations around the world. Once her adventure was over, the young actress began building up her acting resume, appearing on television shows like Providence and Popular. In 1998, she scored a starring role in the Saturday morning sitcom One World, and she stayed with the series for all of its three seasons. Krusiec continued to add to her filmography, accepting supporting roles in movies like Pumpkin, Sweet Home Alabama, and Daddy Day Care, as well as appearances on shows like ER and Titus. Then, in 2004, Krusiec landed the leading role in a small, independent film called Saving Face. She played a Chinese-American surgeon named Wil who lives in Manhattan. When her mother, an immigrant and an extremely traditional woman, shows up at her door pregnant and unmarried, Wil agrees to help her, but cultures soon clash. The conservative nature of her family has made will reluctant to bring her relationship with her girlfriend (played by Lynn Chen) out in the open, and her mother's disapproval of her gay lifestyle heightens tensions even more. The jarring nature of she and her mother's role reversals only added to the dramatic meat for the actress to bite into, and the film proved a true test of her abilities.The film was a critical smash, praised for its sensitive portrayal of Krusiec and Chen's relationship, as well as Chen's performance. Without skipping a beat, she jumped back into the saddle with roles on Weeds, Grey's Anatomy, and Without a Trace. In 2006, she signed on to appear in Nanking, Bill Guttentag's documentary about the 1937 massacre of the Chinese city. - Cammila Albertson, All Movie Guide