Personal life

Allen was born in Portland, Oregon

Portland, Oregon

Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...

, the daughter of Julie and David Allen. She grew up on Bainbridge Island, Washington

Bainbridge Island, Washington

Bainbridge Island is a city in Kitsap County, Washington, United States, and the name of the island in Puget Sound on which the city is situated...

 as the middle child of three sisters: older Jennifer (Jenny) and younger Lindsay. She attended Wellesley College as a Sociology

Sociology

Sociology is the study of society. It is a social science—a term with which it is sometimes synonymous—which uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about human social activity...

 major and graduated

Graduation

Graduation is the action of receiving or conferring an academic degree or the ceremony that is sometimes associated, where students become Graduates. Before the graduation, candidates are referred to as Graduands. The date of graduation is often called degree day. The graduation itself is also...

 in 1996. She worked with the NYPD as a domestic violence

Domestic violence

Domestic violence, also known as domestic abuse, spousal abuse, battering, family violence, and intimate partner violence , is broadly defined as a pattern of abusive behaviors by one or both partners in an intimate relationship such as marriage, dating, family, or cohabitation...

 counselor

Licensed Professional Counselor

Licensed professional counselor is a licensure for mental health professionals. The exact title varies by state, but the other most frequently used title is licensed mental health counselor . Several U.S. states, including Illinois, Maine, and Tennessee, have implemented a two-tier system whereby...

 before pursuing acting.

Allen married Bruce Weyman at the Relais Palazzo del Capitano in Pienza

Pienza

Pienza, a town and comune in the province of Siena, in the Val d'Orcia in Tuscany , between the towns of Montepulciano and Montalcino, is the "touchstone of Renaissance urbanism."...

, Italy

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

 on September 23, 2006.
Son Harper Edward Weyman was born September 3, 2008 in Los Angeles and weighed 9 lbs., 5 oz.

Career

Allen first established her career portraying Laura Kirk-English DuPres on the soap opera

Soap opera

A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...

 All My Children

All My Children

All My Children is an American television soap opera that aired on ABC from January 5, 1970 to September 23, 2011. Created by Agnes Nixon, All My Children is set in Pine Valley, Pennsylvania, a fictitious suburb of Philadelphia. The show features Susan Lucci as Erica Kane, one of daytime's most...

from 2000–2002, taking over the role from Lauren Roman, who originated the role in 1995-1998. After departing AMC, Allen went on to play Susan Delacorte in Julia Roberts' Mona Lisa Smile

Mona Lisa Smile

Mona Lisa Smile is a 2003 romantic drama film produced by Revolution Studios and Columbia Pictures in association with Red Om Films Productions, directed by Mike Newell, written by Lawrence Konner and Mark Rosenthal, and starring Julia Roberts, Kirsten Dunst, Maggie Gyllenhaal, and Julia Stiles...

costarring with Kirsten Dunst and Julia Stiles. Later she starred in USA Network

USA Network

USA Network is an American cable television channel launched in 1971. Once a minor player in basic cable, the network has steadily gained popularity because of breakout hits like Monk, Psych, Burn Notice, Royal Pains, Covert Affairs, White Collar, Monday Night RAW, Suits, and reruns of the various...

's hit show, The 4400

The 4400

The 4400 is a science fiction TV series produced by CBS Paramount Network Television in association with Sky Television, Renegade 83, and American Zoetrope for USA Network. The show was created and written by Scott Peters and René Echevarria, and it stars Joel Gretsch and Jacqueline McKenzie...

. She played the role of Lily Tyler

Lily Tyler

Lily Tyler is a fictional character in the USA Network science fiction television series The 4400.- Background :...

. However, her character was written out of the show before its third season. She did reprise the role of Lily Tyler in 2007 in the fourth and final season of The 4400 for two episodes. In 2006, Allen was a guest star on House, MD in the episode "All In", as Sarah, the mother of a sick 6-year-old boy. She was also a guest star in the season 2 episode of Criminal Minds

Criminal Minds

Criminal Minds is an American police procedural drama that premiered September 22, 2005, on CBS. The series follows a team of profilers from the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit based in Quantico, Virginia. The BAU is part of the FBI National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime...

"Open Season" as the victim of two serial killers and alongside Cynthia Nixon

Cynthia Nixon

Cynthia Ellen Nixon is an American actress, known for her portrayal of Miranda Hobbes in the HBO series Sex and the City . She has received two Screen Actors Guild Awards, two Emmy Awards, a Tony Award, and a Grammy Award....

 in the 2007 season premiere of Law & Order: SVU.

Allen starred as Julia Mallory in the first season of the FX drama series Dirt

Dirt (TV series)

Dirt is an American television serial broadcast on the FX network. It premiered on January 2, 2007 and starred Courteney Cox as Lucy Spiller, the editor-in-chief of the first-of-its-kind "glossy tabloid" magazine DirtNow, which was previously two separate publications: drrt and Now Dirt (styled...

, co-starring Courteney Cox

Courteney Cox

Courteney Bass Cox is an American actress, she is best known for her roles as Monica Geller on the NBC sitcom Friends, Gale Weathers in the horror series Scream and as Jules Cobb in the ABC sitcom Cougar Town, for which she earned her first Golden Globe nomination....

 and Ian Hart

Ian Hart

Ian Hart is an English stage, television and film actor.-Early life:Hart, the grandson of Irish immigrants, was born in Liverpool, Merseyside, England. He is one of three siblings and was brought up in a Roman Catholic family...

. Her character was a Hollywood heroin addict, suffering the abuses of paparazzi. Her most recent character was as a former love interest of Major Owen Hunt

Owen Hunt

Owen Hunt is a fictional character on the ABC television series Grey's Anatomy, portrayed by Kevin McKidd. He was introduced in season five as a US Army trauma surgeon who served in war-torn Iraq, and consequently joins Seattle Grace to teach medicine as a surgical attending, sometimes with...

 on the ABC's critically acclaimed Grey's Anatomy

Grey's Anatomy

Grey's Anatomy is an American medical drama television series created by Shonda Rhimes. The series premiered on March 27, 2005 on ABC; since then, seven seasons have aired. The series follows the lives of interns, residents and their mentors in the fictional Seattle Grace Mercy West Hospital in...

.

Other recent projects include the thrillers Hysteria

Hysteria

Hysteria, in its colloquial use, describes unmanageable emotional excesses. People who are "hysterical" often lose self-control due to an overwhelming fear that may be caused by multiple events in one's past that involved some sort of severe conflict; the fear can be centered on a body part, or,...

, From Within

From Within (film)

From Within is a horror film directed by Phedon Papamichael Jr. and written by Brad Keene. Filming took place in Maryland in fall 2007. The film premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in April-May 2008.-Premise:...

and The Collective

The Collective (2009 film)

The Collective is a 2008 American independent horror film written, directed, and produced by Judson Pearce Morgan and Kelly Overton. The film was released to film festivals in 2008 and is slated for theatrical release in 2009.-Plot:...

, and Old Dogs

Old Dogs (film)

Old Dogs is a 2009 American ensemble comedy film directed by Wild Hogs Walt Becker and starring Robin Williams and John Travolta with an ensemble supporting cast played by Kelly Preston, Matt Dillon, Justin Long, Seth Green, Rita Wilson, Dax Shepard, and Bernie Mac...

with John Travolta and Robin Williams.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2003		Limo Girl	Short film
2003	Mona Lisa Smile Mona Lisa Smile Mona Lisa Smile is a 2003 romantic drama film produced by Revolution Studios and Columbia Pictures in association with Red Om Films Productions, directed by Mike Newell, written by Lawrence Konner and Mark Rosenthal, and starring Julia Roberts, Kirsten Dunst, Maggie Gyllenhaal, and Julia Stiles...	Susan Delacorte
2005	How You Look to Me	Jane Carol Webb
2008	From Within From Within (film) From Within is a horror film directed by Phedon Papamichael Jr. and written by Brad Keene. Filming took place in Maryland in fall 2007. The film premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in April-May 2008.-Premise:...	Trish
2008		Clare
2009	Old Dogs Old Dogs (film) Old Dogs is a 2009 American ensemble comedy film directed by Wild Hogs Walt Becker and starring Robin Williams and John Travolta with an ensemble supporting cast played by Kelly Preston, Matt Dillon, Justin Long, Seth Green, Rita Wilson, Dax Shepard, and Bernie Mac...	Kelly
2010	Cherry	Linda
2010	Hysteria	Erin

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2000		Jennifer	Episode: "Pilot"
2000-2002	All My Children All My Children All My Children is an American television soap opera that aired on ABC from January 5, 1970 to September 23, 2011. Created by Agnes Nixon, All My Children is set in Pine Valley, Pennsylvania, a fictitious suburb of Philadelphia. The show features Susan Lucci as Erica Kane, one of daytime's most...	Laura English	TV series
2004	Cold Case	Vanessa Prosser	Episode: "Late Returns"
2004	North Shore North Shore (TV series) North Shore is an American prime-time soap opera that aired on Fox every Monday at 8 p.m. EST for seven months in 2004 and 2005...	Monique	Episode: "More"
2004	Sucker Free City Sucker Free City Sucker Free City is a 2004 film directed by Spike Lee. The film examines white, black, and Chinese characters in San Francisco and the conflicts they encounter with each other. The film was intended to be the pilot for a Showtime television series. Showtime declined to pick up the series...	Samantha Wade	TV movie
2004-2005		Lily Moore Tyler Lily Tyler Lily Tyler is a fictional character in the USA Network science fiction television series The 4400.- Background :...	17 episodes
2006	House House (TV series) House is an American television medical drama that debuted on the Fox network on November 16, 2004. The show's central character is Dr. Gregory House , an unconventional and misanthropic medical genius who heads a team of diagnosticians at the fictional Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital in...	Sarah Alston	Episode: "All In All In (House) "All In" is the seventeenth episode of the second season of House, which premiered on the Fox network on April 11, 2006.-Plot:During a field trip in a museum exhibit about the human body, 6-year old Ian Alston is found to have bloody diarrhea... "
2007	Criminal Minds Criminal Minds Criminal Minds is an American police procedural drama that premiered September 22, 2005, on CBS. The series follows a team of profilers from the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit based in Quantico, Virginia. The BAU is part of the FBI National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime...	Bobbi Baird	Episode: "Open Season"
2007		Lily Moore Tyler	Episode: "One of Us"
2007	Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Law & Order: Special Victims Unit is an American police procedural television drama series set in New York City, where it is also primarily produced...	Cass Magnall	Episode: "Alternate"
2007-2008	Dirt Dirt (TV series) Dirt is an American television serial broadcast on the FX network. It premiered on January 2, 2007 and starred Courteney Cox as Lucy Spiller, the editor-in-chief of the first-of-its-kind "glossy tabloid" magazine DirtNow, which was previously two separate publications: drrt and Now Dirt (styled...	Julia Mallory	14 episodes
2009	Grey's Anatomy Grey's Anatomy Grey's Anatomy is an American medical drama television series created by Shonda Rhimes. The series premiered on March 27, 2005 on ABC; since then, seven seasons have aired. The series follows the lives of interns, residents and their mentors in the fictional Seattle Grace Mercy West Hospital in...	Beth Whitman	Episode: "Beat Your Heart Out Beat Your Heart Out (Grey's Anatomy) "Beat Your Heart Out" is the fourteenth episode of the fifth season of the ABC series, Grey's Anatomy. It aired on February 5, 2009.-Episode Summary:... " Episode: "Before and After Before and After (Grey's Anatomy) "Before and After" is the fifteenth episode of the fifth season of the ABC series, Grey's Anatomy. It aired on February 12, 2009.-Episode Summary:... "
2009	CSI: Miami CSI: Miami CSI: Miami is an American police procedural television series, which premiered on September 23, 2002 on CBS. The series is a spin-off of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation....	Sondra Moore	Episode: "Dissolved"
2010	Terriers Terriers (TV series) Terriers is an American crime comedy-drama television series created by Ted Griffin for FX. It premiered on September 8, 2010. The show was canceled by FX on December 6, 2010 after the first season.-Premise:...	Katie Nichols	13 episodes
2012	Awake Awake (TV series) Awake is an upcoming science fiction crime drama television series that will air on NBC starring Jason Isaacs. On May 16, 2011, NBC announced that the show would serve as a midseason replacement during the 2011–12 television season...	Hannah	Episode: "Pilot"

External links

• The Official Laura Allen Web Site