Erica Durance

A stunning beauty with girl-next-door charm, Erica Durance came out of relative obscurity and stepped into the role of one of the most iconic onscreen characters of all time. Durance acted mostly in independent films and on short-lived television shows before she was cast as Lois Lane on the hit series "Smallville" (The WB, 2001-06; The CW, 2006-2011). Durance made her mark on the small screen by playing the beloved character, a small-town girl who ends up a successful journalist and Superman's love interest.

Faced with the pressure of portraying such a known character, Durance exceeded expectations and became a favorite amongst comic book fans and television viewers. Later in her career, Durance took on more feature film roles, yet it was her star-making turn as Lois on "Smallville" that made her one of the small screen's most memorable leading ladies.

Erica Durance was born on June 21 1978 in Calgary, Alberta, Canada to a truck driver and a librarian. She was raised on a turkey farm along with her older brother and sister in the town of Three Hills, Alberta. Durance moved to Vancouver, British Columbia after attending school to pursue a career in entertainment. She made her way into show business by appearing in low-budget films and on several primetime TV shows. One of Durance's first films was the 2003 horror "House of the Dead," about a group of young partygoers who end up trapped on an island that has been taken over by zombies.

Early in her career, Durance also guest-starred on the musical comedy show "The Chris Isaak Show" (Showtime, 2001-04), the short-lived adventure drama "Tru Calling" (Fox, 2003-05), and the cult sci-fi series "Stargate SG-1" (Showtime, 1997-2002; The Sci Fi Channel, 2002-07). Durance made her feature film-starring debut in "The Butterfly Effect 2" (2006), the sequel to the 2004 drama thriller that starred Ashton Kutcher. In the second installment of the franchise, Durance played the girlfriend of a man (Eric Lively) who suffers from a brain tumor that allows him to change the past while staring at significant photographs of his life.

Durance landed her breakthrough television role after being cast as Lois Lane, a journalist who falls in love with Superman, on the adventure drama series "Smallville." The series was based on the life of a young Clark Kent (Tom Welling), who navigates life as a small town teenager while discovering his fate and powers as the future Man of Steel. Durance made her first appearance in 2004 when the young Lois comes to the fictional town of Smallville, KS to investigate the mysterious death of her cousin Chloe (Allison Mack), who was also one of Clark's best friends. She was originally cast in a recurring role, but the character's popularity with viewers turned Durance into a series regular by the show's fifth season.

The actress revealed in several interviews that there was a considerable amount of pressure to play Lois, yet she tried to stay true to her character's quirks while putting her own spin on the role. Durance became a favorite amongst comic book lovers and fan boys who voted her to the top of lists such as Netscape's "Sexiest Sci-Fi Babes" and Entertainment Weekly's "Sci-Fi Hotties of 2009." In 2011, the same year "Smallville" wrapped production, Durance was nominated for Choice Actress: Fantasy/Sci-Fi at the Teen Choice Awards.