Leighton Meester

Born in Fort Worth, Texas in 1986, actress and singer Leighton Meester grew up in Marco Island, Florida, which is where she first got her taste for performing. During the time of Meester's birth both her parents were incarcerated in federal prison for crimes related to supporting the smuggling of marijuana from Jamaica to the United States. Meester's parents separated in 1992 and when Meester was 11 the family relocated to New York City.

Meester attended the prestigious Professional Children's School. She began modeling, and worked for brands like Ralph Lauren, Clearasil, Limited Too and Tamagotchi. Three years after her relocation to New York, Meester moved to Los Angeles. She cycled through a series of school, completing her high school credits a year early. Meester's TV debut came in 1999 when she was cast as the friend of a murder victim on "Law & Order" (NBC, 1990-2010).

In 2003 Meester made her film debut in the movie Hangman's Curse. She was cast in recurring roles on "Entourage" (HBO, 2004-11) and on "Veronica Mars" (UPN, 2004-06; CW, 2006-07). In 2006 Meester was cast in the films "Flourish" and "Inside." Meester's breakthrough role came in 2007 when she was cast as scheming socialite Blair Waldorf in the CW teen soap opera "Gossip Girl" (2007-2012).

In addition to her acting work, Meester has released a series of musical recordings, including "Somebody to Love" which featured R&B artist Robin Thicke, and "Good Girls Go Bad" a Cobra Starship song for which she provided vocals. Meester starred alongside Garrett Hedlund and Gwyneth Paltrow in the 2010 drama "Country Strong". In 2014 Meester starred in the feature comedy "Life Partners". That same year Meester made her Broadway debut in an adaptation of "Of Mice and Men". The play also starred Chris O'Dowd and James Franco.

In 2018 it was announced that Meester would star in ABC sitcom "Single Parents" (ABC, 2018-). Meester married actor Adam Brody in February of 2014. She gave birth to her first child in August 2015.