Minka Kelly

Emerging as one of the brighter young stars on television in the mid-2000s, actress Minka Kelly parlayed strong supporting work into starring roles on screens both large and small. The daughter of former Aerosmith guitarist Rick Dufay, she first made headway with guest-starring roles on shows like "What I Like About You" (The WB, 2000-06), prior to landing a regular spot on the critically-acclaimed football drama series "Friday Night Lights" (NBC/DirecTV, 2006-11).

Kelly's heartfelt portrayal of high school cheerleader Lyla Garrity not only earned her kudos, but film work in such projects as director Peter Berg's action-adventure "The Kingdom" (2007). Possibly less welcome was the press coverage of the young actress' romantic liaisons with such high-profile figures as musician John Mayer, New York Yankee superstar Derek Jeter and actor Jesse Williams.

Following a season on "Parenthood" (NBC, 2010-15) and a lead role in the collegiate thriller "The Roommate" (2011), she went on to lead the casts of short-lived revamped action-crime series "Charlie's Angels" (ABC, 2011) and science fiction thriller "Almost Human" (Fox 2013-14).

Born on June 24, 1980 in Los Angeles, Kelly was raised in a show business family, thanks to her father, Rick Dufay, guitarist for the legendary rockers Aerosmith on their 1982 album Rock in a Hard Place and her mother, Maureen, a former Las Vegas showgirl. Kelly's entertainment lineage stretched back even further; her grandparents were actor Richard Ney and actress Greer Garson, who won the Academy Award for her performance in "Mrs. Miniver" (1942).

Growing up with a musician father also had its unique perks. Aerosmith lead singer Steven Tyler put time in as one of Kelly's babysitters. "He used to blow up his cheeks really big for me and I used to get a kick out of it," she told Entertainment Weekly. But that went away soon after her father abandoned the family, leaving Kelly's mother to raise her only child on her own.

When she was 17, Kelly finally reconciled with her estranged father and joined him in Los Angeles two years later. Meanwhile, she went to school to become a surgical technician, but also took an acting class primarily as a hobby. Kelly said she got hooked on performing after just one class and decided to pursue it as a full-time career.

Stardom did not happen overnight for the hardworking actress, who took on small roles in shows such as "Drake & Josh" (Nickelodeon, 2004-07) and "American Dreams" (NBC, 2002-05) early in her career. In 2005, Kelly booked a short recurring role in the comedy "What I Like About You" (The WB, 2002-06), acting alongside Amanda Bynes and Jennie Garth. The actress also appeared in a couple of independent movies, including "Devil's Highway" (2005) and "State's Evidence" (2006), prior to landing her breakout role.

Kelly's hard work finally paid off when she got cast in "Friday Night Lights," a television drama based on writer-director Peter Berg's 2004 film of the same name, about a small Texas town that lives for its high school football games. Kelly played Lyla Garrity, a cheerleader and fiancée of the school's star quarterback who was paralyzed from the chest down after the opening game of his senior year. To prepare for the role, Kelly trained with the Pflugerville High School cheer squad.

Meanwhile, her character raised eyebrows during the show's first season when she slept with the best friend (Taylor Kitsch) of her paralyzed boyfriend. By the end of the series' third season, Kelly's character had graduated high school and went off to college. While "Friday Night Lights" was favored by critics, low ratings often made the series a candidate for cancellation. But NBC was set to air the show's fourth season in 2009-2010, with the actress returning only as a recurring character.

"Friday Night Lights" creator Peter Berg was so impressed by Kelly's performance that he cast her in his feature film, "The Kingdom," about a counter-terrorism unit investigating a bombing at a Western compound in Saudi Arabia. Kelly's first big-budget film production saw her acting alongside an impressive ensemble cast that included Jamie Foxx, Chris Cooper, and Jennifer Garner. "The Kingdom" received mixed critical reviews, however, and managed less than $50 million at the box office.

In 2009, Kelly had a minor role in the romantic comedy "500 Days of Summer" opposite Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel, a romantic comedy about a hopeless romantic falling in love with a woman who refuses to believe in true love. She next picked up a recurring role on the first season of the dramedy "Parenthood" (NBC, 2010-15) as Gaby, a behavioral aide working with the Braverman's young son, Max (Max Burkholder), a boy recently diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome.

Kelly returned to the big screen alongside "Gossip Girl" (The CW, 2007-12) star Leighton Meester in the thriller "The Roommate" (2011), playing a college student terrorized by her obsessive roomie (Meester). Following a small turn in the Adam Sandler-Jennifer Aniston romantic comedy "Just Go With It" (2011), the actress co-starred as Eve French, one of "Charlie's Angels" (ABC, 2011) in the highly-publicized but short-lived reboot of the iconic 1970s crime show.

After starring in indie mystery "Searching for Sonny" (2011) and appearing in writer-director Lee Daniels' "The Butler" (2013) as Jackie Kennedy, Kelly took on the female lead of science fiction thriller "Almost Human" (Fox 2013-14) for its sole season. The little-seen films "The World Made Straight" (2014) and "Papa: Hemingway in Cuba" (2015) followed, along with arcs in the spiritual drama "The Path" (Hulu 2016- ) and romantic comedy "Jane the Virgin" (CW 2014- ).

Kelly next appeared in the recurring role of Dawn Granger in the streaming series "Titans" (2018).