Jodi Lyn O'Keefe

Jodi Lyn O'Keefe (born October 10, 1978[2][3]) is an American actress, model and fashion designer. She came to prominence for her portrayal of Cassidy on the television series Nash Bridges (1996–2001). She is also known for playing Gretchen Morgan on Prison Break (2007–2009), and for her roles as Jo Laughlin on The Vampire Diaries (2014–2017) and Lionel Davenport on Hit the Floor (2014–2018). Her film credits include Halloween H20 (1998) and She's All That (1999).

Jodi Lyn O'Keefe
Jodi Lyn O'Keefe at Los Angeles Fashion Week, Smashbox Studios, Culver City on March 9, 2008
Born (1978-10-10) October 10, 1978[1]
Cliffwood Beach, New Jersey, United States
Other namesJodi O'Keefe
OccupationActress, model, fashion designer
Years active1995–present

Early life

O'Keefe was born in the Cliffwood Beach section of Aberdeen Township, New Jersey,[3] the daughter of Noreen, a homemaker, and Jack O'Keefe, a director of labor relations for Merck.[1]

She graduated from St. John Vianney High School.[4]

Career
Jodi Lyn O'Keefe in 2016

O'Keefe started her career as a model at the age of eight years old, and she did some modeling work for a Jeans company. Midway through her junior year of high school, O'Keefe left school to star on the soap opera Another World, playing Marguerite "Maggie" Cory. She then got a role on Nash Bridges playing Cassidy, the daughter of Don Johnson's title character.[5] She and her mother moved to Hollywood so O'Keefe completed her schooling by mail.

O'Keefe made her big screen debut in 1998 in Halloween H20: 20 Years Later[6][7] and later starred in such films as The Crow: Salvation,[8] Whatever It Takes[9] and Devil In The Flesh 2.[10] In 1999, she co-starred in the teen film She's All That (1999) as Taylor Vaughan alongside Freddie Prinze Jr. and Rachael Leigh Cook.[11][12] When asked if it was hard to play her character, a high school prima donna, she replied, "Everybody knew a Taylor Vaughan in high school. Working in show business, you meet girls like that every day."

O'Keefe kept on filming both movies and Nash Bridges until the series ended in 2001. Later films have included Out for Blood, in which she played a vampire named Layla Simmons and Venice Underground. On the small screen, she has appeared in various shows including Dharma & Greg, Boston Legal, Two and a Half Men, Charmed, The Evidence,[13] The Big Bang Theory, and Tru Calling.

In 2007, O'Keefe was cast in a starring role on the series Prison Break;[14] she was a part of the show's cast through its third and fourth seasons. O'Keefe has said that she "truly loved" playing the part of her Prison Break character Gretchen Morgan, because it "challenged" her, and because Gretchen was the "polar opposite of her" and "was badass".[15]

In 2014 O'Keefe was cast in a recurring role in VH1's TV series Hit the Floor,[16] and appeared in the film Merry ExMas. The same year, she was also cast in the recurring role of Jo in the sixth season of The CW series The Vampire Diaries.[17]

Other appearances

In 2009 she appeared in the video game Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 - Uprising.

In June 2013, O'Keefe did a photoshoot for NOH8 campaign.

O'Keefe was in 3 Doors Down's video for "Let Me Go", alongside Jesse Metcalfe of Desperate Housewives.

Other ventures

On June 22, 2011, O'Keefe started her own clothing line, Queen George Clothing.[18] In 2012, O'Keefe launched her own jewelry line, Q.

O'Keefe is also a licensed bounty hunter together with her friend Victoria Pratt, with whom she starred in the movie A Nanny's Revenge.[19]

Filmography

Film
Year Film Role Notes
1998Halloween H20: 20 Years LaterSarah Wainthrope
1999She's All ThatTaylor Vaughan
2000The Crow: SalvationLauren Randall
2000Whatever it TakesAshley Grant
2000Devil in the Flesh 2Debbie Strand/Tracy Carlayaka. Teacher's Pet[10]
2002Falling in Love in Pongo PongaShawneeShort film
2003Red RoverKylie Logan
2004Out for BloodLayla Simmonsaka. Vampires: Out for Blood
2004Mummy an' the ArmadilloJackie
2005Venice UndergroundTyler
2007American IdentityLyndsey SimpsonShort film
2013Frozen GroundChelle Ringell[20]
2014Merry ExMasAshley Williams
2018Edge of FearGina

Television
Year Series Role Episodes
1995Another WorldMaggie Cory #46 episodes
1996–2001Nash BridgesCassidy BridgesMain role
1999Happy HourHerself1 episode[21]
2002Dharma & GregSimoneEpisodes: "She's with the Band", "Mission: Implausible"
2002George LopezCampbellEpisodes: "Who's Your Daddy?", "The Wedding Dance"
2003The Pool at Maddy Breaker'sMaddy BreakerTelevision movie
2004Tru CallingCandace AimesEpisode: "Reunion"
2004The HelpBecky WigginsEpisode: "Maggie Chicken"
2004CharmedSpider DemonEpisode: "Spin City"
2004–2005Boston LegalNora Jacobs4 episodes
2004Two and a Half MenGailEpisode: "Last Chance to See Those Tattoos"
2005EveRita's stepmotherEpisode: "If the Shrew Fits"
2005;
2010–2011		Two and a Half MenIsabella3 episodes
2005AdoptedRachel RabinowitzTelevision movie
2005Three Wise GuysMary Ann DavidsonTelevision movie
2006Halloween: 25 Years of TerrorHerself1 episode
2006The EvidenceOfficer Jackie KazarisRecurring role, 5 episodes
2006Criminal MindsAgt. Amanda GilroyEpisode: "P911"
2006The 12th ManLindsayTelevision movie
2007CSI: NYMelodee ConstanzaEpisode: "The Ride In"
2007RainesAngelina BillingsEpisode: "Closure"
2007The CallJenna "Kinky" KincaidUnsold television pilot[22]
2007–2009Prison BreakGretchen MorganMain role (seasons 3–4), 32 episodes
2009The Big Bang TheoryMikayla the ProstituteEpisode: "The Vegas Renormalization"
2009Prison Break: The Final BreakGretchen MorganTelevision movie
2010LostAvaEpisode: "Recon"
2010Soul Fire RisingLilith Reborn3 episodes
2010ClassKylie BurchTelevision movie
2011Law & Order: LAJenn MackieEpisode: "Angel's Knoll"
2011ExposedEmily BennettTelevision movie[23]
2012The FinderLisaEpisode: "A Cinderella Story"
2012CastleKristina CoterraEpisode: "Cloudy with a Chance of Murder"
2012A Nanny's RevengeGina WrightTelevision movie; also known as The Avenger
2013The ExesEmployeeEpisode: "Toy Story"
2013StalkersJulia WinstonTelevision movie; also known as Whisper of Fear[24][25]
2014Wall StreetRiley SimmsTelevision movie[26]
2014–2015;
2017		The Vampire DiariesJosette "Jo" LaughlinRecurring role (seasons 6–7); guest role (season 8); 22 episodes
2014–2018Hit The FloorLionel DavenportMain role
2016LuciferRonnie HillmanEpisode: "The Would-Be Prince of Darkness"
2018LegaciesJosette "Jo" LaughlinEpisode: "Mombie Dearest"

Video games
  • Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3: Uprising (2009), as Kelly Weaver

References
  1. "Jodi Lyn O'Keefe Biography". Film Reference. Retrieved May 30, 2008.
  2. "Jodi Lyn O'Keefe". Hollywood.com. Archived from the original on September 11, 2015. Retrieved April 27, 2016.
  3. "Jodi Lyn O'Keefe". TV Guide. Retrieved April 27, 2016.
  4. Henderson, Helen. Matawan and Aberdeen: Of Town and Field, p. 151. Arcadia Publishing, 2003. ISBN 0738524034. Accessed March 21, 2020. "One of the latest performers who at one time called Matawan or Aberdeen their home was Jodi Lyn O'Keefe... A graduate of St. John Vianney High School, O'Keefe's modeling experience led her to Los Angeles and an audition in 1995 for a part on the daytime television program Another World, where she was cast at the age of 17 as Marguerite Cory, a role she held for approximately six months before leaving."
  5. John P. McCarthy (March 26, 1996). "Review: 'Nash Bridges'". Variety. Retrieved October 30, 2015.
  6. Benedict Carver (March 9, 1998). "LL Cool J dresses up for 'Halloween'". Variety. Retrieved October 30, 2015.
  7. Dennis Harvey (August 3, 1998). "Review: 'Halloween: H20 Twenty Years Later – Echo of a Scream, 'H20' Holds Water'". Variety. Retrieved October 30, 2015.
  8. Lisa Nesselson (June 26, 2000). "Review: 'The Crow: Salvation'". Variety. Retrieved October 30, 2015.
  9. Robert Koehler (March 26, 2000). "Review: 'Whatever It Takes – 'It Takes' More Than This'". Variety. Retrieved October 30, 2015.
  10. Vanessa Torres (October 6, 1999). "O'Keefe is 'Teacher's Pet'". Variety. Retrieved October 30, 2015.
  11. Godfrey Cheshire (January 27, 1999). "Review: 'She's All That'". Variety. Retrieved October 30, 2015.
  12. Owen Gleiberman (February 5, 1999). "Movies - She's All That". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved October 30, 2015.
  13. Michael Schneider (October 10, 2005). "ABC builds 'Evidence'". Variety. Retrieved October 30, 2015.
  14. Nellie Andreeva (June 19, 2007). "Newcomers in the can for Fox's 'Prison'". The Hollywood Reporter. Associated Press. Retrieved October 30, 2015.
  15. Ilana Rapp (June 30, 2014). "Actress Jodi Lyn O'Keefe of VH1's Hit the Floor Talks About Her Q Jewelry Design". The Huffington Post. Retrieved October 30, 2015.
  16. Mandi Bierly (May 5, 2014). "'Hit the Floor': Summer's sexiest promo has arrived -- EXCLUSIVE VIDEO". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved October 30, 2015.
  17. Samantha Highfill (July 17, 2014). "'The Vampire Diaries' adds Jodi Lyn O'Keefe and Marco James (Updated)". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved October 30, 2015.
  18. http://jodilynokeefe-daily.net/q-jewelry-design-queen-george-clothing/
  19. https://twitter.com/JodiLyn_Okeefe
  20. Gary Goldstein (August 22, 2013). "Review: 'Frozen Ground' fails to break the surface". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved October 30, 2015.
  21. Phil Gallo (March 30, 1999). "Review: 'Happy Hour'". Variety. Retrieved October 30, 2015.
  22. "2007-08 pilot orders: ABC". The Hollywood Reporter. Associated Press. April 4, 2007. Retrieved October 30, 2015.
  23. Etan Vlessing (September 1, 2010). "Canadian thriller to air in 2011 on domestic pay TV networks". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved October 30, 2015.
  24. Lesley Goldberg (October 3, 2012). "'Prison Break's' Jodi Lyn O'Keefe to Co-Star in Lifetime's 'Stalkers' Pilot". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved October 30, 2015.
  25. "Whisper of Fear". myLifetime.com. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015.
  26. "Development Update: Saturday, May 10 - Odds & Ends". The Futon Critic. May 10, 2014. Retrieved April 30, 2017.
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