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Jessica McNamee

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Jessica McNamee
McNamee in 2012
Born
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
OccupationActress
Years active2007–present
Spouse
Patrick Caruso
​
(m. 2019)​
RelativesPenny McNamee (sister)
Teagan Croft (niece)

Jessica McNamee is an Australian actress. She rose to fame in Australia playing roles in the Seven Network television programs Home and Away and Packed to the Rafters. From 2014 to 2015, she starred as patrol officer Theresa Kelly in the USA Network series Sirens. Her film roles include The Vow (2012), Chips (2017), Battle of the Sexes (2017), The Meg (2018) and Mortal Kombat (2021).

Career

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McNamee secured a role in the Seven Network soap opera Home and Away playing the role of Lisa Duffy.[1] She went on to play Sammy Rafter in the television series Packed to the Rafters.[2] In 2009, McNamee was a contestant on the ninth series of Dancing with the Stars. She was partnered with dancer Stefano Olivieri and they were eliminated before the final.[3]

The role of Sammy in Packed to the Rafters left McNamee keen to lose the "good girl" image the role created. In the series production breaks, she decided to take on different roles.[2] She starred in the horror film The Loved Ones;[4] which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2009.[5] In mid-2010, she made the short film 50-50.

McNamee went on to secure a role in the 2012 film The Vow. She filmed the project in Toronto alongside Rachel McAdams and Channing Tatum. She described working on the film as a "surreal experience".[6] In 2013, she returned to Packed to the Rafters for the final season as a special guest star. From 2014 to 2015, McNamee starred in the USA Network TV series Sirens. She played the role of Theresa Kelly, a Chicago police officer, and was a main character in the show.[7] In 2017, she portrayed tennis player Margaret Court in Battle of the Sexes.[8]

In 2018, McNamee played the lead role of Jenna alongside William Fichtner in the drama film The Neighbor.[9] She played Lori, the ex-wife of megalodon hunter Jonas Taylor (Jason Statham), in the blockbuster The Meg.[7] In 2019, McNamee appeared in the crime-thriller film Locusts, playing the role of Izzy.[10] In August 2019, McNamee was cast in Mortal Kombat as Sonya Blade and it was released in April 2021.[11][12]

In 2020, McNamee appeared in the horror film Black Water: Abyss.[13] She also provided voice work in Rhys Wakefield's drama podcast series titled From Now.[14] In 2021, McNamee was cast in the horror-thriller film The Visitor.[15]

Personal life

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McNamee was born in Sydney.[16] She is the sister of actress Penny McNamee, along with two more sisters and a brother.[17][18] Her niece is actress Teagan Croft.[18] Her cousin Daniel McNamee is in the band Art Vs Science. In April 2019, she married Patrick Caruso, a property developer.[19]

In February 2010, McNamee became an ambassador for The Fred Hollows Foundation; the foundation focuses on treating and preventing blindness and other vision problems.[20] McNamee represents the foundation's 'Miracle Club', encouraging supporters to make monthly contributions that will restore sight to people in countries where the foundation works.[21]

Filmography

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Film

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Year Title Role Notes
2010 The Loved Ones Mia
50-50 Nelly Cameron Short film
2012 The Vow Gwen Thornton
2017 CHiPs Lindsey Taylor
2017 Battle of the Sexes Margaret Court
2018 The Neighbor Jenna
The Meg Lori
2019 Locusts Izzy
2020 Black Water: Abyss Jennifer
2021 Mortal Kombat Sonya Blade
2022 The Visitor Maia Eden
2025 Mortal Kombat 2 Sonya Blade Post-production

Television

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Year Title Role Notes
2007 Home and Away Lisa Duffy 32 episodes
Hammer Bay Amanda Blakely TV film
2008–2013 Packed to the Rafters Sammy Rafter 55 episodes
2012 Scruples Maggie TV film
2013 White Collar Penny Chase Episode: "Shoot the Moon"
2014 The Time of Our Lives Lisa Montego 4 episodes
2014–2015 Sirens Theresa Kelly 23 episodes
2019 Into the Dark Rachel Adams Episode: "I'm Just F*cking with You"
2022 Upright Avery Mae 6 episodes

References

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  1. ^ "Jessica McNamee". tvnz.co.nz. (TVNZ). Archived from the original on 18 September 2016. Retrieved 20 January 2012.
  2. ^ a b Duck, Siobhan (30 June 2010). "Jessica McNamee to smash her Packed to the Rafters' good-girl image". The Daily Telegraph. (News Limited). Retrieved 20 January 2012.
  3. ^ "Jess McNamee". Yahoo!7. (Yahoo! and Network Seven). Archived from the original on 30 June 2012. Retrieved 20 January 2012.
  4. ^ Paatsch, Leigh (4 November 2010). "The Loved Ones movie review". Herald Sun. Australia. Retrieved 20 January 2012.
  5. ^ Lacey, Liam (20 September 2009). "Precious looks golden after People's Choice win". Globe and Mail. Canada: (Globe Life Network). Retrieved 20 January 2012.
  6. ^ "Rafters star makes a family vow". The Herald and Weekly Times. Australia. 2 November 2010. Retrieved 20 January 2012.[dead link]
  7. ^ a b Grobar, Matt (15 June 2021). "'Mortal Kombat's Jessica McNamee Signs With Hyperion". Yahoo.com. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  8. ^ Rutherford, Karlie (26 September 2017). "The Battle of the Sexes: Jessica McNamee believes Margaret Court is entitled same-sex marriage opinion". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  9. ^ "The Neighbour". HMV. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  10. ^ Parkinson, David (April 2019). "Locusts (2019)". Radio Times. (Immediate Media Company). Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  11. ^ Ramos, Dino-Ray (26 August 2019). "Lewis Tan, Jessica McNamee and Josh Lawson Join 'Mortal Kombat' At New Line". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
  12. ^ Compton, Michael (29 April 2021). "Mortal Kombat delivers only for most rabid fans". The Daily News. pp. A4. Retrieved 1 January 2022 – via Newspapers.com.Free access icon
  13. ^ Martin, Karen (23 October 2020). "Home movies/opinion". Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  14. ^ "New Dramatic Podcast Series Created by Rhys Wakefield and William Day Frank to Premiere on December 21, Available on Apple Podcasts and All Major Podcast Platforms". PodNews. 15 December 2020. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  15. ^ White, Peter (5 October 2021). "Finn Jones & Jessica McNamee To Star In Blumhouse's Latest Epix TV Movie 'The Visitor'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  16. ^ "Jessica McNamee: Battle of the Sexes". Sydney Unleashed. 27 September 2017. Retrieved 23 July 2021.
  17. ^ "Exclusive: Penny McNamee shares rare insight into her private life". New Idea. 7 January 2021. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  18. ^ a b Vnuk, Helen (2 December 2019). "Home and Away's Penny McNamee reveals: "Why I almost walked away"". TV Week. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  19. ^ Lal, Lal (30 April 2019). "Surprise: Packed to the Rafters' star just got married". who.com.au. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
  20. ^ "Actress supports blindness project". vietnamnews.vn. 15 November 2009. Archived from the original on 21 April 2021. Retrieved 28 July 2020.
  21. ^ "Actress Jessica McNamee joins the Fred Hollows Foundation". The Fred Hollows Foundation. 1 February 2010. Retrieved 28 July 2020.
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