Jennifer Beals
Jennifer Beals is an American actress born in Chicago, Illinois, who rose to fame as the lead of the 1983 hit 'Flashdance'. She has since built a long career across film and television, including a supporting role as Claudia in the post-apocalyptic thriller 'The Book of Eli' and an appearance in the Star Wars series 'The Book of Boba Fett'. Her other credits include Quentin Tarantino's 'Four Rooms' and the teen drama 'After'. Beals remains best known for her breakout 1980s stardom, alongside a steady career of supporting film and television work since.
Jennifer Beals
48 Movies
17 Series
Jennifer Beals is an American actress born in Chicago, Illinois, who rose to fame as the lead of the 1983 hit 'Flashdance'. She has since built a long career across film and television, including a supporting role as Claudia in the post-apocalyptic thriller 'The Book of Eli' and an appearance in the Star Wars series 'The Book of Boba Fett'. Her other credits include Quentin Tarantino's 'Four Rooms' and the teen drama 'After'. Beals remains best known for her breakout 1980s stardom, alongside a steady career of supporting film and television work since.
Movies
Plays Karen Gibson
After
2019
Plays Mrs. Kingston
Before I Fall
2017
Plays Claudia
The Book of Eli
2010
Plays Angela
Four Rooms
1995
Plays Vanessa Lembeck
Runaway Jury
2003
Plays Alex Owens
Flashdance
1983
Plays Lolo Vincent
Luckiest Girl Alive
2022
Plays Trish Kimble
The Grudge 2
2006
Plays Daphne Monet
Devil in a Blue Dress
1995
Plays Eva
The Bride
1985
Plays Rachel
Vampire's Kiss
1989
Plays Princess YumYum (voice)
The Thief and the Cobbler
1993
Producer
Plays Lisa Wren
Manhattan Night
2016
Plays Nina
The Last Days of Disco
1998
Plays Molly Phillips
Catch That Kid
2004
Plays Julie Sanders
Militia
2000
Plays Gina Taylor
The Anniversary Party
2001
Plays Gertrude Benchley
Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle
1994
Plays Coach Valorie Kondos-Field
Full Out
2015
Plays Jennifer Beals
Caro diario
1993
Plays Dolly Rose
Feast of All Saints
2001
Plays Valerie Rosales
The Prophecy II
1998
Plays Ellen
The Search for One-eye Jimmy
1994
Plays Melanie
A Night for Dying Tigers
2010
Plays L’Américaine
Queen to Play
2009
Plays Sonja Vogler
Dr. M
1990
Plays Jessica
Turbulence 2: Fear of Flying
1999
Plays Vivian
The White Orchid
2018
Plays Officer Jenny Capitanas
Out of Line
2001
Plays Juliet
Break a Leg
2005
Plays Mona
Blood and Concrete
1991
Plays Sophie
Roger Dodger
2002
Plays Suzanne Stein
The Twilight of the Golds
1996
Plays Angelica Pena
In the Soup
1992
Plays Barbara Uribe
Split Decisions
1988
Plays Suzi
13 Moons
2002
Plays Emily Taylor
Let It Be Me
1995
Plays Lady Olivia Candioni
The Gamble
1988
Plays Samantha Wilkes
Without Malice
2000
Plays Joyce Ferranti
The Big Pardon 2
1992
Plays Elizabeth
Wishful Thinking
1999
Plays Elizabeth Storey
Desolation Sound
2005
Plays Clementine
Cinemanovels
2013
Plays Transvestite
Sons
1990
Plays Rebecca Darcy
Dead on Sight
1994
Plays Lisa
Something More
2000
TV Shows
Plays Bette Porter
The L Word
2004
Producer
Plays Bette Porter
The L Word: Generation Q
2019
Plays Christina Hart
Taken
2017
Plays Teresa Colvin
The Chicago Code
2011
Plays Dr. Carolyn Tyler
Proof
2015
Plays Lucilia Cable
Swamp Thing
2019
Plays Justine Madsen Judd
Nothing Sacred
1997
Plays Dr. Syd Jennings
The Night Shift
2014
Plays Zoe Landau
Lie to Me
2009
Plays Cassandra Webb
Law & Order: Organized Crime
2021
Plays Garsa Fwip
The Book of Boba Fett
2021
Plays Sophia Turner
Castle
2009
Plays Dr. Anne Ranberg
Frasier
1993
Plays Sofia Archer
Law & Order
1990
Plays Cinderella
Faerie Tale Theatre
1982
Plays Robin Dysart
The Outer Limits
1995
Plays Sophia Balfour
Motive
2013
Plays Jane
The Hunger
1997
Latest Trailers
Watch Trailer
Luckiest Girl Alive
Full Filmography
Hello Out There
Judith
2025
Film
The Book of Boba Fett
Garsa Fwip · 4 episodes
2021–2022
TV
Law & Order: Organized Crime
Cassandra Webb · 5 episodes
2021–2022
TV
Luckiest Girl Alive
Lolo Vincent
2022
Film
The L Word: Generation Q
Bette Porter · 28 episodes
2019–
TV
Swamp Thing
Lucilia Cable · 9 episodes
2019–
TV
After
Karen Gibson
2019
Film
The White Orchid
Vivian
2018
Film
Before I Fall
Mrs. Kingston
2017
Film
Photos
Frequently Asked Questions
How old is Jennifer Beals and where are they from?
Jennifer Beals is 62 years old, born on December 19, 1963 in Chicago, Illinois, USA.
What are the most famous roles of Jennifer Beals?
Jennifer Beals is best known for roles in After, The Book of Eli, Before I Fall.
How many movies has Jennifer Beals been in?
Over a 46-year career (since 1980), Jennifer Beals has appeared in 48 movies and 17 TV shows.
What was Jennifer Beals's first movie?
The career of Jennifer Beals began with My Bodyguard (1980).
What is Jennifer Beals's most recent movie or series?
Jennifer Beals's most recent release is Hello Out There, which premiered on October 12, 2025.
What TV shows has Jennifer Beals appeared in?
On television, Jennifer Beals has appeared in The Book of Boba Fett, Castle, Lie to Me, Swamp Thing.
Jennifer Beals
1963-12-19 · Chicago, Illinois, USA
Jennifer Beals (born December 19, 1963) is an American actress and a former teen model. She is known for her roles as Alexandra "Alex" Owens in the 1983 film Flashdance, and as Bette Porter on the Showtime drama series The L Word. She earned an NAACP Image Award and a Golden Globe Award nomination for the former. She has appeared in more than 50 films.
Beals was born on the South Side of Chicago, the daughter of Jeanne (née Anderson), an elementary school teacher, and Alfred Beals, who owned grocery stores. She is multiracial; her father was African American, and her mother is Irish American. She has two brothers, Bobby and Gregory.Her father died when Beals was nine years old, and her mother married Edward Cohen in 1981. Beals has said her biracial heritage had some effect on her, as she "always lived sort of on the outside", with an idea "of being the other in society". She got her first job at age 13 at an ice cream store, using her height at the time (she is now nearly 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)), to convince her boss she was 16.
Beals was inspired to become an actress by two events: doing a high school production of Fiddler on the Roof and seeing Balm in Gilead with Joan Allen while volunteer-ushering at the Steppenwolf Theatre.
Beals graduated from the progressive Francis W. Parker School. She also was chosen to attend the elite Goodman Theatre Young People's Drama Workshop. Beals attended Yale University, receiving a B.A. in American literature in 1987; she deferred a term so she could film Flashdance. While at Yale, Beals was a resident of Morse College.Jennifer Beals, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.