Bio
Jennifer Carpenter is an American actress best known for her starring role as Dexter's (Michael C. Hall) sister Debra Morgan in the crime thriller television series Dexter.
She is also known for playing the title role in the 2005 feature film The Exorcism of Emily Rose.
On the big-screen, Carpenter appeared in Hietor Dhalia's thriller Gone, starring opposite Amanda Seyfried, Wes Bentley and Sebastian Stan. The film follows a woman who is convinced the serial killer who kidnapped her sister two years ago has returned, and she sets out to once again face her abductor.
Carpenter also appeared in the psychological thriller The Factory as the female lead opposite John Cusack in the Warner Bros and Dark Castle Entertainment fim.
Directed by Morgan O'Neil and produced by Joel Silver, David Gambino and Robert Zemeckis, the film centers on an obsessed cop (Cusack), whose teenage daughter goes missing while he and his partner Kelsey (Carpenter) are on the trail of a serial killer prowling the streets of Buffalo, NY.
Carpenter also acted in Hungry Rabbit Jumps, opposite Nicolas Cage, Guy Pearce and January Jones, playing the best friend of Jones' musician character, who is the victim of a brutal crime.
In 2011, Carpenter made her return to Broadway, starring in Scott Ellis' Gruesome Playground Injuries, opposite Pablo Schreiber. The performance earned Carpenter positive reviews for her lead role as Kayleen. The play centers around two childhood friends who compare scars and the physical calamities that keep drawing them together.
Notable theatre performances include the Broadway production of The Crucible opposite Laura Linney and Liam Neeson. Other theatre credits include Everett Beekin (Off-Broadway), Orphan of Zhao (Lincoln Center), Trudy Blue, Julie Johnson, Jekyll & Hyde, Sherlock Holmes (all for Actors Theater) and Lucy and the Conquest (O'Neill Playwrights Conf).
Carpenter's breakout role was in the sleeper hit film, The Exorcism of Emily Rose. She earned rave reviews for her chilling performance, receiving the 2006 MTV Movie Award for Best Frightened Performance along with a Hollywood Life Breakthrough Award.
Carpenter also starred in the successful horror film remake Quarantine for Sony. The film was nominated for a Teen Choice Award for "Choice Movie: Horror/Thriller." She was also seen in Stuart Townsend's Battle in Seattle for Thinkfilm which premiered at the 2007 Toronto Film Festival.
Carpenter's additional film credits include Dog Problem, Lethal Eviction, White Chicks, D.E.B.S., Solos, Revolution and Nice Guys Sleep Alone as well as Queen B for Twentieth Century Fox Television.
On 31 December, 2008, she eloped with Michael C. Hall, who plays the character of Dexter Morgan on Showtime's Dexter. They dated for a year prior to getting married.
On December 18, 2010, Carpenter filed for divorce from Hall, citing irreconcilable differences. The filing also stated that the two had been separated since August 2010 and that she was seeking spousal support. Their divorce was finalised on 2 December 2011.
A native of Kentucky, Jennifer trained at Julliard. She currently resides in Los Angeles.