Monica Potter

Monica Potter's meteoric rise to stardom rivals the mythic Lana Turner-at-Schwab's story. A relative newcomer to L.A., arriving with her husband in 1994, this attractive blonde appeared in a commercial directed by Luc Besson that brought her to the attention of his agents at Creative Artists Agency. Since that auspicious beginning, the Ohio native has played Nicolas Cage's wife in "Con Air" (1997) and Billy Crudup's love interest in "Without Limits" and opposite Robin Williams in "Patch Adams" (both 1998). Continuing her ascent, she landed her first starring roles John N. Smith's "A Cool Dry Place", as Vince Vaughn's estranged wife, and in the British comedy "Martha, Meet Frank, Daniel and Lawrence" (both 1998), opposite Rufus Sewell and Joseph Fiennes. The latter was released in the USA in 1999 under the title "The Very Thought of You".

After starring opposite Freddie Prinze Jr. in "Head Over Heels" (2001), an awkward blend of romantic comedy and thriller in which she plays a "normal" girl with four supermodel roommates dating a man she suspects of harboring a dark secret, Potter was tapped to join Morgan Freeman for the crime thriller "Along Came a Spider" (2001), the second film featuring Freeman as novelist James Patterson's character, forensic psychologist Alex Cross. Potter played a Secret Service agent who pushes her way into Cross' investigation of a politician's kidnapped young daughter after failing to keep the girl safe, but her talents were underused and she failed to receive the same breakout boost Ashley Judd received in the earlier 1997 film "Kiss the Girls." She returned to romantic comedy with "I'm With Lucy" (2002) playing a woman about to be married who recounts her experiences with five blind dates, one of whom ultimately becomes her groom, for her best friend. Although her film career did not seem to be delivering on Potter's early potential, she remained a regular face in features, such as playing Cary Elwes estranged, suspicious wife in the brutal horror film "Saw" (2004), and she established herself on television, co-starring in David E. Kelly's snarky lawyer series "Boston Legal" as Lori Colson, a principled, slightly unconfident attorney working alongside more ethically-challenged colleagues.