Melissa Benoist

Birthday: 4 October 1988, Littleton, Colorado, USA

Birth Name: Melissa Marie Benoist

Height: 173 cm

Melissa Marie Benoist is an American actress and singer, known for her portrayal of Supergirl, now on CW, and "Marley Rose" in Season Four and the start of Season Five on the Fox musical comedy-drama television series Glee (2009). Aside from her role on "Glee", she has appeared in a number of television series, including Homeland (2011), The Good Wife (2009) and "Law & Order". Benoist's first film was in singer Mariah Carey's Tennessee (2008). She appeared in director Damien Chazelle's film Whiplash (2014), which won top prizes (Grand Jury and Audience awards) at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, in January 2014. Show less «

Every day, I just thank the universe that I am as lucky as I am. Because, I went through periods of ...Show more »

Every day, I just thank the universe that I am as lucky as I am. Because, I went through periods of time when I didn't have a single bit of work. Months and months where I was auditioning all the time. I mean, all the time, and nothing was happening. Show less «

This job [Supergirl (2015)] is definitely teaching me to stand up for myself and to not take any -- ...Show more »

This job [Supergirl (2015)] is definitely teaching me to stand up for myself and to not take any -- I don't want to say a bad word. This is me being modest -- not take any crap, yeah. Show less «

Reading about myself on 'Perez Hilton' was kind of the weirdest thing ever.

At school, when it came to being social, I had no idea how to do it.

I'm definitely interested in doing movies. I've always focused more on acting than singing because t...Show more »

I'm definitely interested in doing movies. I've always focused more on acting than singing because that's where my true passion lies. Show less «

[on the impact of wearing a hijab for her role in Patriots Day (2016)] [There was an impact] in the ...Show more »

[on the impact of wearing a hijab for her role in Patriots Day (2016)] [There was an impact] in the way I walked, the way I conducted myself, the way people talked to me. A lot of people didn't recognize me when I would come on set afterward; having changed out of it, they didn't know it was me, even though they'd spent all day with me. Immediately your vanity just vanishes. That felt like a valuable lesson to me: You can put on a garment and be a body that exists for your mind, and not externally. Show less «

Kara is so optimistic, and so positive, and just full of hope all the time. My tendency can sometime...Show more »

Kara is so optimistic, and so positive, and just full of hope all the time. My tendency can sometimes be 'Oh, man, if I were in this situation, I'd feel hopeless.' But she never feels that. There's never really a horribly dark moment in Supergirl's life. Show less «

[on being a superhero fan growing up] I was a DC fan, not so much the comics. I loved Michael Keaton...Show more »

[on being a superhero fan growing up] I was a DC fan, not so much the comics. I loved Michael Keaton's Batman (1989). I grew up with those movies. Show less «

I love female singer-songwriters!

[on her role in Danny Collins (2015)] I [had] such a small role in that movie, yet every single pers...Show more »

[on her role in Danny Collins (2015)] I [had] such a small role in that movie, yet every single person in that movie went to Al Pacino's house to rehearse. Show less «

I think it's modest in that you can believe someone could fight for their lives in that suit without...Show more »

I think it's modest in that you can believe someone could fight for their lives in that suit without having a wardrobe malfunction and something popping out. That's what I never understood about Wonder Woman. I'm like, 'How does she fight?' Show less «

[on Supergirl (2015)] I think what's feminist about it is that it's for everyone.

[on not meeting the real life Katherine Russell, who she plays in Patriots Day (2016)] That wasn't a...Show more »

[on not meeting the real life Katherine Russell, who she plays in Patriots Day (2016)] That wasn't an option for me because of the nature of her involvement. Show less «

I was such a wallflower in high school. I did a lot of extracurricular theatre shows, but at school,...Show more »

I was such a wallflower in high school. I did a lot of extracurricular theatre shows, but at school, I spent a lot of time by myself. I ate lunch by myself, and I was always okay with it. But I was definitely made fun of, and I always felt like an outsider. Show less «

[on her Supergirl (2015) costume] It's impossible not to feel empowered when you put it on. You woul...Show more »

[on her Supergirl (2015) costume] It's impossible not to feel empowered when you put it on. You would think, "Oh, it's silly. I'm putting on tights. I'm putting on a leotard and a skirt. There's muscles built into the suit. There's a cape. I'm going to feel like it's Halloween." But something changes internally. I feel like a different person almost. It really is an alter ego, where I feel inspired, hopeful and empowered. Show less «

[on on-screen female superheroes] I don't really understand why people haven't always been ready for...Show more »

[on on-screen female superheroes] I don't really understand why people haven't always been ready for this. I think there are so many really successful franchises right now like The Hunger Games (2012), and I was a huge Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997) fan. I wish there were more of a pattern and more of a consistency to there being really strong female-driven stories. Show less «

I don't think of myself as that tough, kick-ass, badass woman. I've always been a pacifist, for one,...Show more »

I don't think of myself as that tough, kick-ass, badass woman. I've always been a pacifist, for one, and I was [always] weirder and quirkier and dorkier. Show less «

I don't think I've ever hit anyone before, and so I definitely had to learn technique - like how to ...Show more »

I don't think I've ever hit anyone before, and so I definitely had to learn technique - like how to actually punch someone and not hurt yourself more than you're hurting the person you're punching. And core work and Pilates and [plyometrics], a lot of it. Show less «

I have a very optimistic view of my future right now. I'm very excited to see where it goes, but I t...Show more »

I have a very optimistic view of my future right now. I'm very excited to see where it goes, but I try not to make plans just because I know how unpredictable life can be. Especially the life of an actor, and especially the life of an actor on 'Glee.' I just want to be happy and healthy and surrounded by people I love, as cheesy as it sounds. Show less «

I'm obsessed with Michael Fassbender. He's unbelievable. I think he's a modern-day Marlon Brando. Ev...Show more »

I'm obsessed with Michael Fassbender. He's unbelievable. I think he's a modern-day Marlon Brando. Every movie that he's done in the past couple years, I just died for him. He's extremely fascinating. Show less «

If I had any advice for my 16-year-old self, it would just be to stay strong, because acting is not ...Show more »

If I had any advice for my 16-year-old self, it would just be to stay strong, because acting is not an easy lifestyle, especially when you are starting out. That being said, it definitely makes it all worth it when it does happen. Show less «

[on Whiplash (2014)] I had never read anything like [that script]; I mean, he has entire pages that ...Show more »

[on Whiplash (2014)] I had never read anything like [that script]; I mean, he has entire pages that are stage direction. Show less «

Melissa Benoist

Melissa Benoist's FILMOGRAPHY

Melissa Benoist'S roles

Feedback about this page?