Jennifer Beals is an American actress and a former teen model who gained recognition for portraying Alexandra 'Alex' Owens in the 1983 romantic drama film 'Flashdance'. One of her best roles, it earned her a 'Golden Globe' nomination and a 'NAACP Image Award'. However, her very next film, 'The Bride' (1985), proved one of her worst movies, earning her a 'Golden Raspberry' nomination. Among her many later films 'Vampire's Kiss' (1989), 'Devil in a Blue Dress' (1995), 'The Anniversary Party' (2001) and 'Runaway Jury' (2003) were successful.
Her television appearances during this time included '2000 Malibu Road' (1992), 'The Outer Limits' (1997), 'Nothing Sacred' (1997-98), and 'The Hunger' (1999). A major breakthrough came in 2004 when she was cast as Bette Porter on the Showtime drama series 'The L Word', which earned her critical acclaim.
In the following years, she had main roles in the TV shows 'The Chicago Code' (2011), 'Lauren' (2012-13), 'Proof' (2015), and 'Taken' (2017-present); and also had recurring roles in 'Lie to Me' (2009-11), 'The Mob Doctor' (2012-13), 'The Night Shift' (2016), and 'The Last Tycoon' (2017). Some of her recent notable films are 'The Book of Eli' (2010) and 'Before I Fall' (2017).