Melissa O’Neil, a Canadian Idol winner and actress, was born on July 12th, 1988, in Calgary, Canada.
The talented O’Neil rose to stardom in 2005 after winning the third season of Canadian Idol. Her acting career began on stage rather than on screen. She has starred in several theater productions, Including,
- Dirty Dancing
- High School Musical
- Les Misérables
- Jesus Christ Superstar
In 2015 she began having reoccurring on-screen roles in shows like This Life and Rogue, but she became known for her role in the series Dark Matter. She would also gain acclaim three years later for her role in the police comedy television series The Rookie.
O’Neil’s time on both Dark Matter and The Rookie is what you all came to read about; now, let us jump right into it!
In 2014, O’Neil was officially cast as “Two” in the sci-fi series Dark Matter. The series is set in space and follows six main characters who wake up with amnesia on the starship Raza. The show premiered in 2015; O’Neil went onto star in the show for the three seasons it aired.
Three years later, in 2018, O’Neil appeared in the hit crime drama iZombie. She portrayed the character of Suki. That same year she also appeared in Condor, a show based on the novel Six Days of the Condor by James Grady. Both roles were exceptional, but it was when she appeared in The Rookie in October 2018, that she once again became a household name.
O’Neil plays the role of Officer Lucy Chen. She stars alongside Nathan Fillion’s character John Nolan; both are rookie cops in Los Angeles, California. Her character was John Nolan’s love interest in the beginning but has now become an ensemble member of the show.
Melissa O’Neil is quite the gifted young woman! Did you know her name means “ladylike”? She can even speak a bit of Cantonese. Is there anything she cannot do? Season 3 of The Rookie does not currently have a release date, but we cannot wait to see O’Neil take over our TV screens again!
Sam de la Rosa returns December 5, 2020