Chyler Leigh | |
|---|---|
 Leigh in 2025 | |
| Born | Chyler Leigh Potts (1982-04-10)April 10, 1982 (age 43) |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1996–present |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 3 |
| Awards | Young Hollywood Awards[1] |
| Musical career | |
| Also known as | WestLeigh (withNathan West) |
| Instrument | Vocals |
Musical artist | |
Chyler Leigh West (pronounced/ˈtʃaɪlər/CHY-lər;néePotts; born April 10, 1982),[2] known professionally asChyler Leigh, is an American actress, singer, and model. She is best known for her roles as Janey Briggs in the comedy filmNot Another Teen Movie (2001),Dr. Lexie Grey in theABCmedical drama seriesGrey's Anatomy (2007–2012; 2021),Alex Danvers in theDC Comics superhero seriesSupergirl (2015–2021), and Katherine "Kat" Landry in theHallmark dramaThe Way Home (2023–present).
Leigh was born inCharlotte, North Carolina, on April 10, 1982,[2] to Yvonne Norton and Robert Potts.[3][4] She was raised inVirginia Beach, Virginia, where her parents ran a weight-loss business.[5] The business went bankrupt when she was eight and her parents' marriage ended when she was 12; she, her mother, and her older brother – former actor Christopher Khayman Lee – then moved toMiami,[6] where her mother remarried her first husband. Leigh was estranged from her father for many years following her parents' divorce, but they have since reconciled.[5]
Leigh was in eighth grade when she started modelling. She soon began acting by appearing in local television commercials and a syndicated teen news show,Hall Pass. In 1999, Leigh and her mother relocated toLos Angeles so she could develop her acting career. At 16, she took and passed theCalifornia High School Proficiency Exam.[7]
At age 16, Leigh met her future husband, 20-year-oldNathan West, when they both attended auditions for the pilot of an unsuccessful WB series titledSaving Graces.[8] They began a relationship, and Leigh left home to move in with West. Leigh described them as being "broken", both having had troubled family lives and difficult upbringings.[5] This led to abuse of drugs, which quickly escalated into addiction; she was told by the director ofNot Another Teen Movie that she looked unhealthily thin.[5] Around that time, she and West attended a Christian church service, at the invitation of a friend, which helped them in recovery, and the two were subsequently married.[5]
Leigh started acting at an early age and debuted in the film world at age 15 in 1997'sKickboxing Academy. She started hosting local TV shows and modeling; in 2001, Leigh nabbed the lead role in the box-office successNot Another Teen Movie as Janey Briggs oppositeChris Evans. She also appeared with the cast inMarilyn Manson's music video "Tainted Love", a song which appeared in the film. She was ranked number 65 on theMaxim Hot 100 Women of 2002.[9] In 2002, Leigh was cast in two short-lived TV series:Girls Club, in which she played lawyer Sarah Mickle, andThat '80s Show, in which she playedpunk rocker June Tuesday. She then became a series regular on the ABC legal dramaThe Practice, but was let go at the end of the season due to budget cuts. Following that, she joined the cast ofReunion in September 2005.
InABC'smedical dramaGrey's Anatomy, Leigh first appeared as a woman in Joe's bar who was noticed byDerek Shepherd during the final two episodes of thethird season, and her character is later revealed to beLexie Grey, the younger half-sister of thetitular character.[10] Leigh was made an official series regular forseason four and remained so until theeighth-seasonfinale, as Leigh chose to depart from the show after five years to spend more time with her family.[11]
Leigh also makes music with her husbandNathan West (East of Eli), under the name "WestLeigh". They have performed covers and original songs. In 2015 for their 13th anniversary, they wrote "Love Lit the Sky".[12][13] OnValentine's Day 2017, they released the single "Nowhere". Leigh has taken part in several of her husband's tours.[clarification needed][14][15][16][17]
On June 18, 2017, a single "Spirit of Samba" byLaurent Voulzy was released featuring Leigh,Nina Miranda,Luisa Maita, andEloisia; inFrance, it reached the 99th position on theSyndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique chart.[18][19]
From 2015 to 2021, Leigh starred in theCBS/CWDC Comics television seriesSupergirl asAlex Danvers, the elder adopted sister of thetitular character and a scientist and government agent at theDepartment of Extranormal Operations. She reprised the role onArrow,The Flash, andLegends of Tomorrow during crossover eventsCrisis on Earth-X,Crisis on Infinite Earths, and "Armageddon".[20] She made her directorial debut with the season six episode "Prom Again!".[21]
In April 2021, Leigh returned toGrey's Anatomy for the episode "Breathe".[22]
Since 2023, Leigh has co-starred in theHallmark Channel seriesThe Way Home withAndie MacDowell.[23]
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In 2002, Leigh married fellow actorNathan West inAlaska.[24] The couple worked together in 2000 on the television series7th Heaven, playing Mary Camden's (Jessica Biel) troubled friends Frankie and Johnnie. Leigh and West have three children – a son and two daughters (born 2003,[25] 2006,[26] and 2009[25]).
Leigh is a Christian and credits her faith and a "really awesome church" with giving her husband and her "a reason to live".[24][27] She also supportsThe Thirst Project, a nonprofit organization in America, which aims to bring safe drinking water to communities around the world.[28]
In 2019, Leigh revealed that she had been diagnosed withbipolar disorder a decade earlier.[29]
In mid 2020, Leigh published a statement on the Create Change website, an advocacy website she cofounded, in which she expressed an emotional connection with herSupergirl character's coming-out scene. Several websites and media outlets, especially those connected with LGBTQ advocacy, interpreted this statement as Leigh's own coming-out about her sexuality.[30][31][32][33][34][35]
Leigh and her family previously lived inLos Angeles,[27] but they now split their time betweenVancouver andNashville.[36]
During mid-2020, Leigh contractedCOVID-19; she described her experience in an article published to createchange.me on October 14, 2020:
I lost about a month's worth of time, laying in bed, waving to my children in the hallway with a mask on so they didn't see how sick I was from COVID-19. Almost "game-over" sick. The only time I had with my husband was spent six feet apart on our bedroom balcony in the morning for a soul-lifting hour to just be with one another or when he donned his mask coming in the room to take care of me, bravely bringing food and Gatorade (which half the time I wasn't able to taste). Golden moments in the midst of darkness. I will say I'm incredibly lucky, though. By the grace of God, no one else got sick. And, although there were a few occasions it almost seemed necessary, I didn't have to go to the hospital. I think getting through a sickness of that magnitude definitely earned me a level up. My body defeated what I thought was impossible and I got a proper restart.[37]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Kickboxing Academy | Cindy | |
| 2001 | Not Another Teen Movie | Janey Briggs | |
| 2010 | The 19th Wife | Queenie Alton | Television film |
| 2012 | Brake | Molly Reins | Also co-producer[38] |
| 2013 | Window Wonderland | Sloan Van Doren | Television film |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Hall Pass | Herself | Co-host |
| 1999 | Saving Graces | Grace Smith | Unsold television pilot |
| Safe Harbor | Jamie Martin | Main role; 10 episodes | |
| 2000 | M.Y.O.B. | N/A | Episode: "Bad Seed" |
| 7th Heaven | Frankie | 3 episodes | |
| Wilder Days | Rip | Unsold television pilot | |
| 2002 | That '80s Show | June Tuesday | Main role; 13 episodes |
| Girls Club | Sarah Mickle | Main role; 9 episodes | |
| 2003 | The Practice | Claire Wyatt | Main role (season 7); 22 episodes |
| 2004 | North Shore | Kate Spangler | Episode: "My Boyfriend's Back" |
| 2005 | Rocky Point | Cassie Flynn | Unsold television pilot |
| 2005–2006 | Reunion | Carla Noll | Main role; 13 episodes |
| 2007–2012, 2021 | Grey's Anatomy | Dr. Alexandra Caroline "Lexie" Grey | Guest role (season 3); Main role (seasons 4–8); special guest (season 17); 115 episodes |
| 2012 | Private Practice | Episode: "You Break My Heart" (Season 5) | |
| 2014 | Taxi Brooklyn | Detective Caitlyn "Cat" Sullivan | Main role; 12 episodes |
| 2015–2021 | Supergirl | Alexandra "Alex" Danvers / Sentinel | Main role; 126 episodes; also director: "Prom Again" |
| 2017 | Arrow | Episode: "Crisis on Earth-X" | |
| 2017, 2021 | The Flash | Episodes: "Crisis on Earth-X", "Armageddon, Parts 2-4" | |
| 2017, 2020 | Legends of Tomorrow | Episodes: "Crisis on Earth-X", "Crisis on Infinite Earths" | |
| 2023–present | The Way Home | Katherine "Kat" Landry Dhawan | Main role; 30 episodes; also executive producer[23] |
| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Young Artist Awards | Best Performance in a TV Series - Young Ensemble | Safe Harbor(shared with cast) | Nominated | [40] |
| 2002 | Young Hollywood Awards | Exciting New Face-Female | Herself | Won | [1] |
| 2006 | Screen Actors Guild Awards | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series | Grey's Anatomy(shared with cast) | Nominated | [41] |
The couple, who wed in 2002 in front of 30 close friends and family in West's native Alaska...
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