- Born
- Birth nameCharisma Lee Carpenter
- Nickname
- Chrissy
- Height5′ 7″ (1.70 m)
- Charisma Carpenter first made her television debut with a guest spot on Baywatch (1989), before receiving a call from legendary producer Aaron Spelling and subsequently being cast on the prime time soap opera, Malibu Shores (1996). But her big break - and the one that would forever change the trajectory of her life - came shortly thereafter when she was cast as Cordelia Chase on Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997), a role she would portray for three seasons before migrating to its spin-off series, Angel (1999), and continuing on for four more seasons. In total, Carpenter portrayed Cordelia in 140 episodes across both franchises. The former series has been ranked by Time, The Hollywood Reporter, TV Guide, Rolling Stone, and Entertainment Weekly among their lists of greatest television series' of all time.
Carpenter went on to recur on Charmed (1998) as the demon Kyra and on Veronica Mars (2004) as gold digging stepmother Kendall Casablanacas as well as Greek (2007) and, most recently, CW's Pandora (2019). While working as a series regular on ABC Family's The Lying Game (2011), Carpenter subsequently served as host and producer of Investigation Discovery's Surviving Evil (2013), a series featuring survivors who fought back against their attackers. Additional guest starring roles include CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (2000), Burn Notice (2007), Supernatural (2005), Blue Bloods (2010), Sons of Anarchy (2008), Scream Queens (2015), Chicago P.D. (2014), Lucifer (2016), and 9-1-1 (2018).
Carpenter has also segued into movies, with a supporting role as Lacey in The Expendables (2010) and its sequel, The Expendables 2 (2012), as well as roles in over 12 made for television movies for Lifetime, Syfy and more.
Offscreen, Carpenter is the proud founder of MyCon, a platform intended to lift the spirits of socially isolated fans throughout the pandemic by connecting them with their favorite actors. Additionally, she works closely with the Thirst Project, an international water charity bringing safe, clean drinking water to the most vulnerable people around the world, as well as The Ronan Thompson Foundation, which is dedicated to researching pediatric cancer. In addition to her first love, that of a devoted mother, Carpenter spends much of her time working as a philanthropist, political activist, and social justice advocate. So passionate about these causes, she recently completed a course on administrative justice.- IMDb Mini Biography By: Max Akselrad/Advantage PR
- SpouseDamian Hardy(October 5, 2002 - July 8, 2008) (divorced, 1 child)
- ChildrenDonovan Charles Hardy
- ParentsDon CarpenterChris Carpenter
- RelativesTroy(Half Sibling)Kenny(Half Sibling)
- Birthmark on her jawline
- After 7 years playing Cordelia Chase, 3 years on Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997) and 4 years on Angel (1999), Charisma was not invited back as a regular for Angel's fifth and final season. She agreed to return for the 100th episode although she wasn't asked until Sarah Michelle Gellar turned down the chance to guest star in the episode.
- The role of Delilah in The Faculty (1998) was written specifically for her, but she turned it down because it was too similar to her Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997) character, Cordelia.
- Auditioned for the role of Buffy on the TV show Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997), but got the role of Cordelia after it was turned down by actress Bianca Lawson.
- In 1991 she was picked to be a cheerleader for the San Diego Chargers football team. The next year she moved to Los Angeles to break into the entertainment business.
- Was an NFL cheerleader for the San Diego Chargers' football team.
- [6/30/03\\ I had my heart set on becoming an English teacher, but stumbled into acting after meeting a theatrical agent in my dad's restaurant in San Diego.
- [6/30/03] Lots of doors have opened for me because of [Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997)] and [Angel (1999)], but, although I'm ambitious, I'm not going to just do anything simply because the money is good. If I can't love a project, then I'm not interested.
- [in 2003, about Sarah Michelle Gellar winning the title role in Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997)]. Initially I was disappointed, but while I didn't see it at the time, I know now I'm better suited to Cordelia . . . Moving from "Buffy" to [Angel (1999)] was great for me. On "Buffy" I wasn't all that high on the totem pole as far as responsibility and screen time. That all changed when I joined [David Boreanaz] in "Angel". The whole thing has been such a buzz.
- I'm a mixed breed and hope to live longer because of it.
- I don't really see myself being a sex symbol at all.
- Angel (1999) - $50,000 (1999-2004)
- Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997) - $35,000 per episode
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