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‘LEAD WITH YOUR HEART’

CAST BIOS

WILLIAM BALDWIN (Ben) – has distinguished himself as an actor, producer, and writer who continues to showcase his multitude of talents in the world of film, television, and music.

In 2013, Baldwin starred in the Hallmark Channel Original Movie “Be My Valentine.” Prior to this, Baldwin returned to primetime TV, joining the cast of “” as Adam’s () boss and a love interest for co-star in 2010. That same year, he also joined the star-studded cast of the CW’s hit television series “,” starring opposite Blake Lively, Kelly Rutherford, and Chase Crawford, and continued his multi-episode arc into the 2012 season.

Baldwin’s recurring role on “Gossip Girl” followed his 2008-2009 success on the ABC series, “Dirty Sexy Money,” opposite Jill Clayburgh, , and Peter Krause. His character, Patrick Darling, was the state Attorney General pondering a Senate run – who was also harboring many scandalous secrets. More recently, Baldwin starred in the Sony-Lifetime cable feature film, “The Craigslist Killer,” and had a three-episode arc on the TV Land series, “Hot in Cleveland.”

In 2009, Baldwin executive produced the Chynna & Vaughan album “One Reason,” which his wife , of the pop sensation , and singer/songwriter Vaughan Penn debuted on September 22, 2009. He also co-produced the film “Lymelife” starring and Cynthia Nixon.

Baldwin made his feature film debut in Oliver Stone’s “Born on the Fourth of July” and since then he has starred in over 25 films varying from comedy to drama. He appeared in the hit comedy “Forgetting Sarah Marshall” with and Russell Brand; co-starred with Tim Robbins and William Hurt in the indie comedy “Noise,” as well as “Humble Pie,” which was an official selection in the 2007 Slamdance Film Festival and HBO Comedy Arts Festival; starred in the award-winning film, “The Squid & The Whale” with and , which was recognized on over 200 Top 10 Lists that year; and, won a MTV Movie Award for “Most Desirable Male” for his work in the film “Sliver.” Other film credits include the screen adaptation of Noel Coward’s “Relative Values,” “One Eyed King,” “The Brotherhood of Murder,” “Backdraft,” “Curdled,” “Virus,” “Pyromaniacs: A Love Story,” “Shattered Image,” “Fair Game,” “Three of Hearts,” “,” “Internal Affairs,” and the “The Preppy Murder.”

A native of Massapequa, New York, Baldwin graduated from Binghamton University with a degree in political science, and serves as the co-chair of the Bold, Brilliant, Binghamton Campaign (a campaign to raise funds for the Binghamton University endowment). He also serves on the boards of Projects ALS (which raises funds to find a cure for Lou Gehrig’s disease), The Massapequa Community Fund (an endowment providing grants to local non- profits and scholarships for graduation seniors in his hometown), Mercy Corps (an international

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HALLMARK CHANNEL / ‘LEAD WITH YOUR HEART’– Cast Bios – Page 2

relief organization), and serves as the Vice president on The Carol M. Baldwin Breast Cancer Research Fund.

Baldwin lives in Santa Barbara, CA with his wife Chynna Phillips and his three children Jameson, Vance, and Brooke.

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KARI MATCHETT (Maura) – Displaying astonishing versatility, is quickly carving out a distinctive place in Hollywood. She is perhaps best known for starring alongside Piper Perabo in five seasons of USA’s hit series, “Covert Affairs.”

After breaking onto the scene in the sci-fi drama “Invasion” opposite Bill Fichtner, Matchett had a starring role in the 2007 season of “24.” She went on to recur on NBC’s “Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip,” alongside Matthew Perry and , and then starred opposite Treat Williams in “Heartland.” Matchett also had a recurring role on the long-running drama “ER,” as well an arc on “Leverage” that spanned over four years. Matchett appeared in “Crash,” the drama series based on the critically acclaimed movie of the same name, where she portrayed Jules, the CEO of a music company and daughter to ’s character. She also starred alongside Andrew McCarthy in the Hallmark Movie Channel (now Hallmark Movies & Mysteries) original movie “The National Tree.”

Matchett’s other television credits include “Criminal Minds,” “Elementary,” “Saving Hope,” “The Cleaner” opposite Benjamin Bratt, “Ugly Betty,” and “Shark,” opposite James Woods.

A native of Lethbridge, Alberta Canada, Matchett now resides in Los Angeles.

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