‘A JOYOUS CHRISTMAS’ Cast Bios

NATALIE KNEPP (Rachel Kennedy) – A woman with an arresting onscreen presence, Natalie Knepp has appeared in a wide range of film and television productions, portraying an eclectic array of characters. Knepp was most recently seen in a recurring role on the Amazon Studio series “Z: The Beginning of Everything” that premiered in January.

Knepp recently starred in Nicholas Brooks’s honest-to-goodness, made in America romantic comedy Sam—a story that follows a New York City alpha male, portrayed by Brock Harris—who is suddenly transformed into a beautiful woman Samantha, played by Knepp. Sam is executive produced by Mel Brooks and features Stacy Keach, Morgan Fairchild and Bryan Batt. Knepp also appeared in the hit series, “Orange is the New Black.” Other television credits include “Unforgettable,” “The Good Wife,” “Blue Bloods,” “CSI: Miami,” “Damages,” “Gossip Girl,” A&E’s mini-series “Coma,” the hit web-series “Old Friends” and the digital series “Think Tank” produced by American Pie’s Chris Moore. Her film credits include the film adaptation of the hit musical The Last Five Years where she starred in the pivotal role of Alise Michaels, starring opposite Anna Kendrick and Jeremy Jordan and adapted for the screen by Richard LaGravenese and the film festival hits Bridge and Tunnel, Imagine I’m Beautiful and Alto opposite Diana DeGarmo, Annabella Sciorra and Billy Wirth.

With a career rooted deep in theatre, Knepp was part of the Sundance Theatre Lab where she acted opposite Cherry Jones in “When I Was Young and Unafraid,” which written by Sarah Treem and “Appropriate” written by Brandon Jacob Jenkins.

In addition to her onscreen work, Knepp’s captivating voice has been on numerous national television and radio campaigns.

Originally from Ohio, Knepp grew up playing the harp; through her love of music she found a love for theatre. During her junior year in high school, she landed the role of Juliet in “Romeo & Juliet” at Weathervane Playhouse in Akron, Ohio and began her journey as an actress. She went on to attend the prestigious performing arts high school, Interlochen Arts Academy, where she graduated with a major in Theatre and minor in Harp. After two years at Interlochen, she went on to receive a BFA in acting from Rutgers University, Mason Gross School of the Arts where she spent a year in London studying at Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre.

Knepp actively continues to play the harp while writing and producing her own materials both musically and for television. She currently resides in New York City.

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MICHAEL RADY (Jack Nelson) – Michael Rady recently starred in the second season of the award winning series “UnREAL” as the cunning love interest to Shiri Appleby’s character. He will recur in the Netflix series “Atypical” and was recently seen as the rival of Justin Baldoni’s character on the CW series “Jane the Virgin” and in the CBS drama “Intelligence” with Josh Holloway about a high tech intelligence operative.

After attending Temple University Theater Program in Philadelphia, Rady got his big break when he was cast as Alexis Bledel’s love interest in the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants sequel. He followed that up with recurring roles in Showtime’s critically acclaimed series “Sleeper Cell” and as Stanley Tucci’s son in “ER.”

Other notable television roles include ABC Family’s “Greek” and in the CW’s reboot of “Melrose Place.” More recently he starred as a resident doctor opposite intern Mamie Gummer in The CW’s “Emily Owens, MD” and romanced Kristen Bell in Showtime’s “House of Lies.’

Additional film roles include The Guardian with Kevin Costner, and J. Edgar directed by Clint Eastwood.

A native of Philadelphia, Rady currently resides in Los Angeles.

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BONNIE BEDELIA (Joy) – Golden Globe® nominee Bonnie Bedelia has appeared on film, television, and stage, and can currently be seen on ABC’s “Designated Survivor.” In this political drama, Bedelia appears as “first mother-in-law” Eva Booker in a recurring role alongside Kiefer Sutherland. Prior to “Desginated Survivor,” Bedelia portrayed Camille Braverman on NBC’s drama series “Parenthood,” on which she played the calm and winning matriarch of the Braverman family during the show’s successful six-season run.

Bedelia made her professional debut in a 1957 North Jersey Playhouse production of “Dr. Praetorius,” and then was handed a full scholarship to study at George Balanchine's New York City Ballet. But the acting bug had bitten and after dancing in only four productions, including playing the role of Clara in “The Nutcracker,” she decided to hang up her ballet slippers. She proceeded to study at both the HB Studio and Actors Studio in New York.

Bedelia nabbed a five-year role as young teen Sandy Porter in the New York-based daytime soap “Love of Life” starting in 1961. During that time she took her first Broadway bow in “Isle of Children,” a show that lasted but a week in March of 1962. She was also a replacement in the established hit comedy “Enter Laughing” a year later. After appearing in the stage play “The Playroom” in 1965, she earned strong reviews for her touching performance in “My Sweet Charlie,” for which she won the 1967 Theatre World Award for "promising new artist." In it she played a pregnant young Southern girl on the lam with a black lawyer.

Bedelia made her way out to Los Angeles with a classical repertory company, performing

(more) HALLMARK MOVIES & MYSTERIES – ‘A JOYOUS CHRISTMAS’ – CAST BIOS/Page 3 coveted roles in Shakespeare, Checkov, Ibson and Tennessee Williams. Thereafter, she made her feature debut lending topnotch support in The Gypsy Moths, which reunited From Here to Eternity stars Burt Lancaster and Deborah Kerr. She earned even better marks in her next two films, one performance simply haunting and the other one hilarious. Once again playing pregnant and once again delivering a touching pathos, she played the dirt-poor marathon dancer who pitches songs for pennies in the superb, award-winning, Depression-era drama They Shoot Horses, Don't They? On the other end of the acting spectrum, she played the lovable bride-to-be in the sidesplitting comedy classic Lovers and Other Strangers.

At the age of 33, Bedelia received critical acclaim and a Golden Globe® nomination for her role as racecar driver Shirley Muldowney in Jonathan Kaplan's Heart Like a Wheel. She starred opposite Kevin Kline in Violets Are Blue, Ed Harris in 's , Keanu Reeves in The Prince of Pennsylvania for which she received an Independent Spirit Award nod, and Paul Newman in Roland Joffe's Fat Man and Little Boy. She chilled moviegoers as the deranged murderous wife of in Alan Pakula's Presumed Innocent, and played ' endangered true love in and .

Bedelia found a niche in numerous television films with relevant social themes such as “The Elizabeth Morgan Story,” “Alex, The Life of a Child” and “Any Mother's Son,” for which she received a Cable Ace nomination. Her mini-series credits include “Switched at Birth,” “The Fire Next Time,” the Showtime drama “Judicial Consent,” and the HBO drama “Somebody Has to Shoot the Picture.” She was nominated for an Emmy for “Locked in Silence” and again for her performance in Stephen Soderbergh's “The Quiet Room.”

In a change of pace, Bedelia joined the ensemble cast of the low-budget cult comedy “Sordid Lives,” as Latrelle, a homophobic woman dealing with her mother's death, the imprisonment of her gay brother and her own son's “coming out.” The movie eventually became a TV series, which she also starred in. Recently, she starred as Captain Kate McCafferty on the Lifetime Television drama series “The Division.”

In 2006 she was presented with the Women in Film Nell Shipman Award for Career Achievement. In 2012, Bedelia was presented the Lifetime Achievement Award for Acting from the Ojai Film Festival. The native New Yorker is mother to two grown sons has been happily married for many years to actor Michael MacRae.

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