# Rachel Melvin

Rachel Melvin (born February 9, 1985) is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as Chelsea Brady on Days of Our Lives (2005–2009) and as Penny in Dumb and Dumber To.

## Early life and education

Melvin was born in Elmhurst, Illinois, but moved to Phoenix, Arizona, at age four, where she was raised. She has an older sister named Jessica. She graduated from Mountain Pointe High School in 2003. Melvin passed up a full scholarship to college so that she could move to California to pursue an acting career. In Los Angeles, she took acting classes every weekend.

## Career

Melvin landed her first acting job in the 2005 independent film Boo. She later won the role of Georgia LaMarque, a French girl whom Bo and Billie had been falsely led to believe was their daughter on the NBC soap opera Days of our Lives, but only appeared in five episodes. Months later, she took over the role of Chelsea Brady (originally portrayed by Mandy Musgrave). She and her dog were seen on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, when she was randomly interviewed at a gas station for a segment. Melvin has also guest-starred on Summerland, Jack & Bobby and 8 Simple Rules. With her family, she has also appeared on Family Feud.
In 2010, Melvin starred as Kaia in Seven Deadly Sins which premiered on Lifetime alongside Dreama Walker. The first part premiered on May 23 while the second part premiered on May 24, 2010. In 2011, Melvin appeared in episodes of House M.D. and Castle.
In 2014, Melvin appeared as Penny Pinchelow in Dumb and Dumber To, portrayed Mary in Zombeavers, and Sarah in the drama thriller film Madtown.
She appeared in the final season of MTV's Awkward.
Melvin reprised the role of Chelsea Brady in August 2023 when she appeared for Victor Kiriakis' (John Aniston) funeral.

## Personal life

Melvin lives in Los Angeles, California. Her idols include Meryl Streep, Mary-Louise Parker, Anne Hathaway, Cynthia Nixon and Toni Collette. She is married to Kevin Barrett.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
| 2005 | Boo | Meg | Film debut |
| 2008 | Legacy | Julie | Direct-to-video; also known as Pretty Little Devils |
| 2009 | Cry of the Mummy | Le Petit Sirene Agent | |
| 2010 | Girlfriend | Rebecca | |
| 2010 | Seven Deadly Sins | Kaia | Two-part film |
| 2012 | My Funny Valentine | Stevie | |
| 2014 | Dumb and Dumber To | Penny Pinchelow | |
| 2014 | Zombeavers | Mary | Direct-to-DVD |
| 2014 | All I Need | Ashley | |
| 2015 | Backup Boyfriend | Celia | |
| 2015 | Madtown | Sarah | |
| 2017 | Sleepwalker | Dawn | |
| 2017 | The Trouble With Mistletoe | Willa Davis | |
| 2018 | The Rake | Nicole | |

### Television

| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
| 2004 | Summerland | Teen Girl | 1 episode |
| 2005 | 8 Simple Rules | Cute Girl | 1 episode |
| 2005–09, 2023 | Days of Our Lives | Chelsea Brady | 522 episodes |
| 2006 | Heroes | Annie | 3 episodes |
| 2011 | House | Wynn Phillips | 1 episode |
| 2011 | Castle | Nicole Hixton | 1 episode |
| 2012 | Good Luck Charlie | Syd (hairdresser) | 1 episode |
| 2015 | Bones | Kate Kolfax | 1 episode |
| 2016 | Awkward. | Lizzie | Recurring; 7 episodes |
| 2017 | Sleepy Hollow | Alex Norwood | Main; 13 episodes |