# Rose McIver

Frances Rose McIver (born 10 October 1988) is a New Zealand actress. She portrayed Samantha Arondekar in the CBS supernatural sitcom Ghosts (2021-present), Olivia "Liv" Moore in The CW supernatural comedy-drama series iZombie (2015–2019), Summer Landsdown the Yellow Ranger in Power Rangers RPM (2009), and Amber Moore in the romantic comedy film A Christmas Prince (2017) and its two sequels, The Royal Wedding (2018) and The Royal Baby (2019).
McIver began her career with guest appearances in New Zealand–based series, such as Xena: Warrior Princess, Hercules: The Legendary Journeys and Legend of the Seeker. She had recurring roles in the Showtime period drama series Masters of Sex (2013–14) and the ABC fantasy adventure drama series Once Upon a Time (2013–2017).
McIver made her film debut in the period drama The Piano (1993). Since then, she has starred in the drama The Lovely Bones (2009), the horror comedy Predicament (2010), the sports drama Blinder (2013), the romance drama Petals on the Wind (2014), and the musical drama Daffodils (2019).

## Early life

McIver was born in Auckland and was raised in Titirangi by her father, John George Whitfield "Mac" McIver (b. 1951), a photographer, and her mother, Ann "Annie" (née Coney), an artist. Her parents still reside in the house in which she grew up. She has an older brother, Paul McIver, who is a musician and former actor. She studied ballet and jazz dance until she was thirteen.
McIver attended Avondale College and was a prefect in her final year. She graduated in 2006. She studied at the University of Auckland, and majored in Psychology and Linguistics, but did not complete her degree. Between acting jobs, she was a babysitter and worked part-time importing bananas with Fair Trade. She took part in their "All Good Bananas" promotion, as the voice of the listener's conscience.

## Career

At the age of two, McIver began appearing in commercials. At the age of three, she received the role of an angel in the film The Piano.
McIver has worked for New Zealand television, from fantasy-based series like Maddigan's Quest to dramas such as Rude Awakenings. She has starred in television films such as the Hercules film series and Maiden Voyage, as well as two Disney Channel films: Eddie's Million Dollar Cook-Off in 2003, and Johnny Kapahala: Back on Board in 2007, which is the sequel to the 1999 film Johnny Tsunami. From March to December 2009, she portrayed Summer Landsdown / Ranger Yellow in the television series Power Rangers RPM for 32 episodes. She also had a role in the comedy series Super City, playing cheerleader Candice. In 2011, McIver appeared in the television film Tangiwai, based on the 1953 Tangiwai rail disaster. In the film, she played Nerissa Love, the fiancée of New Zealand cricketer Bob Blair and one of the victims of the disaster.
Further TV roles were as the lead character in MTV's unsold pilot Cassandra French's Finishing School for Boys, based on the book by Eric Garcia and produced by Garcia and Krysten Ritter, in Showtime's Masters of Sex, based on the book Masters of Sex: The Life and Times of William Masters and Virginia Johnson, the Couple Who Taught America How to Love by Thomas Maier, as Tinker Bell for a multi-episode story arc on the series Once Upon a Time, and as adult Cathy Dollanganger in the Lifetime television film Petals on the Wind, adapted from the book by V. C. Andrews.
In March 2015, McIver starred in CW's series iZombie as Olivia "Liv" Moore. The series concluded after five seasons with 71 episodes on 1 August 2019.
McIver appeared in Peter Jackson's film adaptation of The Lovely Bones, which received its U.S. release on 11 December 2009. In the film, she played Lindsey Salmon, the younger sister of the main character. From there she appeared in the film Predicament, based on the novel by Ronald Hugh Morrieson, which was released in New Zealand and Australia on 26 August 2010. She put her studies at the University of Auckland on hold, and traveled to Los Angeles for "a couple of top-secret projects". She was cast opposite Chris Lowell in the indie film Light Years, and in Australian rules football film, Blinder, which began filming in Torquay on 20 February 2012, before moving to Boston. McIver was cast in the musical feature, Daffodils. Filming began February 2018 in Wellington, Waikato, and Wairarapa, and was released in New Zealand and Australia in 2019.
In March 2017, it was reported that McIver was in Romania, filming A Christmas Prince for Netflix which was released 17 November 2017. She reprised her role as Amber Moore in the 2018 sequel film A Christmas Prince: The Royal Wedding and the 2019 threequel A Christmas Prince: The Royal Baby.
In October 2021, McIver began starring in the CBS sitcom Ghosts as Samantha "Sam" Arondekar, one of the leads.

## Personal life

McIver has been an ambassador for Emirates airlines.
McIver enjoys writing and is inspired by the works of John Steinbeck, Wally Lamb and Franz Kafka. She also enjoys crossword puzzles and Sudoku.
On 2 January 2023, McIver married Australian artist George Byrne in Santa Barbara, California after six years of dating. They had a daughter in 2024.
McIver is the sister-in-law of actress Rose Byrne.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1993 | The Piano | Angel | |
| 1997 | Topless Women Talk About Their Lives | Sally | |
| 1998 | Flying | Josie | Short film |
| 2001 | Ozzie | Caitlin | |
| 2002 | Toy Love | Lucy | |
| 2007 | Knickers | Emily | Short film |
| 2008 | So Fresh & So Keen | Sally Poste | Short film |
| 2009 | The Lovely Bones | Lindsey Salmon | |
| 2010 | Predicament | Maybelle Zimmerman | |
| 2010 | Dangerous Ride | Renee | Short film |
| 2012 | The Dinner Party | Heather "Rose" | Short film |
| 2013 | Blinder | Sammy Walton | |
| 2013 | Brightest Star | Charlotte Cates | |
| 2015 | Warning Labels | Jessie | Short film |
| 2015 | Coward | Ophelia | Short film |
| 2015 | Mattresside | Sue | Short film |
| 2015 | Queen of Carthage | Jane | Voice |
| 2015 | The Answers | Paige | Short film |
| 2017 | A Christmas Prince | Amber Moore | |
| 2018 | Brampton's Own | Rachel Kinley | |
| 2018 | A Christmas Prince: The Royal Wedding | Amber Moore | |
| 2019 | Daffodils | Rose | |
| 2019 | A Christmas Prince: The Royal Baby | Queen Amber Moore | |
| 2020 | The Princess Switch: Switched Again | Queen Amber Moore | Cameo |
| 2022 | Next Exit | Heather | |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1993 | Shortland Street | Holly | Unknown episodes |
| 1994 | Hercules and the Amazon Women | Girl (Hydra) | Television film |
| 1994 | Hercules in the Underworld | Ilea | Television film |
| 1994 | Hercules in the Maze of the Minotaur | Ilea | Television film |
| 1995, 1997 | Hercules: The Legendary Journeys | Ilea | 2 episodes |
| 1995 | Riding High | Billy | Unknown episodes |
| 1996 | City Life | Sophie | Unknown episodes |
| 1999 | Xena: Warrior Princess | Daphne / Xena | Episode: "Little Problems" |
| 2002 | Murder in Greenwich | Sheila McGuire | Television film |
| 2002 | Mercy Peak | Gwyneth Couch | Episode: "Cruel to Be Kind" |
| 2003 | P.E.T. Detectives | Genevieve | Episode: "Play It Again, Evan" |
| 2003 | Eddie's Million Dollar Cook-Off | Hannah | Television film |
| 2004 | Maiden Voyage | Jenny | Television film |
| 2006 | Maddigan's Quest | Garland | Main role |
| 2007 | Rude Awakenings | Constance Short | Main role |
| 2007 | Johnny Kapahala: Back on Board | Val | Television film |
| 2009 | Legend of the Seeker | Alice | Episode: "Reckoning" |
| 2009 | Power Rangers RPM | Summer Landsdown / Ranger Yellow | Main role |
| 2011 | Tangiwai | Nerissa Love | Television film |
| 2011 | Super City | Candice | Main role |
| 2012 | CSI: Crime Scene Investigation | Bridget Byron | Episode: "Tressed to Kill" |
| 2012 | Cassandra French's Finishing School for Boys | Cassandra French | Unsold television pilot |
| 2013–14 | Masters of Sex | Vivian Scully | 8 episodes |
| 2013–14, 2017 | Once Upon a Time | Tinker Bell | 9 episodes |
| 2014 | Petals on the Wind | Adult Cathy Dollanganger | Television film |
| 2014 | Play It Again, Dick | Skank with Attitude | 7 episodes |
| 2015–19 | iZombie | Olivia "Liv" Moore | Main role |
| 2017 | A Bunch of Dicks | Johnny | Funny or Die short |
| 2017 | DreamWorks Dragons | Atali | Voice; 3 episodes |
| 2018 | I'm Sorry | Elizabeth | Episode: "The Small of My Back" |
| 2020–22 | Woke | Adrienne | Main role |
| 2021–present | Ghosts | Samantha "Sam" Arondekar | Main role |
| 2021 | Unwanted | Kate / Emily | |

### Video games

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2017 | Access Code | Eve | Voice; Google Daydream |

### Music videos

| Year | Title | Artist |
| 2015 | "Demon Days (Do It All Again)" | Wild Wild Horses |
| 2015 | "Ordinary Life" | Wild Wild Horses |
| 2016 | "Heartlines" | Broods |

### Other works

| Year | Title | Notes |
| 2014 | Blood Punch | Producer |
| 2019 | Nice Ride | Director and writer |

## Theatre

| Year | Title | Role | Venue |
| 2003 | Arcadia | Thomasina Coverly | Titirangi Theatre, Auckland |
| 2008 | Blood Brothers | Various | Peach Theatre Company, Auckland |
| 2010 | That Face | Izzy | Silo Theatre Company, Auckland |
| 2019 | Key Largo | Nora D'Alcala | Geffen Playhouse, Los Angeles |

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Association | Category | Work | Result |
| 2002 | TV Guide NZ Television Awards | Best Juvenile Actor/Actress | Xena Warrior Princess | Won |
| 2007 | Air New Zealand Screen Awards | Best Performance by an Actress | Maddigan's Quest | Nominated |
| 2010 | Visa Entertainment Screen Awards | Best NZ Actress | The Lovely Bones | Won |
| 2012 | Monte Carlo Film Festival | Outstanding Actress | Tangiwai | Nominated |
| 2017 | Teen Choice Awards | Choice Comedy TV Actress | iZombie | Nominated |
| 2018 | Teen Choice Awards | Choice Sci-Fi/Fantasy Actress | iZombie | Nominated |
| 2019 | Teen Choice Awards | Choice Summer TV Actress | iZombie | Nominated |
| 2022 | Hollywood Critics Association TV Awards | Best Actress in a Broadcast Network or Cable Series, Comedy | Ghosts | Nominated |
| 2022 | Saturn Awards | Best Actress in a Network or Cable Television Series | Ghosts | Nominated |