Sara Paxton

Sara Paxton (born April 25, 1988) is an American actress and singer.
In regards to Disney, she is best known for playing Marnie Piper in the Halloweentown Franchise.
== Early Life ==
Paxton was born in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California, as the only child of Lucia (née Menchaca Zuckerman) and Steve Paxton. Her mother was born to a Jewish family in Monterrey, Mexico, and raised in the city of Ciudad Acuña. Paxton's father is of English, Irish, and Scottish descent, and he converted to Judaism upon marrying her mother. Both her parents are dentists.
During her childhood, Paxton put on shows and wanted to perform, sometimes dressing up in costume and coming to school as a particular character. She grew up in the San Fernando Valley, choosing to attend a public high school instead of accepting home schooling. Paxton graduated from El Camino Real High School in June 2006.
Paxton has said that attending college was "very important" to her because "it is important to expand your mind." In 2006, Paxton applied to the University of Southern California's film studies program. She has noted that she would like to major in business administration with a minor in history (as she is a "history fanatic") and to start a production company. Paxton delayed plans to attend college, because every time she lined up a class schedule she was offered another movie. In a 2009 interview with TeenHollywood, Paxton indicated that she had been accepted to several schools and almost attended New York University, but she made the decision not to go and had no immediate plans of attending college.
== Career ==
=== 1997-2004: Early Roles ===
Paxton has said that singing and acting "went hand in hand" during her early years, though she initially began working as an actress, appearing in musical theatre and later in television commercials at a young age. Her first film role was a small role in the 1997 comedy film Liar Liar star Jim Carrey and late star Jason Bernard. During the late 1990s and early 2000s, she appeared in a number of television and film roles, including voice roles from the Nickelodeon animated series SpongeBob SquarePants, a role on the soap opera Passions, regular roles on the series Greetings from Tucson and Action, and a guest starring role on the Disney Channel show, Lizzie McGuire starring Hilary Duff playing an ex-president of Lizzie's school. In 2003, Paxton starred in R. L. Stine's Haunted Lighthouse, a short 3D film attraction that still plays at several theme parks across the United States. She also appeared as Lana on CSI: Miami.
Paxton's first major role was in the teen film Sleepover, which opened in July 2004 to negative reviews and low box-office revenue; during the same summer season, she appeared in several episodes of the series, Summerland, playing Sarah Borden, a mentally troubled teen who experimented with drugs and sex with Jesse McCartney's character. Paxton was subsequently cast in the lead role of the Discovery Kids television series, Darcy's Wild Life, playing Darcy Fields, a girl who works at a rural veterinary; the series was filmed on a farm in Toronto and aired from 2004 to 2006, often featuring Paxton's music track, "Take a Walk". Paxton received an Emmy nomination for the role in 2006.
=== 2005-2012: Mainstream Recognition ===
In 2005, Paxton spent three months working on the Florida-themed Aquamarine, in which she played the title character as a mermaid, opposite Emma Roberts and JoJo, whom she befriended while filming. Paxton has said that she felt a sense of "female empowerment" while on set because "almost everyone" on set was female. The film opened on March 3, 2006 and grossed approximately $7.5 million in its opening weekend. Reviewers of the film compared Paxton, whose inspiration is Goldie Hawn, to actress Reese Witherspoon, saying that she has an "infectious, nutty energy." Paxton recorded a song for the film's soundtrack titled "Connected", an English version of the Mexican group RBD's song Tenerte y Quererte from their 2004 album Rebelde.
Paxton was signed to a record deal with Epic Records during the time she was cast in Aquamarine. Her debut music CD, The Ups and Downs, featuring the titled single "Here We Go Again", was due for release by Epic at some point "in the future"; as of March 2007, Paxton has not completed work on it. She has described the sound as "pop/rock. It is believed Paxton's debut album has been shelved and she has no plans to continue her music career as she has not made any announcement of any plans to further her career in the music industry."
Paxton hosted The Secret Life of Water, the first episode of the series Planet H2O, which premiered in April 2006 on public television stations. In May of the same year, she made an appearance on the television series Pepper Dennis, playing a teen actress. Paxton, who sees herself as an "evolving actress," then appeared in Return to Halloweentown, replacing Kimberly J. Brown in the fourth instalment in Disney Channel's Halloweentown series; she dyed her hair brown for the role. The film aired on October 20, 2006. During the summer and early fall of 2006, Paxton filmed The Party Never Stops: Diary of a Binge Drinker, a Lifetime Television film, in Vancouver Island. In the film, she plays Jessie, a college student who falls victim to binge drinking. Paxton has described it as "very different" from her previous roles and has specified that she was looking for a role that would be a "challenge". The film aired in March 2007. Paxton's next film role was in Sydney White, a college-set comedy starring Amanda Bynes and Matt Long; filming began on February 12, 2007 in Orlando, Florida and the movie was released on September 21, 2007. She next starred in Superhero Movie, a parody on superhero films which began filming in September 2007 and was released on March 28, 2008. She provided backing vocals on her co-star Drake Bell's theme song for the movie Superhero! Song.
Paxton starred in the remake of The Last House on the Left, playing the lead female character, Mari. The film was released on March 13, 2009.
=== 2013-present: Television Roles and Film ===
Paxton starred in the CW drama series The Beautiful Life alongside Corbin Bleu, Mischa Barton and Elle Macpherson. The show premiered on September 16, 2009, but was cancelled after 2 episodes. It was later aired online on YouTube. Paxton next co-starred with Scott Eastwood in the thriller Enter Nowhere, and also played one of the lead roles in the Ti West film The Innkeepers. Paxton also starred in the 2011 movie Shark Night. She then played Mirabella on the ABC Family movie Lovestruck: The Musical in 2013.
In April 2016, it was announced that Paxton had joined the cast of David Lynch's 2017 Twin Peaks revival. In 2018, she co-starred as Donna Rice opposite Hugh Jackman in Jason Reitman's The Front Runner, a biographical film about politician Gary Hart. In 2018-2019, she played Amber Dooley in the NBC series Good Girls. 
== Personal Life ==
Paxton has credited her Jewish religion for the continued close relationship with her family. She did not have a Bat Mitzvah because of her filming schedule, but she has stated that she hoped to be able to participate when she was a teenager.
Paxton married her long-time partner Zach Cregger, on October 27, 2019, in Austin, Texas at The Addison Grove. Paxton and Cregger met in Austin in 2013.
== Filmography ==
=== Film ===
Year	Title 	Role
1997	Liar Liar 	Child at Party and School
1997	You're Invited to Mary-Kate and Ashley's Christmas Party	Patty
1998	Music from Another Room 	Young Karen
1998	Soldier 	Angie
1998	Tunnel Vision 	Shauna
1999	Durango Kids 	Hillary
2001	The Ruby Princess Runs Away 	Princess Sabrina
2001	Hounded 	Tracy Richburg
2003	Haunted Lighthouse 	Ashley
2004	Sleepover 	Staci Blake
2006	Aquamarine 	Aquamarine
2006	Return to Halloweentown 	Marnie Piper / Splendora Agatha "Aggie" Cromwell
2007	The Party Never Stops: Diary of a Binge Drinker 	Jessie Brenner
2007	Sydney White 	Rachel Witchburn
2008	Superhero Movie 	Jill Johnson
2009	The Last House on the Left 	Mari Collingwood
2011	The Innkeepers 	Claire
2011	Shark Night 	Sara Palski
2011	Enter Nowhere 	Jody
2012	Static 	Rachel
2012	Blue Eyed Butcher 	Susan Wright
2013	Lovestuck: The Musical 	Mirabella Huton
2013	Love & Air Sex 	Kara
2013	Cheap Thrills 	Violet
2013	Liars All 	Katie
2014	Boys of Abu Ghraib 	Peyton
2014	All Relative 	Grace
2015	Happily Ever After 	Sarah Ann
2016	Sundown 	Lina Hunter
2017	Three Women 	Kathy
2018	First Date 	Kathy
2018	The Front Runner 	Donna Rice
=== Television ===
Year 	Title 	Role
1996 	Small Talk 	Panelist #1
1997 	NewsRadio 	Sara
1999 	Working 	Amanda Baines
1999 	Passions 	Young Sheridan
1999 	Action 	Georgia Dragon
1999-2017	SpongeBob SquarePants 	Various Roles
2000 	Perfect Game 	Sydney
2000 	Beyond Belief: Fact or Fiction	Girl
2001 	Lizzie McGuire 	Holly
2002 	CSI: Crime Scene Investigation	Jody Bradley
2002-2003	Greetings from Tucson 	Sarah Tobin
2003 	CSI: Miami 	Lana Walker
2004 	Malcolm in the Middle 	Angela Pozefsky
2004 	Will & Grace 	Melanie
2004 	Summerland 	Sarah Borden
2004 	Quintuplets 	Chelsea
2004-2006	Darcy's Wild Life 	Darcy Fields
2006 	Pepper Dennis 	April May / Chrissy Tyler
2006 	Skater Boys 	Kayla Gordon
2008 	Wizards of Waverly Place 	Millie
2009 	Jonas 	Fiona Skye
2009 	The Beautiful Life 	Raina Marrinelli
2013 	Guys with Kids 	Stacee
2014 	How to Get Away with Murder 	Natalia "Talia" Lewis
2015 	Stalker 	Isabelle Martin
2015 	Code Black 	Sophie
2016 	Heartbeat 	Lou Panttiere
2016 	Murder in the First 	Alicia Barnes
2017 	This Is Us 	Kathryn
2017 	Twin Peaks 	Candy Shaker
2017 	Baker Daily: Trump Takedown 	Sara
2017 	Wrecked 	Sister Grace
2018 	Liberty Crossing 	Jessica Larson
2018-2019	Good Girls 	Amber Dooley
=== Video Games ===
Year	Title 	Role
1999	Koudelka	Charlotte D'Iota
== Discography ==
Year	Title 	Album
2005	"Take a Walk" 	Darcy's Wild Life
2005	"There For You" 	Darcy's Wild Life
2005	"Don't Wanna Be Alone" ft. Jesse McCartney	Summerland
2006	"Connected" 	Aquamarine
2006	"Can You Feel The Love Tonight" 	Disneymania 4
2008	"I Need a Hero" 	Superhero! Movie
2008	"Superhero! Song" 	Superhero! Movie
2012	"Shark Bite Rap" 	Shark Night 3D
2013	"Me Too (Stripped)" 	Lovestruck: The Musical
2013	"Like a Virgin" 	Lovestruck: The Musical
2013	"How Can I Remember to Forget" 	Lovestruck: The Musical
2013	"Me Too (Main Mix)" 	Lovestruck: The Musical
2013	"Everlasting Love" 	Lovestruck: The Musical
== Awards and Nominations ==
Year	Award 	Association 	Nominated For 	Result
2000	Best Performance in a TV Comedy Series - Young Performer Age Ten or Under 	Young Artist Awards	Working 	Won
2003	Best Performance in a TV Series (Comedy or Drama) - Supporting Young Actress	Young Artist Awards	Greetings from Tucson 	Nominated
2003	Best Performance in a TV Drama Series - Guest Starring Young Actress 	Young Artist Awards	CSI: Crime Scene Investigation	Won
2004	Best Performance in a TV Series - Guest Starring Young Actress 	Young Artist Awards	CSI: Miami 	Nominated
2005	Best Performance in a TV Series (Comedy or Drama) - Leading Young Actress 	Young Artist Awards	Darcy's Wild Life 	Nominated
2005	Best Performance in a Feature Film - Young Ensemble Cast 	Young Artist Awards	Sleepover 	Nominated
2006	Best Young Ensemble Performance in a TV Series (Comedy or Drama) 	Young Artist Awards	Darcy's Wild Life 	Nominated
2006	Outstanding Performer in a Children's Series 	Daytime Emmy Awards	Darcy's Wild Life 	Nominated
2007	Best Young Ensemble Performance in a TV Series (Comedy or Drama) 	Young Artist Awards	Darcy's Wild Life 	Nominated
2007	Best Performance in a Feature Film - Leading Young Actress 	Young Artist Awards	Aquamarine 	Nominated
2012	Best Actress 	Fright Meter Awards	The Innkeepers 	Nominated
Category:Actresses
Category:American Actresses
Category:Halloweentown
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