Amanda Brugel
Amanda Brugel (born March 24, 1978) is a Canadian actress. She made her acting debut in the drama film "Vendetta" (1999). This was followed by roles in the comedy film "A Diva's Christmas Carol" (2000), the slasher horror film "Jason X" (2001), the comedy film "Sex After Kids" (2013), for which she won an ACTRA Award for Best Female Performance, the satirical drama film "Maps to the Stars" (2014), the independent drama film "Room" (2015), the superhero film "Suicide Squad" (2016), the drama film "Kodachrome" (2017), and the action thriller film "Becky" (2020). Brugel starred as Lynnie  Jordan in the Showcase soap opera "Paradise Falls" (2008), Michelle Krasnoff in the Citytv comedy series "Seed" (2013–2014), Marci Coates in the Space science fiction series "Orphan Black" (2015), Nina Gomez in the CBC comedy series "Kim's Convenience" (2016–2021), and Rita Blue in the Hulu dystopian drama series "The Handmaid's Tale" (2017–present). In 2021, Brugel joined the judging panel of the second season of the reality competition series "Canada's Drag Race". Early life. Brugel was born in Pointe-Claire, Quebec, Canada. Her mother is English, and immigrated to Canada, while her biological father, who she never  met, is African-American. Her mother would later marry a man of South Asian (or Southeast Asian) and of Jewish descent. He would adopt Brugel, and she has stated that she considers him her father. She started out as a dancer, but quit when she grew to be taller than her partners. She entered the renowned Theatre Program at York University with a Fine Arts talent scholarship, and graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 2000. Career. In 1999, Brugel made her acting debut in the HBO drama film "Vendetta", alongside Christopher Walken. In 2000, she had a  role in "A Diva's Christmas Carol", a Christmas television film starring Vanessa Williams, Rozonda Thomas, and Kathy Griffin. She made her feature film debut as Geko in the slasher horror film "Jason X" (2001) and starred in the horror television film "Kaw" (2007). Brugel appeared in guest or recurring roles in several television series, including "Soul Food" (2001), "Wild Card" (2004), "Kojak" (2005), "Kevin Hill" (2005), "The Newsroom" (2005), "Paradise Falls" (2008), "MVP" (2008), "Saving Hope" (2012), "Flashpoint" (2012), "Nikita" (2013), and "Covert Affairs" (2013). In 2013, she earned critical praise for her starring role as Vanessa in the  comedy film "Sex After Kids". For her performance, she received an ACTRA Award for Outstanding Female Performance, and a nomination for a Canadian Comedy Award. From 2013 to 2014, she starred as Michelle Krasnoff in the Citytv comedy series "Seed". In 2014, Brugel appeared in David Cronenberg's satirical drama film "Maps to the Stars", alongside Julianne Moore, and the crime thriller film "The Calling", alongside Susan Sarandon. In 2015, she portrayed Marci Coates in several episodes of the Space science fiction series "Orphan Black". That same year, she appeared as Officer Parker in the independent drama film "Room", which  earned a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Picture and won the Canadian Screen Award for Best Motion Picture. In 2016, she appeared in the superhero film "Suicide Squad". That same year, she began a recurring role as Pastor Nina Gomez in the CBC comedy series "Kim's Convenience", for which she received the Canadian Screen Award for Best Guest Performance, Comedy. In 2017, she appeared in the Netflix drama film "Kodachrome". Brugel had recurring roles as Sita Petronelli in the USA Network drama series "Eyewitness" (2016) and as Sonia in the CBC comedy series "Workin' Moms" (2018), for  which she was nominated for the Canadian Screen Award for Best Supporting Actress, Comedy. Since 2017, Brugel has starred as a housekeeper named Rita, in the Hulu dystopian drama series "The Handmaid's Tale", based on Margaret Atwood's acclaimed novel of the same name. As a part of the cast, she has received three nominations for the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series. From 2019 to 2020, Brugel had a recurring role as Faith Hanlon in the USA Network teen drama series "Dare Me". In 2020, she appeared as Eugenia in  multiple episodes of the TNT post-apocalyptic drama series "Snowpiercer", which is an adaptation of the film of the same name. Also that year, Brugel starred as Kayla in the action thriller film "Becky". In 2020, Brugel appeared as a panelist on "Canada Reads", advocating for Samra Habib's memoir "We Have Always Been Here". She successfully defended the memoir and won the competition. On June 29, 2021, it was announced that Brugel, along with Brad Goreski, would join the judging panel of "Canada's Drag Race" for its sophomore season after season one judges Jeffrey Bowyer-Chapman and Stacey  McKenzie announced their departures in March and June 2021 respectively. Alongside Goreski and main judge Brooke Lynn Hytes, Brugel will serve as a rotating judge with Traci Melchor. Personal life. Brugel has two children from her previous marriage to Marcel Lewis. In 2013, Brugel founded Brugs Army, a non-profit organization that focuses on improving the lives of women and children.