Jane Colburn Levy is an American actress. She rose to prominence portraying the lead role on the television series Suburgatory before earning further recognition for her roles in Evil Dead and Don't Breathe, both directed by Fede Álvarez. Born in Los Angeles, Levy was raised in northern California, and attended Goucher College for one year before dropping out and enrolling at the Stella Adler Studio of Acting to pursue a career in acting. She made her screen debut in a recurring role on the series Shameless in 2011. She was subsequently cast as Tessa Altman in Suburgatory in 2012, in which she starred through its 2014 cancellation. Levy made her feature film debut in Nobody Walks and had a supporting role in the comedy Fun Size before being cast in the lead of Fede Álvarez's Evil Dead, a reboot of the 1981 film. She then appeared in the drama About Alex, before reuniting with Álvarez for his second feature, the thriller Don't Breathe. Her roles in Evil Dead and Don't Breathe have since earned her scream queen status. She has since starred in the comedy I Don't Feel at Homein This World Anymore, and the horror comedy filmOffice Uprising. In 2018, Levy starred as Diane "Jackie" Torrance on the Hulu horror series Castle Rock. She was subsequently cast in a lead role on the Netflix thriller series What/If in 2018 and the leading role of Zoey in the NBC musical dramedy Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist in 2019.
Early life
Jane Colburn Levy was born December 29, 1989 in Los Angeles, California, the daughter of Mary Tilbury, an artist and florist, and Lester Levy, a mediator. When Levy was an infant, her family relocated from Los Angeles to northern California, settling in the city of San Anselmo, where she was raised. Her father is Jewish, and her mother is of English, Scottish, and Irish descent. Levy attended Sir Francis Drake High School, where she was on the hip hop dancing team and was captain of the soccer team; she began playing soccer at age five. Levy attended Goucher College in Baltimore, Maryland for one year, where she played on the Division III varsity women's soccer team. She subsequently transferred to the Stella Adler Studio of Acting in New York City where she graduated from the Conservatory.
Career
2010-2015
Levy moved to Los Angeles after two years in New York City. In March 2011, she landed the first lead role of her career on the sitcom Suburgatory, with Jeremy Sisto and Cheryl Hines. On May 9, 2014, Suburgatory was canceled by ABC after three seasons. Levy was named by both TV Guide and TheInsider.com as one of the breakout stars of 2011, and was included on the top eleven list of funniest women compiled by AOL. Forbes named her as one of the handful of entertainment stars on their list of 30 under 30 who are "reinventing the world". Noting that Suburgatory was "one of the big hits of the new season" and that Levy would be seen in two upcoming films, Forbes called her "one to watch". Levy appeared in two films in 2012, Fun Size, the first feature from Gossip Girl creator Josh Schwartz and Nobody Walks directed by Ry Russo-Young and written by Lena Dunham. Levy later starred in the 2013 remake of the horror classic The Evil Dead, as the drug-dependent Mia, replacing Lily Collins, who had originally been cast. The following year, she starred in two independent films, About Alex and Bang Bang Baby. In 2015, Levy co-starred opposite Rene Russo and Oliver Platt in Frank and Cindy.
2016–present
In 2016, Levy teamed up again with Evil Dead director Fede Alvarez, starring in horror film Don't Breathe, which tells the story of three friends breaking into the house of a wealthy blind man. A sleeper hit, Don't Breathe received critical acclaim and grossed over $156 million. That same year, she starred with Lucas Till in Monster Trucks, Paramount Animation's first live-action/CGI film, directed by Ice Age's Chris Wedge. In 2017, Levy appeared as Dez in I Don't Feel at Home in This World Anymore directed by Macon Blair, and as Elizabeth in an episode of Showtime series Twin Peaks. In November 2017, Levy starred in Hulu's There's...Johnny! as Joy Greenfield, the female lead. That year Levy also co-starred with Glenn Close in the Amazon pilot Sea Oak, written by George Saunders and directed by Hiro Murai. In 2018, Levy appeared in Sony Crackle's zombie comedy Office Uprising, and starred as Jackie Torrance, niece of Stephen King's Jack Torrance, in Hulu's critically acclaimed Castle Rock, also inspired by King's work. Levy starred in Mike Kelley's Netflix thriller miniseries What/If alongside Renée Zellweger and Blake Jenner. She appeared in James Franco's romantic drama The Pretenders as Catherine, the female lead.
Personal life
On March 3, 2011, Levy married actor Jaime Freitas. According to court documents, the couple separated on October 31, 2011. In April 2013, Levy filed for divorce, citing irreconcilable differences.
