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Jessica Steen
Canadian actress (born 1965) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Jessica Steen (born December 19, 1965) is a Canadian actress in both film and television, who may be best known for her recurring role as Lisa Stillman, on the CBC primetime drama series Heartland (2007–present).
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Personal life
Jessica Steen was born in Toronto, Ontario, the daughter of Joanna Noyes, an actress, and Jan Steen, a director and actor.[1] She is of Dutch and Scottish ancestry.
Steen is an environmentalist and animal rights supporter. She supports David Suzuki, the World Society for the Protection of Animals and the Western Canadian Wilderness Committee, among others. She is a certified diver, and is skilled at several circus arts – including stilt-walking, and fire-twirling.[citation needed]
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Career
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In 1987, Steen was in the main cast of the syndicated series Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future, which lasted one year. For her performance in the Captain Power episode, "Judgment", she was nominated for the Gemini Award in the "Best Performance by a Lead Actress in a Continuing Dramatic Role"[citation needed] category in 1988. In 1987, she played Tracy Steelgrave on Wiseguy.
While based in Toronto,[citation needed] Steen appeared on Canadian series and in American made-for-TV movies. In 1991, shortly after relocating to New York,[citation needed] she was cast on the soap opera Loving. She was in the main cast for the two season run of the series Homefront.
In 1994, she was cast as Dr. Julia Heller, a genetically enhanced doctor, in the science fiction series Earth 2. The show was canceled in 1995, after which Steen appeared in single episodes of various series, including The Outer Limits, ER, Murder One, Due South and Touched by an Angel. In 1994, she won the "Best Actress" Gemini Award, for her portrayal of Nora in the TV movie, Small Gifts.
In 1997, she was cast as District Attorney Elizabeth Gardner in the movie Trial & Error. Her performance earned a positive review from Roger Ebert on his syndicated show, Siskel & Ebert.[citation needed]
Producer Jerry Bruckheimer recommended[citation needed] her for the role of the shuttle pilot in 1998's Armageddon because he remembered her portrayal of Cpl. Jennifer 'Pilot' Chase in Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future.
Since 1998 Steen has been personally and professional contacted to the Burning Man festival, organizing community tents and experiences.[2]
In 2004 Steen played Dr. Elizabeth Weir in "Lost City", the two-part finale of season 7 of Stargate SG-1.[2] Steen had been informed that Weir was going to be a recurring character, with the character being a major role in the spinoff Stargate Atlantis, and to not take any work that would conflict with a weekly cable TV schedule.[2]
Reflecting on her time on Stargate Steen also said that “I think I actually drove the writers/producers bananas — to a not good degree,” stating she was a stickler for details and would have did a bunch of background research and started asking hyper-specific and technical questions that producers didn't know the answer to.[2] This was combined with Steen deciding not to watch any prior episodes of Stargate or the movie, to be a more realistic "fish out of water."[2] During her time during Lost City Steen also was actively involved in planning and packing for Burning Man which she considered "my family" saying she "missed weddings, [baby] showers, bar mitzvahs, everything" for Burning Man, comparing it to her personal Mecca.[2]
At the time Burning Man still had a stigma so her agent told her to tell the producers of Stargate that she had a family reunion she couldn't miss, which was technically correct, but she was skipping the reunion to go to Burning Man.[2] After a few months she was told that she had been released from her contract to play Weir, with her agent saying "They felt [that] you were more committed to naked drugging in the desert than you would be committed to doing the show the way they needed you to."[2] News of this being the reason wouldn't break until Steen opened up about it in 2021, as such, Stargate fans speculated elaborately about the cause, with the most popular theory being that she didn't want to move to Vancouver where Stargate was filmed, which she personally dismissed saying she actually has family near Vancouver and a move would've been convenient.[2] Weir would be recast to be played by Torri Higginson, as the same character Steen played.[2]
She played lead roles in Slap Shot 2: Breaking the Ice and the Disney TV movies Smart House and Principal Takes a Holiday.
She played Myra Teal in "Mr. Monk and the Billionaire Mugger", a 2002 episode of Monk. She played a recurring character on the CBS crime drama NCIS, that of Special Agent Paula Cassidy, from 2004 to 2007.[3] In the fall of 2007 she appeared in a multi-episode role on the Canadian series, jPod. That same year, she appeared in the third episode of a new Canadian series, Heartland;[4] as of 2024[update], the 18th season of the series Heartland, Steen continues to appear in the recurring role of Lisa Stillman.
Between 2009 and 2012, Steen had a recurring role as Strategic Response Unit Constable Donna Sabine, on the police drama Flashpoint. In 2010, she was nominated for a Gemini Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Supporting Role in a Dramatic Series,[citation needed] for her appearances in Clean Hands and The Perfect Family. She was nominated for a Canadian Screen Award in the category of Best Performance in a Guest Role, Dramatic Series for Flashpoint episode A New Life[citation needed] in 2013.
Between 2018 and 2020, Steen made several appearances in various Hallmark and Lifetime made-for-TV movies: A Midnight Kiss, Matching Hearts, Chateau Christmas, The Babysitter aka The Baby Monitor Murders, and Stolen by My Mother: The Kamiyah Mobley Story.
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Filmography
Film
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