Laura Dianne Vandervoort was born on September 22, 1984, in Toronto, Ontario. In her childhood, Laura’s passion for a variety of sports -- including baseball, tennis and basketball -- quickly earned her the reputation of a hardy (and unapologetic) tomboy. Laura even earned a black belt in karate before she had hit the age of 16, and it seemed certain to her friends and family that she would pursue a career involving an athletic endeavor of some sort.
But through the years, Laura’s interest in acting began to supersede her enthusiasm for sports, and it wasn’t long before she had announced her intentions to begin pursuing work within the entertainment industry. Laura’s first step toward achieving her goal was to take acting classes in her native Toronto, and she subsequently started auditioning for a variety of locally shot plays and television shows.
laura vandervoort debuts in alley cats strike
Laura Vandervoort’s hard work and determination paid off in 1997 when she managed to land a small role on the Canadian horror anthology series Goosebumps (a program that also helped launch the career of fellow Canuck Hayden Christensen). She followed that up with two more appearances on the series the following year, and Laura quickly found herself becoming more and more acquainted with the Canadian acting scene. After one-shot appearances on programs like Are You Afraid of the Dark? and Twice in a Lifetime, Laura made her feature-length debut in a Disney Channel movie entitled Alley Cats Strike (which also starred fellow up-and-coming ingenue Kaley Cuoco).
laura vandervoort on instant star
Laura Vandervoort’s burgeoning success led to roles on a variety of Canadian projects, including the series Mutant X and the made-for-TV film Prom Queen: The Marc Hall Story (the latter even featured her future Smallville costar Aaron Ashmore). It wasn’t long before Laura was invited to audition for a new series called Instant Star, which followed the ups and downs of a normal teen whose life changed dramatically after she won an American Idol-type competition. While Laura lost out on the central role of Jude Harrison to Alexz Johnson, she impressed the producers to such a degree that they offered her the pivotal part of Jude’s older sister. The show became an instant hit among younger viewers, and Laura immediately found herself being recognized by fans everywhere she went.
laura vandervoort on smallville
Laura Vandervoort’s increased profile made it much easier for her to audition for high-profile gigs, and in 2007, she guest starred on an episode of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and appeared opposite Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Isla Fisher in the critically acclaimed thriller The Lookout. But when word got out that the producers of Smallville were looking to cast the role of Supergirl, Laura knew instantly that she would be an ideal fit for the athletically inclined part. Laura’s wholesome good looks, coupled with her brawny background won her the role, and she made her debut alongside Smallville actors Tom Welling, Michael Rosenbaum and Kristen Kreuk in the first episode of the show’s seventh season.
Laura Vandervoort in Stuff Magazine
