Jennifer Lilley (born August 4, 1984) is an American actress and singer. Lilley played a supporting role in the 2011 film '' The Artist'', temporarily portrayed

Maxie Jones Maxie Jones is a fictional character from the ABC soap opera '' General Hospital''. She is the eldest daughter of supercouple Frisco Jones and Felicia Cummings, raised most of her life by Mac Scorpio. The role was first portrayed by Robyn Richa ...

on the ABC

soap opera A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...

'' General Hospital'' from September 2011 to August 2012, and has played the character of Theresa Donovan on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters ...

's soap opera ''

Days of Our Lives ''Days of Our Lives'' (also stylized as ''Days of our Lives''; simply referred to as ''Days'' or ''DOOL'') is an American television soap opera that streams on the streaming service Peacock (streaming service), Peacock. The soap, which aired on ...

'' from July 2013 to November 2016 and again from May to July 2018. She has also starred in several television films from Hallmark Channel.

Early life

Lilley was born in

Roanoke, Virginia Roanoke ( ) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. At the 2020 census, the population was 100,011, making it the 8th most populous city in the Commonwealth of Virginia and the largest city in Virginia west of Richmond. It is ...

to Ellen and Vincent Lilley. She is the second oldest of four children. She has two brothers, Michael and Ryan, and one sister, Katherine. Lilley graduated from Cave Spring High School."Free Lilley." ''Soap Opera Digest.'' May 8, 2012. p. 55. She went on to attend the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United States, with College admission ...

and graduated early with ''magna cum laude'' honors.

Career

Acting

In 2011, Lilley had a supporting role in director

Michel Hazanavicius Michel Hazanavicius ( lt, Hazanavičius; born 29 March 1967) is a French film director, screenwriter, editor, and producer. He is best known for his 2011 film, '' The Artist'', which won the Academy Award for Best Picture at the 84th Academy Aw ...

's silent movie '' The Artist''. She also appeared as Monie in the ''

iCarly ''iCarly'' is an American teen sitcom created by Dan Schneider, which originally aired on Nickelodeon from September 8, 2007, to November 23, 2012. The series tells the story of Carly Shay ( Miranda Cosgrove), a teenager who creates and hos ...

'' TV movie, "

iParty with Victorious ''iParty with Victorious'' is a 2011 television movie that acts as a crossover of the television series ''iCarly'' and ''Victorious''. It premiered on Nickelodeon June 11, 2011. The crossover's theme song mash-up, "Leave It All to Shine", pre ...

". In the fall of 2011, Lilley took over the role of

, as a temporary recast for Kirsten Storms on '' General Hospital'' while she was on medical leave for

endometriosis Endometriosis is a disease of the female reproductive system in which cells similar to those in the endometrium, the layer of tissue that normally covers the inside of the uterus, grow outside the uterus. Most often this is on the ovaries, ...

. She made her on-screen debut on September 28, 2011. In August 2012, Lilley confirmed that she had finished taping and made her on-screen exit on August 20, 2012; Storms later returned on September 5. In April 2013, Lilley joined the cast of ''

'' as a newly created character. She made her on-screen debut as Theresa Donovan on July 3, 2013. In June 2016, she confirmed she was exiting the soap due to the demanding filming schedule hindering her ability to pursue other commitments and opportunities. Lilley reprised her portrayal as Theresa in May–July 2018. In November 2016, Lilley appeared in a film for the

Hallmark Channel The Hallmark Channel is an American television channel owned by Crown Media Holdings, Inc., which in turn is owned by Hallmark Cards, Inc. The channel's programming is primarily targeted at families, and features a mix of television movies ...

titled ''A Dash of Love''.

Singing

In the summer of 2014, Lilley traveled to Georgia, where she hosted and sang in a benefit concert with SOWEGA Art Performance to raise funds for ONEless Ministries. On November 24, 2015, Lilley released her first Christmas album, "Tinsel Time". The album's title track premiered on ''

TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program TV listings, listings information as well as entertainment and television-related news. The company sold its print magazine division, TV Guide Magazine, TV Guide Mag ...

''s TV Insider. On October 5, 2018, Lilley debuted her studio single, "King of Hearts" from her forthcoming album, ''Lilley''.

Personal life

On May 26, 2007, Lilley married Jason Wayne. In 2016, Lilley and her husband became foster parents through the organization, Childhelp. In June 2019, Lilley and Wayne adopted their two foster sons and in July 2019, she gave birth to a daughter. In May 2022, Lilley gave birth to the couple's fourth child, another daughter.

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* * Jen Lilley a
TV.com
* Jen Lilley o
Disaster Date
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lilley, Jen 1984 births Actresses from Virginia American film actresses American soap opera actresses American television actresses Living people People from Roanoke, Virginia University of Virginia alumni 21st-century American women