Rachel Elizabeth Boston (born May 9, 1982) is an American actress and producer. Boston has had leading roles in a number of independent films, and was a regular cast member in several television series. She starred in the
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 ...
drama series, ''
American Dreams
''American Dreams'' is an American drama television series that ran on NBC for three seasons & 61 episodes, from September 29, 2002, to March 30, 2005. The show tells the story of the Pryor family of Philadelphia during the mid-1960s, with many ...
'' as Beth Mason from 2002 to 2005, in the short-lived CBS sitcom ''
The Ex List'' in 2008, and on the
USA Network
USA Network (simply USA) is an American basic cable television channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. It was originally launched in 1977 as Mad ...
series ''
In Plain Sight
''In Plain Sight'' is an American drama television series that premiered on the USA Network on June 1, 2008. The series revolves around Mary Shannon ( Mary McCormack), a Deputy United States Marshal attached to the Albuquerque, New Mexico, offi ...
'' from 2008 to 2012. From 2013 to 2014, Boston starred as Ingrid Beauchamp in the
Lifetime fantasy-drama series, ''
Witches of East End''.
Early life
Was born in
Chattanooga, Tennessee
Chattanooga ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. Located along the Tennessee River bordering Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, it also extends into Marion County, Tennessee, Marion County on its west ...
, to William Terry Boston and Brenda Billingsley Boston. Her father was executive vice president of
power system operations for the
Tennessee Valley Authority
The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) is a federally owned electric utility corporation in the United States. TVA's service area covers all of Tennessee, portions of Alabama, Mississippi, and Kentucky, and small areas of Georgia, North Carolina ...
. She grew up in
Signal Mountain, Tennessee
Signal Mountain is a town in Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. The town is a suburb of Chattanooga and is located on Walden Ridge. "Signal Mountain" is used as a colloquial name for the part of Walden Ridge close to the town. The town ...
, before moving to New York City at the age of seventeen to attend
New York University
New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin.
In 1832, ...
. She was
Miss Tennessee Teen USA
The Miss Tennessee Teen USA competition is the pageant that selects the representative for the state Tennessee in the Miss Teen USA pageant. The pageant is directed by Greenwood Productions under the ownership of Miss Tennessee USA 1989, Kim ...
in 1999, placing in the Top 10 at the national pageant.
Career
Boston starred in the
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 ...
series ''
American Dreams
''American Dreams'' is an American drama television series that ran on NBC for three seasons & 61 episodes, from September 29, 2002, to March 30, 2005. The show tells the story of the Pryor family of Philadelphia during the mid-1960s, with many ...
'', which aired from 2002 to 2005. She portrayed the character Beth Pryor (née Mason), the wife of the oldest son of the Pryor family, around whom the series was centered. She has made guest appearances in other series such as ''
The Closer
''The Closer'' is an American television police procedural starring Kyra Sedgwick as Brenda Leigh Johnson, a Los Angeles Police Department deputy chief. A CIA-trained interrogator originally from Atlanta, Georgia, Brenda has a reputation as a cl ...
'', ''
Las Vegas
Las Vegas (; Spanish language, Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the List of United States cities by population, 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the U.S. state, state of Neva ...
'', ''
The Daily Show
''The Daily Show'' is an American late-night talk and satirical news television program. It airs each Monday through Thursday on Comedy Central with release shortly after on Paramount+. ''The Daily Show'' draws its comedy and satire form fr ...
'', ''
Curb Your Enthusiasm
''Curb Your Enthusiasm'' is an American television sitcom produced and broadcast by HBO since October 15, 2000, and created by Larry David, who stars as a semi-fictionalized version of himself. It follows David's life as a semi-retired televis ...
'', ''
Grey's Anatomy
''Grey's Anatomy'' is an American medical drama television series that premiered on March 27, 2005, on ABC as a mid-season replacement. The series focuses on the lives of surgical interns, residents, and attendings as they develop into ...
'', ''
Rules of Engagement
Rules of engagement (ROE) are the internal rules or directives afforded military forces (including individuals) that define the circumstances, conditions, degree, and manner in which the use of force, or actions which might be construed as pr ...
'', and ''
Crossing Jordan
''Crossing Jordan'' is an American crime drama television series created by Tim Kring, that aired on NBC from September 24, 2001, to May 16, 2007. It stars Jill Hennessy as Dr. Jordan Cavanaugh, a crime-solving forensic pathologist employed i ...
,'' and ''
NCIS NCIS or N.C.I.S. may refer to:
Law enforcement
* National Criminal Intelligence Service, the predecessor to the Serious Organised Crime Agency of the United Kingdom
* Naval Criminal Investigative Service, a United States law enforcement and intelli ...
''.

Boston landed the lead role on ABC's Ric Swartzlander comedy pilot ''The News'' (2007). The show was set in a chaotic
Phoenix television newsroom. Boston played a rising star at the station who had recently been promoted to executive producer of all news programs. Boston also starred with Donal Logue in the Fox pilot "Hackett", directed by
Barry Sonnenfeld
Barry Sonnenfeld (born April 1, 1953) is an American filmmaker and television director. He originally worked as a cinematographer for the Coen brothers before directing films such as '' The Addams Family'' (1991) and its sequel '' Addams Family V ...
, and starred with
Ed O'Neill
Edward Leonard O'Neill (born April 12, 1946) is an American actor and comedian. His roles include Al Bundy on the Fox Network sitcom '' Married... with Children'', for which he was nominated for two Golden Globes, and Jay Pritchett on the aw ...
and
Christine Baranski
Christine Jane Baranski (born May 2, 1952) is an American actress. She is a 15-time Primetime Emmy Award nominee, winning once in 1995 for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for her role as Maryann Thorpe in the sitcom '' Cybill' ...
in the CBS pilot ''Inseparable''.
Boston starred as Daphne Bloom in the short-lived CBS series ''
The Ex List''. In that same year she also guest starred on NBC's ''
ER'' playing an American soldier. She filmed ''
Ghosts of Girlfriends Past
''Ghosts of Girlfriends Past'' is a 2009 American romantic comedy film directed by Mark Waters. The script was written by Jon Lucas and Scott Moore, based on Charles Dickens' 1843 novella '' A Christmas Carol''. Filming spanned February 19, 20 ...
'' with
Matthew McConaughey
Matthew David McConaughey ( ; born November 4, 1969) is an American actor. He had his breakout role with a supporting performance in the coming-of-age comedy '' Dazed and Confused'' (1993). After a number of supporting roles, his first succes ...
and
Jennifer Garner
Jennifer Anne Garner (born April 17, 1972) is an American actress. Born in Houston, Texas, and raised in Charleston, West Virginia, Garner studied theater at Denison University and began acting as an understudy for the Roundabout Theatre Comp ...
in February 2008. She has also filmed ''
500 Days of Summer
''500 Days of Summer'' (stylized as ''(500) Days of Summer'') is a 2009 American romantic comedy-drama film directed by Marc Webb from a screenplay written by Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber, and produced by Mark Waters. The film stars ...
'' with
Joseph Gordon-Levitt
Joseph Leonard Gordon-Levitt (; born February 17, 1981) is an American actor. He has received various accolades, including nominations for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for his leading performances ...
and
Zooey Deschanel
Zooey Claire Deschanel (; born January 17, 1980) is an American actress, singer, and songwriter. She made her film debut in '' Mumford'' (1999) and had a supporting role in Cameron Crowe's film '' Almost Famous'' (2000). Deschanel is known for h ...
in spring 2008.
In early 2011, Boston joined the cast of
USA Network
USA Network (simply USA) is an American basic cable television channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. It was originally launched in 1977 as Mad ...
's hit series ''
In Plain Sight
''In Plain Sight'' is an American drama television series that premiered on the USA Network on June 1, 2008. The series revolves around Mary Shannon ( Mary McCormack), a Deputy United States Marshal attached to the Albuquerque, New Mexico, offi ...
'', where she played Abigail Chaffee, an Albuquerque Police Detective and the love interest of
Marshall Mann (
Frederick Weller
Frederick Weller (born April 18, 1966) is an American actor known for portraying Johnny Sandowski on ''Missing Persons,'' Shane Mungitt in ''Take Me Out'' and Marshall Mann on ''In Plain Sight''.
Early life
Weller was born in New Orleans, Loui ...
). For the fifth and final season, Boston continued her role as a series regular.

For her role opposite
Noah Bean in the independent feature ''The Pill'', Boston garnered rave reviews on the festival circuit and earned accolades including the
Best Actress Award
Best Actress is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organisations, festivals, and people's awards to leading actresses in a film, television series, television film or play. The first Best Actress awar ...
from the
San Diego Film Festival, the Stargazer Award from the
Gen Art Film Festival Gen Art is an arts and entertainment organization that showcases emerging fashion designers, filmmakers, musicians and visual artists. It has produced over 100 events annually, which included fashion shows, film premieres and screenings, live mus ...
, and the Emerging Artist Award from the Big Apple Film Festival.
Boston was the executive producer for the independent film ''Black Marigolds'', and also starred in the film, which reunited her with her costar from ''The Pill'',
Noah Bean. The film was shot over a 2-week span in the
Palomar Mountain Range
Palomar Mountain ( ; es, Monte Palomar ) is a mountain ridge in the Peninsular Ranges in northern San Diego County. It is famous as the location of the Palomar Observatory and Hale Telescope, and known for the Palomar Mountain State Park.
Histo ...
of Southern California.
In 2012, Boston starred in the feature film ''
It's a Disaster
''It's a Disaster'' is a 2012 American art-house black comedy film written and directed by Todd Berger. The film was made by Los Angeles-based comedy group The Vacationeers and stars Rachel Boston, David Cross, America Ferrera, Jeff Grace, Er ...
'' alongside
Julia Stiles
Julia O'Hara Stiles (born March 28, 1981) is an American actress. Born and raised in New York City, Stiles began acting at the age of 11 as part of New York's La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club. Her film debut was a small role in ''I'' ''Love Yo ...
and
America Ferrera
America Georgina Ferrera (; born April 18, 1984) is an American actress. Born in Los Angeles to Honduran parents, Ferrera developed an interest in acting at a young age, performing in several stage productions at her school. She made her featur ...
. In the fall of 2012, Boston would then be cast as one of the leads in the
Lifetime fantasy-drama series ''
Witches of East End'', based on a
novel of the same name by
Melissa de la Cruz, opposite
Julia Ormond
Julia Karin Ormond (born 4 January 1965) is an English actress. She rose to prominence by appearing in ''The Baby of Mâcon'' (1993), '' Legends of the Fall'' (1994), ''First Knight'' (1995), '' Sabrina'' (1995), '' Smilla's Sense of Snow'' (19 ...
,
Jenna Dewan
Jenna Lee Dewan (; born December 3, 1980) is an American actress and dancer. She started her career as a backup dancer for Janet Jackson, and later worked with artists including Christina Aguilera, Pink, and Missy Elliott. She is known for her ...
and
Mädchen Amick
Mädchen Elaina Amick ( ; born December 12, 1970) is an American actress and television director. She is known for her starring role as Shelly Johnson on the television series ''Twin Peaks'' (1990–1991), its prequel film '' Twin Peaks: Fire ...
. The show debuted on October 6, 2013.
During her tenure on ''Witches of East End'', she was cast in the original independent romantic comedy ''A Ring by Spring'', a ''Hallmark'' original film, directed by
Kristoffer Tabori
Kristoffer Tabori (also known as K.T. Donaldson, born Christopher Donald Siegel; August 4, 1952) is an American actor and television director.
Early life
Tabori was born in Malibu, California, the son of American film director Don Siegel and Sw ...
. Shortly thereafter she was cast in
Hallmark Movies & Mysteries
Hallmark Movies & Mysteries (formerly known as Hallmark Movie Channel, and also known as HMM) is an American digital cable and satellite television channel owned by Crown Media Holdings. The channel was spun off from sister network Hallmark Chan ...
' original telefilm ''A Gift of Miracles'', opposite
Jesse Moss and
Rita Moreno
Rita Moreno (born Rosa Dolores Alverío Marcano; December 11, 1931) is a Puerto Rican actress, dancer, and singer. Noted for her work across different areas of the entertainment industry, she has appeared in numerous film, television, and thea ...
.
Shortly after Lifetime's cancellation of ''Witches of East End'', Boston signed on to
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 ...
's original telefim, ''Ice Sculpture Christmas'', a part of Hallmark's 2015 Countdown to Christmas event. In April 2016, Boston completed work on ''Hallmark Channels original telefilm ''
Stop the Wedding'', co-starring
Niall Matter,
Alan Thicke
Alan Thicke (born Alan Willis Jeffrey; March 1, 1947December 13, 2016) was a Canadian actor, songwriter, and game and talk show host. He is the father of singer Robin Thicke. In 2013, Thicke was inducted into Canada's Walk of Fame. Thicke was b ...
,
Lini Evans and
Teryl Rothery
Teryl Rothery is a Canadian actress of stage, television, and film. She is best known for portraying Janet Fraiser in the TV series ''Stargate SG-1''. She co-starred as Grace Sherman in '' Cedar Cove'', and has had major roles as Muriel in ''Vi ...
. At the end of 2016, Boston announced a partnership with ''Hallmark'' and author de la Cruz on a new original movie, ''Christmas in Angel Falls'', which is about an angel who falls in love during the Christmas season.
Between 2018 and 2019, Rachel would sign on to her first theatrical leading role in 6 years, in the film ''I Hate Kids'' opposite
Tom Everett Scott. In November 2018, Rachel would guest on the
ABC drama,
the Good Doctor as Claire's college roommate and friend, Kayla, who is seeking treatment for her cancer.
Filmography
Film
Television
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Boston, Rachel
1982 births
Actresses from Tennessee
American television actresses
Living people
1999 beauty pageant contestants
20th-century Miss Teen USA delegates
People from Chattanooga, Tennessee
21st-century American actresses
People from Signal Mountain, Tennessee