Evangeline Lilly

Evangeline Lilly Headshot

Actress

Birth Date: August 3, 1979

Age: 44 years old

Birth Place: Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta, Canada

Evangeline Lilly is a Canadian actress and writer who first rose to prominence by co-starring in one of the most successful TV shows of the early 21st century, before moving on to some of the biggest franchise blockbuster films of the era, but soon made it abundantly clear that she saw acting as nothing more than a means to and end, which allowed her to pursue her interests in writing and humanitarian causes.

Born Nicole Evangeline Lilly on August 3, 1979 in Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta, Canada, she was the middle child in a family of three daughters. Lilly's mother was a produce manager, while her father taught home economics. Later in life, Lilly would credit her interest in philanthropy and humanitarian causes to her Christian upbringing. After graduating from W.J. Mouat Secondary School in Abbotsford, British Columbia, where she played soccer and served as Vice President of the student council, Lilly went on a humanitarian aid trip to the Philippines, before enrolling at the University of British Columbia, where she majored in International Relations. She intended to use her degree to pursue a career in philanthropy, but that all changed one afternoon. While walking down the street in Kelowna, British Columbia, Lilly was approached by an agent from the Ford Modeling Agency, who gave her a business card. Eventually she contacted the agency, and soon landed a number of commercial appearances and non-speaking parts on TV shows such as "Smallville" (The WB, 2001-2011) and "Kingdom Hospital" (ABC, 2004).

Though she had never had a credited speaking part, Lilly was sent to audition for a new ABC drama co-created by J.J. Abrams, knowing only that it took place on a deserted island. Out of the 75 women who auditioned for the role of Kate Austen, the leader of a group of air crash survivors who becomes ensnared in a love triangle with disgraced doctor Jack Shephard (Matthew Fox) and anti-social con man James "Sawyer" Ford (Josh Holloway), Lilly was surprised to land the role, but still through that the show, "Lost" (ABC, 2004-2010), would not last more than a single season. Luckily for her, she was wrong. Following its premiere on September 22, 2004, "Lost" was an instant cultural phenomenon, earning rave reviews from critics and drawing audiences in with its mysterious sci-fi structure, designed to keep them guessing from episode to episode just where these people were, and for that matter, who they were. Though the Kate-Jack-Sawyer love triangle was a controversial plot point amongst fans of the show, Lilly was often praised for her nuanced portrayal of Kate, even earning a Golden Globe nomination in 2006. "Lost" would go on to win ten Primetime Emmy Awards, including the 2005 statuette for Outstanding Drama Series, and was eventually ranked as the the top-rated TV show of the decade by IMDb.

Despite all of this success, Lilly decided that she might take a break from acting for a while following the "Lost" finale, choosing to focus on writing, humanitarian work, and raising her two sons alongside her partner, Norman Kali. Though she would continue acting, including performances in the Oscar-winning war drama "The Hurt Locker" (2009) and entering the cinematic realm of Middle Earth to play the Mirkwood elf warrior Tauriel in "The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug" (2013) and "The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies" (2014), she made it clear that she saw acting as more of a day job than a true calling.

In 2013, Lilly's debut children's book, "The Squickerwonkers" (2013), the first part in a proposed series, was released. She then ventured into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, taking on the role of Hope van Dyne in "Ant-Man" (2015), a role she would reprise for "Ant-Man and the Wasp" (2018) and "Avengers: Endgame" (2019). Lilly could next be seen in "Dreamland" (2020), a thriller from writer/director Nicholas Jarecki set against the backdrop of the opioid crisis.

Credits

Assembled: The Making of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania

Self
Show
2023

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania: Extras

Actor
Show
2023

Ant-Man and the Wasp: QuantumaniaStream

Actor
Hope van Dyne/Wasp
Movie
2023
46%

What If...?Stream

Voice
Hope van Dyne
Series
2021
94%

Dreamland

Actor
Claire Reimann
Movie
2021

South of HeavenStream

Actor
Annie
Movie
2021
47%

GMA3: What You Need to Know

Guest
Show
2020

The Kelly Clarkson ShowStream

Guest
Talk
2019

Avengers: EndgameStream

Actor
Hope van Dyne/The Wasp
Movie
2019
94%

Ant-Man and the WaspStream

Actor
Hope van Dyne/Wasp
Movie
2018
87%

Little Evil

Actor
Samantha
Movie
2017

Movies & Megastars

Guest
Show
2016

Ant-Man: Extras

Actor
Show
2015

Ant-ManStream

Actor
Hope van Dyne
Movie
2015
83%

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies

Actor
Tauriel
Show
2014

Movie Mag

Actor
Show
2014

Making of ...

Actor
Show
2014

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy FallonStream

Guest
Talk
2014

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five ArmiesStream

Actor
Tauriel
Movie
2014
59%

The Social

Guest
Show
2013

The Hobbit: The Desolation of SmaugStream

Actor
Tauriel
Movie
2013
75%

Live! With Kelly and Michael

Guest
Talk
2012

Entertainment Studios.TV

Guest
Show
2012

The Jonathan Ross ShowStream

Guest
Talk
2011

Real SteelStream

Actor
Bailey Tallet
Movie
2011
60%

ConanStream

Guest
Talk
2010

The Talk

Guest
Talk
2010

Late Night With Jimmy Fallon

Guest
Talk
2009

Afterwards

Actor
Claire
Movie
2008

The Hurt LockerStream

Actor
Connie James
Movie
2008
97%

Rachael Ray ShowStream

Guest
Talk
2006

The One Show

Guest
Show
2006

etalk

Guest
Show
2006

Entertainment Tonight Canada

Guest
Show
2005

Popcorn

Guest
Show
2005

The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson

Guest
Talk
2005

LostStream

Actor
Kate Austen
Series
2004
86%

Stephen King's Kingdom Hospital

Guest Star
Show
2004

Jimmy Kimmel Live!Stream

Guest
Talk
2003

Live With Regis and Kelly

Guest
Show
2001

The Daily Show With Jon StewartStream

Guest
Talk
1999

The View

Guest
Talk
1997

Entertainers: With Byron Allen

Guest
Show
1994

Late Night With Conan O'Brien

Guest
Talk
1993

Late Show With David Letterman

Guest
Talk
1993

The Tonight Show With Jay Leno

Guest
Talk
1992

Good Morning America

Guest
News
1975

Canada AM

Guest
Show
1972

News aboutEvangeline Lilly