Emily Bett Rickards | |
---|---|
Rickards at the 2015 PaleyFest
|
|
Born |
Emily Bett Rickards July 24, 1991 Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada |
Occupation | Actress |
Years active | 2012–present |
Emily Bett Rickards (born July 24, 1991) is a Canadian actress, known for portraying Felicity Smoak on The CW television series Arrow as well as its spinoff series The Flash, Vixen and Legends of Tomorrow.
Rickards was born and raised in British Columbia. Beginning on her career path at a young age, she introduced herself to musical theatre and dance, with the hope of later introducing herself to more serious acting. She graduated from high school early and attended the Vancouver Film School, completing the Acting Essentials Program. After completing the program, she attended an open call audition, which gained her an agent. She studied at the Alida Vocal Studio in Vancouver.
Rickards appeared in the video of the Nickelback single "Never Gonna Be Alone" in 2008 and, after some minor roles, was cast as Felicity Smoak in the TV series Arrow in 2012. Originally signed as a one-episode guest star, positive reaction from her co-star and from Warner Brothers producer Peter Roth before the show aired, led to her being signed on as a recurring star for the rest of show's first season. The success of the character, coupled with positive fan response, led to her being made a series regular from the second season onwards. The following year she landed the role of Lauren Phillips in the television movie Romeo Killer: The Chris Porco Story.
In 2015, she had a supporting role in the Oscar nominated film Brooklyn.
In 2016, Rickards was cast in the movie Slumber, alongside Darby Stanchfield and Meaghan Rath. In the same year she was also cast in Aisha Tyler's directorial debut, Axis, which raised funds through a Kickstarter campaign.