Bellamy Young

Bellamy Young (born Amy Maria Young; February 19, 1970)[1] is an American actress and singer, best known for her role as Melody "Mellie" Grant in the ABC drama series Scandal (2012–2018). In 2014, for her portrayal of Mellie, Young won the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series. Young currently stars in the Fox series Prodigal Son.

Bellamy Young
Young at the premiere of Divergent in 2014
Born
Amy Maria Young

(1970-02-19) February 19, 1970
Asheville, North Carolina, U.S.
Alma materYale University
OccupationActress, singer
Years active1994–present
Partner(s)Pedro Segundo (2017-present)
Websitehttps://www.bellamyyoung.com/

Early life

Young was born as Amy Maria Young[2] in Asheville, North Carolina, and was adopted. She changed her name to join the Screen Actors Guild since there was another Amy Young registered,[3] and chose the name Bellamy as a tribute to her late father's best friend, Bill, who had helped to raise her after her father died.[4]

She graduated from Asheville School in 1987.[5] She attended Yale University, majoring initially in Physics but ultimately studying English and Theatre, and graduated in 1991.[6] Young spent a summer during college at the British American Drama Academy in England.[7]

Career

1995–2011

Young began her acting career in theatre. In the 1990s, she performed in a number of Broadway shows including the original production of The Life.[8][9] On Off-Broadway, Young appeared on Stephen Sondheim's musical Merrily We Roll Along (1994), and Randy Newman's Faust (1995–1996).[3][10] In 1995, Young made her television debut in a recurring role on the NBC daytime soap opera Another World as Dr. Courtney Evans.[7] She guest-starred on Law & Order in 1997 and 1998, in two different roles. In 1999 she made her film debut with a small role in the crime drama Black and White and later co-starred in several independent films. In the early 2000s she began appearing in guest-starring roles on a number of television dramas and comedies, including The Drew Carey Show, The X Files, ER, Frasier, The West Wing, NCIS, Medium, Grey's Anatomy, Private Practice, Two and a Half Men, Supernatural, Drop Dead Diva, and Castle. From 2000 to 2011, Young made over 30 guest appearances on television shows.

Young was a regular cast member in the USA Network series Peacemakers in 2003. The show was cancelled after one season of nine episodes. She had recurring roles in the Lifetime legal drama series For the People as Deputy Dist. Atty. Agnes Hunt in 2002, on NBC period drama American Dreams as Diane Shaw in 2003, on NBC's Scrubs as Dr. Grace Miller in 2004, as Assistant State Attorney Monica West on CBS's CSI: Miami (2005–06), and on ABC primetime soap opera Dirty Sexy Money (2008–2009) as Ellen Darling, the eldest daughter-in-law of the Darling family. She also had a recurring role in Criminal Minds as Beth Clemmons from 2011 to 2013.[11][12]

Young at an event in October 2014

Young has appeared in supporting roles in a number of films, including We Were Soldiers (2002) and Mission: Impossible III (2006), along with independent movies like Larceny (2004), Eve of Understanding (2006), Trust Me (2007), This Is Not a Test (2008), In My Sleep (2010), The Freebie (2010), and Joint Body (2014).

2012–present

In 2011 Shonda Rhimes cast Young in the recurring role of First Lady, then 2016 Republican presidential nominee, Melody "Mellie" Grant on the ABC political thriller television series Scandal opposite Kerry Washington and Tony Goldwyn. Before Scandal, Young appeared in Shonda Rhimes' Grey's Anatomy and Private Practice. She appeared in every episode of the first season of Scandal and was upgraded to a series regular as of season two.[13][14] Young later said that her part was originally conceived as a three episode arc.[15] Young has received critical acclaim for her performance as Melody Grant throughout her time on the show .[16][17] The Daily Beast named her the "Breakout Star" of the show in 2014.[18] Many critics praised Young's performance in her character's centered episode "Everything's Coming Up Mellie" of the third season.[19][20] Cicely K. Dyson's review for The Wall Street Journal states: "Bellamy Young has been an amazing scene stealer for two-and-a-half seasons, and this time she finally got her chance to shine."[21] Robert Rorke, writing for The New York Post, states that, "In Mellie, the show has its most fleshed-out character and in Young, its most compelling performer."[22] She won a Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for her performance in season three.[23]

On May 15, 2015, Young released her first album, Far Away So Close, on iTunes.[24] In 2016, she starred in the crime drama film The Night Stalker directed by Megan Griffiths about the serial killer Richard Ramirez.[25][26] The following year, she had a supporting role in the independent comedy film Bernard and Huey opposite Jim Rash and David Koechner.[27][28] In 2018, she co-starred in Disney's live action adaptation of A Wrinkle in Time, along with Oprah Winfrey, Reese Witherspoon and Mindy Kaling.[29]

In March 2019, Young announced that she would be co-starring in the fox drama pilot 'Prodigal Son' opposite Michael Sheen, Lou Diamond Phillips and Tom Payne.[30] In May, the show was green-lit for a series order and by October, had been picked up for a full 22-episode season order .[31] Prodigal Son was the first full season order of fall 2019 and was the highest-rated new show on any network.[32]

Personal life

Young has been vegan since 1988 and in 2016 participated in a campaign for PETA titled, "Being Vegan Keeps Me Young".[33] A long time supporter of shelter adoption, Young starred in 2 televised adverts for The Humane Society of the United States: 'The Shelter Pet Project' in 2015 and 'Honestly' in 2016.[34]

Young performing at the National Christmas Tree Lighting in Washington, D.C. in December 2015

Young is a registered Democrat. Along with several of her Scandal cast mates, Young headlined at a fundraiser event for Hillary Clinton in April 2016.[35] From August through November 2016, Young hit the campaign trail for Clinton and visited Virginia, North Carolina, Colorado, Iowa, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New Hampshire. As part of the Obama administration legacy, in 2016, Young appeared in 'Women Film' by The United States of Women along with several other public figures such as Michelle Obama, Meryl Streep and Oprah Winfrey. After performing at the 2015 National Christmas Tree Lighting, it was announced that in 2016 Young would be co-ambassador, along with Chelsea Clinton, of the Trust for the National Mall.[36][37]

Young is the honorary chair for the domestic violence nonprofit organization 'Helpmate' and has helped raise funds for victims of domestic violence.[38] In 2015, Young won Celebrity Jeopardy! and as a result won $50,000 for Operation Blankets of Love – a charity which donates blankets to animals in shelters.[39] As a teenager, Young began to suffer from migraines and still suffers from them to this day. She became a partner with GlaxoSmithKline for Treximet, in 2015, to spread migraine awareness.[40] Young partnered with Merck & Co., in November 2016, to help educate people on the importance of biomarker testing in non-small cell lung cancer, the disease that killed her father.[41]

A scholarship student herself, Young now endows a scholarship each year to a student at her alma mater, Yale University.[42] In 2019, Young became an ambassador for the organization CARE and went on a trip to Rwanda to see the work they are doing there.[43] For International Women's Day 2020, Young directed a PSA, for CARE, starring herself, Kerry Washington, Shonda Rhimes and Katie Lowes.[44]

Young has previously dated actors Joshua Leonard and Ed Weeks.[45][46] Since September 2017, Young has been in a relationship with Portuguese percussionist Pedro Segundo.[47][48]

Filmography

Film
Year Title Role Notes
1999 Black and White Bellamy Uncredited
Picture This Monique
2001 Mission Sandy
2002 Swatters Mary Dolan
We Were Soldiers Catherine Metsker
2004 Larceny Kiki
2005 Darcy's Off-White Wedding Donatella Short film
2006 Eve of Understanding Cassie
Mission: Impossible III Rachael
2007 Simple Things Terry Hudson Also executive producer
Trust Me Carrie
2008 One, Two, Many Jennifer
This Is Not a Test Teresa
2009 Tender as Hellfire Cheryl Short film
2010 The Freebie Jessica
In My Sleep Olivia
Pound of Flesh Daniella Melville
2011 Joint Body Jane Chapman
2012 Last Day on Earth Pamala
The Cottage Annie Also executive producer
2015 Day Out of Days Rebecca
2016 Offer & Compromise Karen
The Night Stalker Kit Fellows [49]
2017 Bernard and Huey Aggie
2018 A Wrinkle in Time Camazotz Woman [50]
2020 Superman: Man of Tomorrow Martha Kent (voice)

Television
Year Title Role Notes
1995 Another World Dr. Courtney Evans Recurring role
1997 Law & Order Ellen O'Brien Episode: "Blood"
1998 Law & Order Stephanie Harker Episode: "True North"
2000 The Drew Carey Show Bridget Episode: "The Gang Stops Drinking"
Nash Bridges Diana Carr Episode: "The Messenger"
The X-Files Attorney Janet Wilson Episode: "Redrum"
2001 The District Bethany Fortoro Episode: "To Serve and Protect"
ER Grace Episode: "If I Should Fall from Grace"
2002 Frasier Lisa Episode: "Three Blind Dates"
For the People Deputy Dist. Atty. Agnes Hunt Recurring role
2003 Peacemakers Twyla Gentry Main role, 9 episodes
American Dreams Diane Shaw Episodes: "Another Saturday Night", "Life's Illusions", "Rescue Me"
2004 The West Wing MaryLou Meriwether Episode: "The Stormy Present"
NCIS A.T.F. Special Agent Melinda Stone Episode: "Split Decision"
2004, 2009 Scrubs Dr. Miller Recurring role, 6 episodes
2004 Strong Medicine Erin Berman Episode: "Code"
2005 North Shore Mrs. Lasser Episode: "Shark"
Medium Kate Emery Episode: "Judge, Jury and Executioner"
Vision of a Murder Tina Moore Television film
2005–2006 CSI: Miami Assistant State Attorney Monica West Recurring role, 6 episodes
2007 Close to Home Sarah Paulson Episode: "Road Rage"
Grey's Anatomy Kathy Episodes: "The Other Side of This Life: Parts 1 & 2"
Boston Legal Cynthia Nichols Episode: "Beauty and the Beast"
Cold Case Audrey Metz (1938) Episode: "World's End"
2007–2008 Dirty Sexy Money Ellen Darling Recurring role, 9 episodes
2008 Two and a Half Men Diane Episode: "The Mooch at the Boo"
Knight Rider Amy Clark Episode: "Knight Rider"
Mask of the Ninja Gina Television film
2009 Knight Rider Amy Clark Episode: "Fly by Knight"
Trust Me Carrie Taylor Episode: "But Wait, There's More"
Ghost Whisperer Lucy Stanton Episode: "Cursed"
Supernatural Sarah / Lucifer Episode: "Sympathy for the Devil"
2010 Edgar Floats Jennifer Wade TV pilot
Drop Dead Diva Emily Parcellas Episode: "The Long Road to Napa"
The Mentalist Melanie Ayers Episode: "Cackle-Bladder-Blood"
Law & Order: LA Monica Jarrow Episode: "Playa Vista"
2011 Working Class Brooke Episode: "The Dance"
United States of Tara Bridgette Episodes: "The Full F**k You Finger", "Wheels"
Castle Candace Ford Episode: "Pretty Dead"
The Protector Skylar Brenn Episode: "Wings"
2011–2013 Criminal Minds Beth Clemmons Recurring role, 7 episodes
2012 Franklin & Bash Margaret Pollack Episode: "L'affaire Du Coeur"
2012–2018 Scandal Melody "Mellie" Grant Recurring role (season 1)
Main role (season 2-7); 118 episodes
Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series (2014)
2014 Hell's Kitchen Herself Dining room guest, Season 13; Episode: "5 Chefs Compete"
2015 Jeopardy! Celebrity contestant[39]
2017 Lip Sync Battle Episode: "Matt McGorry vs. Bellamy Young"
2019 Whiskey Cavalier Karen Pappas Episode: "The Czech List"
Heartstrings Myrna Jorgensen Episode: "Down from Dover"[51]
2019–present Prodigal Son Jessica Whitly Main Role

Theatre
Year Production Role Notes
1997The LifeMaryEthel Barrymore Theatre

References
  1. "Bellamy Young". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 12 May 2012.
  2. "Bellamy Young on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  3. "Bellamy Young: Biography". TV Guide. Retrieved September 30, 2015.
  4. Gomez, Patrick. "Bellamy Young Opens Up About Being Adopted, Her Real First Name and How She Almost Missed Out on Scandal". Retrieved 10 October 2015.
  5. "Notable Alumni". Asheville School. Retrieved April 26, 2016.
  6. "Yale Class of 1991". Alumninet.yale.edu. 2000-05-23. Retrieved 2013-05-05.
  7. "Bellamy Young Biography". BuddyTV. Archived from the original on 2014-04-08. Retrieved 2013-05-05.
  8. Canby, Vincent (5 October 1997). "SUNDAY VIEW; Why Whisper About It? 'The Life' Is a Joy". The New York Times. p. 5.
  9. Brantley, Ben (28 April 1997). "Lively Women, but Very Tired". The New York Times. p. 12.
  10. Brantley, Ben (26 October 1996). "Two Takes on the Devil: The Charms of the Seedy Give Way to Sunday Best". The New York Times. p. 15.
  11. Gonzalez, Sandra (October 17, 2011). "'Criminal Minds': Bellamy Young to guest star". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved October 17, 2019.
  12. Sadie Gennis (July 28, 2012). "Bellamy Young Returns to Criminal Minds". TV Guide. Retrieved 2013-05-05.
  13. Lesley Goldberg (June 12, 2012). "'Scandal' Ups Bellamy Young to Series Regular for Season 2". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2013-05-05.
  14. Natalie Abrams (June 12, 2012). "Scandal Scoop: Bellamy Young Promoted to Series Regular". TV Guide. Retrieved 2013-05-05.
  15. "Emmys: 'Scandal's' Bellamy Young on Finding Inspiration in Michelle Obama". The Hollywood Reporter. 2013-06-24. Retrieved 2014-06-20.
  16. Rorke, Robert (2013-11-18). "'Scandal' co-star Bellamy Young shines in shocker | New York Post". Nypost.com. Retrieved 2013-11-18.
  17. Porter, Rick. "'Scandal's' Bellamy Young wins Critics' Choice Award: Score one for Team Mellie – Zap2it | News & Features". Zap2it. Retrieved 2014-06-20.
  18. 04.17.14. "How 'Scandal' Star Bellamy Young Transformed Mellie Into Fans' Favorite Character". The Daily Beast. Retrieved 2014-06-20.CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  19. Team TVLine. "Performers of the Week: Sons of Anarchy's Maggie Siff and Scandal's Bellamy Young". TVLine. Retrieved 2013-11-18.
  20. "'Scandal's' Bellamy Young on Her Flashback Episode: 'Seismic Turns' and Mellie's 'Wrecking Ball' Exposed". The Hollywood Reporter. 2013-11-14. Retrieved 2014-06-20.
  21. "'Scandal' Recap, Season 3, Episode 7, 'Everything's Coming Up Mellie' – Speakeasy – WSJ". Blogs.wsj.com. 2013-11-14. Retrieved 2014-06-20.
  22. Rorke, Robert (2013-11-17). "'Scandal' co-star Bellamy Young shines in shocker". New York Post. Retrieved 2014-06-20.
  23. Bacle, Ariana (May 28, 2014). "Critics' Choice TV Awards 2014: And the nominees are..." Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved October 17, 2019.
  24. "Far Away So Close". iTunes. 2016. Retrieved April 26, 2016.
  25. "'Scandal's Bellamy Young meets serial killer Richard Ramirez in 'The Night Stalker' clip — exclusive". Retrieved 25 February 2018.
  26. McNary, Dave (23 June 2015). "'Scandal' Star Bellamy Young Joins 'Night Stalker' Movie (EXCLUSIVE)". Retrieved 25 February 2018.
  27. N'Duka, Amanda (26 January 2018). "'Bernard And Huey' Cast On How The Film's Portrayal Of Equality Is "Right On Time"- Sundance Studio". Retrieved 25 February 2018.
  28. "'Bernard and Huey': Film Review - Slamdance 2018". Retrieved 25 February 2018.
  29. "Zach Galifianakis, Andre Holland hoe Join Disney's 'A Wrinkle in Time'". TheWrap. 2016-11-01. Retrieved 2016-11-01.
  30. Andreeva, Nellie (2019-03-07). "Bellamy Young To Co-Star In Fox Drama Pilot 'Prodigal Son'". Deadline. Retrieved 2020-03-01.
  31. Andreeva, Nellie (2019-05-09). "Fox Picks Up 4 New Drama Series: 'Prodigal Son', 'Deputy', 'NeXt' & Weisman/Katims; What Does It Mean For Network's Bubble Dramas?". Deadline. Retrieved 2020-03-01.
  32. "Prodigal Son Picked Up for Full Season at Fox | TV Guide". TVGuide.com. 2019-10-07. Retrieved 2020-03-01.
  33. "Bellamy Young, Scandal, Interview 2015". The New Potato. 2013-10-02. Retrieved 2016-07-09.
  34. "Humane Society TV Commercial, 'Honestly' Featuring Bellamy Young". iSpot.tv. Retrieved 2017-01-30.
  35. Johnson, Ted (2016-04-11). "'Scandal' Stars to Raise Money for Hillary Clinton". Variety. Retrieved 2017-01-30.
  36. "Videos | The Huffington Post". Retrieved 2017-01-30.
  37. "Bellamy Young on Working with Chelsea Clinton, Being a Bill Clinton Fan". PEOPLE.com. 2016-01-30. Retrieved 2017-01-30.
  38. Doty, Kelly. "Hundreds attend high tea to raise money for Helpmate". Retrieved 2016-09-29.
  39. Kelley, Seth (May 14, 2015). "Watch 'Scandal' Star Bellamy Young Dominate 'Celebrity Jeopardy'". Variety. Retrieved February 12, 2019.
  40. Carstensen, Melinda (2015-06-25). "'Scandal' actress reveals battle with debilitating condition". Fox News. Retrieved 2017-01-30.
  41. "Actress Bellamy Young, Merck, and Leading Lung Cancer Advocates Urge Those Impacted by Lung Cancer to Test. Talk. Take Action. | Business Wire". businesswire.com. Retrieved 2016-11-29.
  42. "Scandal Star Bellamy Young Says Her Character Taught Her "Swagger"". InStyle.com. Retrieved 2020-03-01.
  43. Copelan, Christine (2019-03-11). "Here's Everything Scandal's Bellamy Young Saw While Working for Gender Equality in Rwanda". Parade. Retrieved 2020-03-06.
  44. "Scandal Stars Reunite for Important International Women's Day Message". E! News. 2020-03-05. Retrieved 2020-03-06.
  45. "Actor Joshua Leonard Girlfriend Bellamy Young Stock Photo (Edit Now) 99747914". Shutterstock.com. Retrieved 2020-03-01.
  46. "New Couple Alert! Bellamy Young, Ed Weeks Pack on PDA at Oscars Party". Us Weekly. 2016-02-29. Retrieved 2020-03-01.
  47. Young, Bellamy (2019-09-08). "Happy 2nd Anniversary to the kindest human I know. Every day I feel like the luckiest girl to get to love & be loved by you, @Pedro2Segundo . The most radiant light. Amor de minha vida. Thank you for another year of". @BellamyYoung. Retrieved 2020-03-01.
  48. "About Pedro". Pedro Segundo. Retrieved 2020-03-01.
  49. Dave McNary (2015-06-23). "'Scandal' Star Bellamy Young Joins 'Night Stalker' Movie – Variety". Variety. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  50. "Zach Galifianakis, Andre Holland Join Disney's 'A Wrinkle in Time'". 1 November 2016. Retrieved 25 February 2018.
  51. Iannucci, Rebecca (February 11, 2019). "Sarah Shahi, Scandal's Bellamy Young, thirtysomething Alums and More Join Netflix's Dolly Parton Anthology". TVLine.
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