Ashley Johnson (actress)
Ashley Suzanne Johnson (born August 9, 1983)[1] is an American actress, voice actress and singer. Her work includes roles as Chrissy Seaver in Growing Pains, Annie Warbucks in Annie: A Royal Adventure!, Alex Marshall in What Women Want, Gretchen Grundler in Disney's Recess, Jinmay Rayfield in Super Robot Monkey Team Hyperforce Go!, Terra in Teen Titans, Gwen Tennyson in the Ben 10 franchise, Ellie in The Last of Us and its sequel, Tulip and Lake in Infinity Train, and Margaret in Much Ado About Nothing. She starred in the NBC drama Blindspot as FBI forensic specialist Patterson and is a cast member of the web series Critical Role.
Ashley Johnson | |
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 Johnson in April 2014 | |
| Born | August 9, 1983 Camarillo, California, U.S. |
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| Years active | 1990–present |
Johnson is a two-time BAFTA Award winner for her performances as Ellie in The Last of Us and The Last of Us: Left Behind.
Early life
Johnson was born in Camarillo, California, on August 9, 1983,[2] the youngest child of independent film producer Nancy (née Spruiell) and the late exploration ship captain Cliff Johnson. She is of Danish, Irish, Native American, Norwegian, Scottish, and Swedish descent.[3] She is the youngest out of three children. Ashley Johnson has two older siblings Chris and Haylie. Her father started a new job nine days after she was born, subsequently moving the family to Franklin, Michigan. She studied violin and piano at the International School of Music.
Career
Johnson's career began at age six, when she played the role of Chrissy Seaver on the sitcom Growing Pains from 1990 to 1992. The character's age was accelerated from a toddler between seasons for plotting purposes. By the time she was 12, Johnson had been in the casts of eight TV series. She later reprised her role as Chrissy in The Growing Pains Movie and Growing Pains: Return of the Seavers. In the one season series Phenom (1993–94), she played the mischievous younger sister of a rising teenage tennis star. Johnson appeared in the 1994 sitcom All-American Girl, which also lasted for only one season. She played DJ's overbearing girlfriend Lisa in the 1995 Roseanne episode "The Blaming of the Shrew". During the 1995–1996 ABC lineup, she played Gracie Wallace in the sitcom Maybe This Time. She played Alex Marshall in the 2000 comedy What Women Want. In 2008, she became a regular on the drama Dirt as Sharlee Cates. In 2009, Johnson appeared in "Omega", the first-season finale of Joss Whedon's Dollhouse.
In 2012, she appeared in The Avengers (also directed by Whedon) as a waitress who is saved by Steve Rogers / Captain America. She was intended to appear in future films as his newest love interest (as implied in a brief scene in the film), but that plan was shelved and instead actress Emily VanCamp's Sharon Carter character became involved with Rogers. Although her role was minor, the Blu-ray edition of The Avengers contains some deleted scenes that expand her role in the movie and further her interactions with Rogers.[4][5]
As a voice actress, she played Sean on the cartoon movie The First Snow of Winter in the US version in 1998, Gretchen Grundler on the Walt Disney TV animated series Recess, Terra in the Teen Titans animated series during the show's second and fifth season, Jinmay Rayfield in Super Robot Monkey Team Hyperforce Go! and Gwen Tennyson on Ben 10: Alien Force and in future variations of the Ben 10 franchise.
She co-starred in the PlayStation exclusive The Last of Us as the character Ellie, which was released to critical acclaim and commercial success.[6] She subsequently won a video game BAFTA for Best Performer and a VGX Award for Best Voice Actress for her role in the game. On March 12, 2015, Johnson won another BAFTA for Best Performer for the same role in the game's downloadable content, The Last of Us: Left Behind.[7] She reprises the role in The Last of Us Part II.
Johnson appears in several Geek & Sundry shows, including playing occult specialist Morgan on the web series Spooked on Hulu, playing Alhambra and Dead of Winter on the board gaming web series TableTop,[8][9] and playing Pike Trickfoot and Yasha Nydoorin in Critical Role.[10]
As of 2015, she plays FBI forensic specialist Patterson in the NBC drama series Blindspot.[11]
In 2015, Johnson was the voice actress of main character Petra the Warrior in Minecraft: Story Mode by Telltale Games and Mojang.
In 2016, Johnson provided the voice of Tulip in the pilot for Infinity Train and reprised the role for the full series in 2019.
Personal life
Johnson enjoys singing and playing the guitar, violin, piano, and cello; her performance as Ellie in The Last of Us Part II included acoustic guitar covers of "Future Days" by Pearl Jam, "Take On Me" by A-ha, and "Through the Valley" by Shawn James. Since 2012, Johnson has been in a relationship with American writer, poet, and singer Brian W. Foster, who hosts the Critical Role aftershow Talks Machina.[12][13] Ashley's older brother Chris Johnson worked on the television show The District. Her older sister Haylie Johnson is best known for her role as Haylie on Kids Incorporated. Haylie is married to musician Jonny Lang.[14] In her spare time, she co-runs the photography company Infinity Pictures with production assistant Mila Shah. In April 2000 Ashley's father Cliff was diagnosed with liver cancer and lung cancer.[15] Cliff died from liver cancer and lung cancer that same year. At the time of his death Cliff Johnson was suffering from Hepatitis C.[16]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | Lionheart | Nicole Gaultier | ||
| 1995 | Nine Months | Shannon Dwyer | ||
| 1998 | Dancer, Texas Pop. 81 | Josie Hemphill | ||
| 1999 | Anywhere but Here | Sarah | ||
| Marionette | ||||
| 2000 | The Indescribable Nth | Doris (voice) | Short film | |
| What Women Want | Alex Marshall | |||
| 2001 | Recess: School's Out | Gretchen Grundler (voice) | ||
| Rustin | Lee Wolford | |||
| 2003 | The Failures | Lilly Kyle | ||
| 2004 | Killer Diller | Angie | ||
| King of the Corner | Elena Spivak | |||
| 2005 | Nearing Grace | Merna Ash | ||
| 2006 | Fast Food Nation | Amber | ||
| Grad Night | Student | |||
| The Pity Card | Gretel | Short film | ||
| 2007 | The Brothers Solomon | Patricia | ||
| 2008 | Columbus Day | Alana | ||
| Otis | Riley Lawson | |||
| Pie'n Burger | Holly | Short film | ||
| 2009 | Punching the Clown | Tracy | ||
| Spread | Eva | |||
| 2010 | Alleged | Rose Williams | ||
| 2011 | The Help | Mary Beth Caldwell | ||
| 2012 | The Avengers | Waitress Beth | ||
| Much Ado About Nothing | Margaret | |||
| 2015 | Paradox | Sophie | ||
| When Marnie Was There | Emily | English dub | ||
| 2016 | Punching Henry | Danielle | ||
| 2018 | Juvenilles | Ms. Taylor | ||
| Weight | Liza | |||
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990–1992 | Growing Pains | Christine Ellen "Chrissy" Seaver | ||
| 1993 | In the Shadows, Someone's Watching | Blind Girl | Television film | |
| Men Don't Tell | Cindy | Television film | ||
| Timmy's Special Delivery: A Precious Moments Christmas | Additional voices | Television special | ||
| The Town Santa Forgot | Granddaughter (voice) | Television film | ||
| 1993–1994 | Phenom | Mary Margaret Doolan | 22 episodes | |
| 1994 | All-American Girl | Casey Emmerson | 12 episodes | |
| 1995 | Annie: A Royal Adventure! | Annie Warbucks | Television film | |
| Roseanne | Lisa | Episode: "The Blaming of the Shrew" | ||
| 1995 | Mina and the Count | Mina (voice) | Episode: "Interlude with a Vampire" | [17] |
| 1995–1996 | Maybe This Time | Gracie Wallace | 18 episodes | |
| 1996–1998 | Jumanji | Peter Shepherd (voice) | 40 episodes | |
| 1997 | Moloney | Katherine "Kate" Moloney | 3 episodes | |
| Wings | Rebecca | Episode: "Ms. Write" | ||
| 1997–2001 | Recess | Gretchen Grundler (voice) | 129 episodes | |
| 1998 | ER | Dana Ellis | 2 episodes | |
| Kelly Kelly | Maureen Kelly | 7 episodes | ||
| 1999 | Partners | Janie | Television film | |
| 2000 | The Growing Pains Movie | Chrissy Seaver | Television film | |
| 2001 | Recess Christmas: Miracle on Third Street | Gretchen Grundler (voice) | Video | [17] |
| 2002 | Ally McBeal | Serena Feldman | Episode: "Heart and Soul" | |
| The Guardian | Betsy Fortunato | Episode: "Sacrifice" | ||
| Lloyd in Space | Violet (voice) | 5 episodes | ||
| Providence | Daphne Wallace | 3 episodes | ||
| Roswell | Eileen Burrows | 2 episodes | ||
| Touched by an Angel | Natalie | Episode: "Bring on the Rain" | ||
| 2003 | Kidz History: The Revolutionary War | Colonist | Video | |
| Recess: All Growed Down | Gretchen (voice) | Video | [17] | |
| Recess: Taking the Fifth Grade | Gretchen (voice) | Video | [17] | |
| 2003–2004 | Married to the Kellys | Shari | 2 episodes | |
| 2004 | Growing Pains: Return of the Seavers | Chrissy Seaver | ||
| 2004–2006 | Super Robot Monkey Team Hyperforce Go! | Jinmay Rayfield (voice) | 6 episodes | |
| Teen Titans | Terra (voice) | 7 episodes | [17] | |
| 2004–2010 | King of the Hill | Voices: Emily / Jamie | 7 episodes | |
| 2005 | The X's | Kimla | Episode: "License to Slumber" | |
| 2006 | Lilo & Stitch: The Series | Gretchen Grundler (voice) | Episode: "Lax: Experiment #285" | |
| 2007 | Monk | Susie the Maid | Episode: "Mr. Monk Is at Your Service" | |
| CSI: Crime Scene Investigation | Dreama Little | Episode: "Ending Happy" | ||
| Heartland | Rebecca Colton | Episode: "Mother & Child Reunion" | ||
| 2008 | Dirt | Sharlee Cates | 4 episodes | |
| The Middleman | Eleanor Draper | Episode: "The Ectoplasmic Panhellenic Investigation" | ||
| Raising the Bar | Elise Denton | Episode: "Hang Time" | ||
| The Mentalist | Clara Tennant | Episode: "Seeing Red" | ||
| 2008–2010 | Ben 10: Alien Force | Voices: Gwen Tennyson / Carol Smith / Cicely / Girl / Mother / Mr. Smooty Employee | 45 episodes | [17] |
| 2009 | Dollhouse | Wendy / Caroline / Hayden Leeds | 2 episodes | |
| Cold Case | Grace Stearns in 1966 | Episode: "The Crossing" | ||
| 2010 | Funny or Die Presents... | Girlfriend | Episode: "1.1" | |
| Lie to Me | Valerie | Episode: "Beat the Devil" | ||
| Christmas Cupid | Jenny | Television film | ||
| 2010–2018 | Drunk History | Elizabeth Hamilton / Elizabeth Cherry / Sara Northrup | 3 episodes | |
| 2010–2012 | Ben 10: Ultimate Alien | Voices: Gwen Tennyson / Diamondhead / Clockwork / Humungousaur / Upchuck / Rath / Sunny / Mrs. Rozum / Pierce's girlfriend / Teen girl / Fan | 52 episodes | [17] |
| 2011 | In Plain Sight | Sarah Collins / Sarah Peterschwim | Episode: "Something A-mish" | |
| 2011–2013 | Pound Puppies | Voices: Toyoshiko / Gina / Amelia / Giblet | 4 episodes | |
| 2011–2012 | The Killing | Amber Ahmed | 7 episodes | |
| 2012 | Private Practice | Kelly | Episode: "The Time Has Come" | |
| Drop Dead Diva | Veronica Kramer | Episode: "Road Trip" | ||
| 2012–2014 | Ben 10: Omniverse | Voices: Gwen Tennyson / Future Gwen / Gwen 10 / XLR8 / Wildvine / Margie / Student 2 / Woman | 21 episodes | [17] |
| 2013–2019 | Teen Titans Go! | Terra (voice) | 7 episodes | [17] |
| 2013 | Masters of Sex | Flora Banks | Episode: "Fallout" | |
| 2014 | Garfunkel & Oates | Jane | Episode: "Speechless" | |
| 2015 | Stalker | Stephanie | Episode: "My Hero" | |
| Naruto: Shippuden | Shiseru (voice) | 6 episodes; English dub | [18] | |
| 2015–2017 | Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles | Renet (voice) | 6 episodes | [17] |
| 2015–2020 | Blindspot | Patterson | Main role | |
| 2016; 2019–2020 | Infinity Train | Voices: Tulip Olsen / Steward / Lake | [19] | |
| 2020 | The Cherry Float Girlz | Jasmine Wilson |
Video games
Web series
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013–2015 | Tabletop | Herself | Season 1, episode 17; season 3, episode 8 |
| 2014 | Spooked | Morgan | 4 episodes |
| 2015–present | Critical Role | Pike Trickfoot (campaign 1), Yasha Nydoorin (campaign 2) | RPG web series, cast member[27][28] |
| 2016 | Force Grey: Giant Hunters | Dagny Halvor | |
References
- "Behind The Voice Actors – Ashley Johnson". Behind The Voice Actors.
- "Behind The Voice Actors – Ashley Johnson". Behind The Voice Actors.
- Cf. among others the death announcement for Ingvald Taft in Nordisk Tidende December 26, 1957, in which one of his grandsons, Cliff Johnson, was mentioned, as well as Nordisk Tidende December 11, 1941 (marriage of Cliff's parents Reuben Johnson and Evelyn Taft) and Nordisk Tidende January 5, 1950 (which among others tells that Ingvald Taft originally came from Arendal, Norway, while his late wife (Victoria Kristensen), came from Vanse outside Farsund, Norway). See also Victoria's christening in Vest-Agder county, Vanse in Vanse, Parish register (official) no. A 12 (1879–1903), Born and baptised 1887, Page 84, no. 20, cf. Victoria's petition for naturalization of September 22, 1922, Ancestry.com. New York, State and Federal Naturalization Records, 1794–1940.
- "The Avengers deleted scene sees Captain America as a man out of time". Flickeringmyth.com. August 30, 2012. Retrieved February 2, 2013.
- "Former 'Growing Pains' child star has small-but-important 'Avengers' role". Movies.yahoo.com. May 4, 2012. Retrieved February 2, 2013.
- Hussain, Tamoor (June 5, 2013). "The Last of Us review round-up: 'Easily Naughty Dog's finest moment'". Computer and Video Games. Future plc. Archived from the original on June 8, 2013. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
- Harradence, Michael (March 13, 2015). "The Last of Us voice actress Ashley Johnson's BAFTA speech in full". Psu.com. Retrieved March 14, 2015.
- "Alhambra: Ashley Johnson, Shane Nickerson, and Dodger Leigh Join Wil on TableTop, episode 17". Geek and Sundry. January 3, 2013.
- "TableTop: Dead of Winter". Geek and Sundry. February 19, 2015.
- Salud, April (May 22, 2015). "Critical Role: Episode 11 – The Temple Showdown". Geek & Sundry. Archived from the original on October 1, 2015. Retrieved October 8, 2015.
- Petski, Denise (March 10, 2015). "Rachel DiPillo To Star In NBC Pilot 'Cuckoo'; Ashley Johnson Joins 'Blindspot'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved October 14, 2015.
- "Brianwfoster". Instagram. October 22, 2015.
- "Ashley Johnson Puts Up A Valentine Picture On Instagram; A Perfect Dating Affair With Boyfriend After All?". Liverampup.com. 2017.
- Jonny Lang: No looking back for blues guitarist
- Local actress has far outgrown her 'Growing Pains' start
- Jonny Lang: Finding Peace in Amazing Grace
- "Ashley Johnson – 52 Character Images". Behind The Voice Actors.
- ""Naruto Shippuden Set 23": The Allure of Power". ToonZone.com. January 19, 2016. Archived from the original on January 10, 2017. Retrieved January 10, 2017.
- "Infinity Train – Minisode – Cartoon Network". Retrieved November 2, 2016.
- "2015 Games Performer – BAFTA Awards". Awards.bafta.org. Retrieved May 2, 2015.
- @MarvelHeroes (October 13, 2015). "You know who really get the roles she voices? @MarvelHeroes' voice of Spider-Gwen, @TheVulcanSalute" (Tweet). Retrieved June 28, 2017 – via Twitter.
- Vicarious Visions. Skylanders: SuperChargers. Activision. Scene: Closing credits, 7:13 in, Voice Actors.
- "Four Reasons Lego Marvel's Avengers Might Be The Best Lego Game Yet". Game Informer.
- Blow, Jonathan (January 14, 2016). "Meet the Voice Actors of The Witness". PlayStation Blog. Retrieved January 15, 2016.
- "Obsidian #Deadfire on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved June 11, 2018.
- Sawyer, Josh (May 8, 2018), Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire, Ashley Johnson, Laura Bailey, Liam O'Brien, retrieved June 11, 2018
- Knox, Kelly (January 16, 2018). "Your First Look at the Official Art for the Second Critical Role Campaign". Geek & Sundry. Retrieved January 24, 2018.
- "Check Out Matt Mercer's New D&D Show | Force Grey: Giant Hunters". Geek and Sundry. July 11, 2016. Archived from the original on July 16, 2018. Retrieved January 24, 2018.
External links
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