Canadian actress Missy Peregrym (born Melissa Peregrym in Surrey, British Columbia) specialized in slightly edgy and gritty television outings during her early years on-camera. She debuted at 20 years old, under the aegis of producer James Cameron, with a guest appearance on that director's white-hot action series Dark Angel (playing a character named Hottie Blood). Peregrym then essayed a role in the short-lived weekly martial arts actioner Black Sash (in 2003, as a young woman hell-bent on unbridled vengeance). In 2004, she appeared on the cult superhero series Smallville as Molly Griggs, aka Brainwave (a role she revisited in 2006 for a series of webisodes called "The Vengeance Chronicles"). Later in 2004, Peregrym took on a regular role on the teen drama Life As We Know It as the soccer-playing Jackie Bradford, but the show failed to gain a significant audience, and was canceled after less than half a season.
Peregrym's next project, however, proved to be her highest-profile to that date; she took on the lead in the inspirational sports drama Stick It (2006) -- playing a rebellious 17-year-old gymnast who achieves her full potential thanks to the tutelage of a die-hard, no-nonsense coach (Jeff Bridges). Not long after that, Peregrym was cast as a recurring character on the massively popular superhero series Heroes, playing the deceptive Candice Wilmer, who could make people around her see whatever version of reality she chose. In fall 2007, the actress captured another regular role on a supernatural-themed series, the comedy drama Reaper, about a slacker who, on his 21st birthday, finds out that his parents sold his soul to the devil, whom he must now work for. Peregrym played his charming girl-next-door love interest, Andi. After Reaper ended its run, Peregrym found still more success with her next project, the series Rookie Blue.