Born Chyler Leigh Potts in Charlotte, NC, in 1982, the future actress and her family relocated to Virginia Beach, VA, in 1984. After spending her early years at Trentwood Elementary and Great Neck Middle School, Leigh's parents divorced and Chyler and brother Christopher Khayman Lee relocated with their mother to Miami, FL, to begin a new life. It was in Miami that young Chyler decided to drop out of high school to pursue a career as an actress by training with acting coach Sharon Lane. It was under Lane Management that Leigh began landing frequent modeling and commercial work, appearing in television spots for Coca-Cola and Wendy's among others.
Landing the job as co-host of the syndicated talk show Hall Pass (1996) proved the widest exposure to date for the burgeoning talent, and it wasn't long before Leigh would subsequently appear in such series as Kinetic City Cuper Crew and Safe Harbor. Also appearing in unaired pilots for Saving Graces and Wilder Days (and inadvertently cast as the teenage lover of real-life brother Christopher in the former), Chyler dropped Lane Management in favor of representation by The Gersh Agency before auditioning for her biggest feature role to date in Not Another Teen Movie. Though she secretly longed for the role of "The Pretty Ugly Girl," Leigh auditioned for the role of "The Perfect Girl" under the advise of her new management, and, to everyone's surprise, walked out of the audition with the role of "The Pretty Ugly Girl" secured.
As the years wore on, Leigh would continue to find success, especially on the small screen, starring on shows like The Practice, Reunion, and Grey's Anatomy.
