Katharine Isabelle

Katharine Isabelle
Isabelle in 2014
Born	Katharine Isobel Murray [1] (1981-11-02) November 2, 1981 (age 42) Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Other names	Katie Murray, Katharine Isabelle
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1989–present

Katharine Isobel Murray (born November 2, 1981), known professionally as Katharine Isabelle, is a Canadian actress. She has been described as a scream queen due to her roles in various horror films. She started her acting career in 1989, playing a small role in the television series MacGyver . She gained fame for the role of Ginger Fitzgerald in the films Ginger Snaps , Ginger Snaps 2: Unleashed , and Ginger Snaps Back: The Beginning . ^[2]

In 2014 Katharine Isabelle was awarded the Fangoria Chainsaw Award for Best Actress for her role as Mary Mason in the Canadian body horror film American Mary . ^[3]

Early life

Katharine Isabelle Murray was born on November 2, 1981, in Vancouver, British Columbia. Her parents are Graeme Murray, a production designer who has won two Emmy Awards for work on The X-Files , and Gail Johnson Murray, a writer and producer. Her paternal grandparents and maternal grandfather are from Scotland. ^{[1] [4] [5]} Her paternal half-brother is Joshua Murray, a director and former actor. ^{[6] [1] [7]}

Career

Isabelle has been credited under several stage names during the course of her career.

She began her acting career at the age of eight as Katie Murray, playing an episodic role in the television series MacGyver in 1989. Then she continued to act in small episodic roles in television series and films such as: Cold Front , Immediate Family , The Last Winter , Burning Bridges, ^[8] Children of the Dust , Salt Water Moose , ^[9] and Married to a Stranger . ^[1]

Isabelle has worked with her half-brother Joshua Murray in Cold Front and The Last Winter. ^[7] In 1998, she worked with her father Graeme Murray on an episode of The X-Files titled "Schizogeny". ^[1]

In 1998, she played Lindsay Clark in the film Disturbing Behavior , where Katie Holmes, James Marsden, and Nick Stahl were her film partners. ^[6]

She first found fame with the role of Ginger Fitzgerald in the film Ginger Snaps , directed by John Fawcett; actress Emily Perkins became her co-star in the film as Brigitte Fitzgerald. Casting took place in Los Angeles, New York, Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver. Isabelle auditioned on the same day as Perkins at their agency in Vancouver, reading to one another off-camera. Screenwriter Karen Walton said that they were exactly as she had pictured the characters when their taped auditions had arrived. ^[10] The film tells how during the filming of an amateur horror film, the two sisters find themselves being hunted by a monster. One of the sisters is bitten, but her wounds heal incredibly fast leaving the sisters suspicious of what it is that's hunting them. ^{[11] [12]}

What Culture said:

Obsessed with death and morbidity, and afraid of adulthood, Ginger Fitzgerald, portrayed by Katharine Isabelle of American Mary fame, only gets worse when she's bitten by a lycanthrope and the transformation into a wolf begins. She gradually becomes aggressive and over-sexualised, loses her relationship with her sister, grows pointy teeth and sprouts hair in really weird places. She even grows a tail that she actually attempts to cut off. It takes a big set of cojones to try to cut off any body part. Ultimately though, the film is interesting because it examines the dichotomy between Ginger's humanity and her animalistic side. ^[13]

Jessica Roakes of The Toast also mentions the metaphorical nature of the character saying "Ginger’s body has betrayed her by menstruating. This is a key tenet of the body-horror genre — the monstrous comes not just from the outside, but from within the human body, from infection or perversion or unwanted biological functions. In Ginger’s case, it is her metamorphosis from girl to woman that renders her monstrous." ^[14]

Isabelle with Syvash Yoriko at the premiere of the short film Favorite People List, January 27, 2009.

The actress also portrayed the character in the sequel Ginger Snaps 2: Unleashed (2004) and the prequel Ginger Snaps Back: The Beginning . ^[15]

Two years later, Isabelle appeared in the film Insomnia . ^[16] In this detective thriller directed by Christopher Nolan, the actress played along with Al Pacino, Robin Williams and Hilary Swank. In 2012, Isabelle starred in the horror film twins Jen and Sylvia Soska American Mary . American Mary premiered at the London FrightFest Film Festival on August 27, 2012. It received a limited theatrical run in the U.S. on May 31, 2013, and became available on video on demand on May 16, 2013. ^[17] This role brought her many awards at various horror film festivals, including the "Fangoria Chainsaw Awards". ^[16]

In 2008, Isabelle received the Gemini Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Supporting Role in a Dramatic Program or Mini-Series for her role in The Englishman's Boy . ^[18] She later reunited with Perkins in Another Cinderella Story where they played the daughters of Jane Lynch's character.

Cooperation with the gothic sisters continued in 2014 when Isabelle played a major role in their 2006 horror sequel, See No Evil 2 . Later, she played a major role in the thriller Primate. In 2015, the film 88 starred Isabelle, after she played a cameo role in the film The Girl in the Photographs .

Also, she played a small role in the short film Iteration 1 and one of the main roles in the action film Countdown in 2016. In 2019, Isabelle was cast as Vera Stone in the Netflix horror-drama series, The Order . ^[19]

Personal life

Despite acting in a large number of gory films and television productions, Isabelle is uneasy with the sight of real blood. ^[1]

In 2003, Isabelle almost died from a viral infection, which caused one of her lungs to collapse, as well as kidney failure. She fell into a coma and had to be put on a ventilator. Isabelle made this revelation in 2020, on her Instagram account. ^[20]

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1989	Cousins	Chloe Hardy	as Katie Murray [21] [7]
1989	Cold Front	Katie McKenzie	as Katie Murray [7]
1989	Immediate Family	Birthday Girl Carrie	as Katie Murray [7]
1989	The Last Winter	Winnie Jamison	as Katie Murray [22] [7]
1992	Knight Moves	Erica Sanderson	as Katharine Isabelle [23]
1996	Salt Water Moose	Josephine 'Jo' Parnell	as Katharine Isabelle [9]
1998	Disturbing Behavior	Lindsay Clark
2000	Snow Day	Marla
2000	Ginger Snaps	Ginger Fitzgerald
2001	A Shot in the Face	Erin
2001	Josie and the Pussycats	Laughing Girl
2001	Bones	Tia Peet
2001	Turning Paige	Paige Fleming
2002	Insomnia	Tanya Francke
2002	Spooky House	Mona
2003	Freddy vs. Jason	Gibb Smith
2003	Falling Angels	Lou Field
2003	On the Corner	Stacey Lee
2004	Ginger Snaps 2: Unleashed	Ginger Fitzgerald
2004	Ginger Snaps Back: The Beginning	Ginger Fitzgerald
2004	Show Me	Jenna
2006	Everything's Gone Green	Heather
2008	Another Cinderella Story	Bree Blatt	Direct-to-video film
2009	Favorite People List	Denise Moynahan	Short film
2009	Rampage	Beauty Staff #2
2010	Frankie & Alice	Paige
2010	Hard Ride to Hell	Kerry	Direct-to-video film
2010	30 Days of Night: Dark Days	Stacey	Direct-to-video film
2012	American Mary	Mary Mason
2012	The Movie Out Here	Danielle
2013	13 Eerie	Megan
2013	Torment	Sarah
2013	Lawrence & Holloman	Zooey
2014	See No Evil 2	Tamara	Direct-to-video film
2014	Primary	Andrea
2015	88	Gwen / Flamingo
2015	The Girl in the Photographs	Janet
2015	How to Plan an Orgy in a Small Town	Alice Solomon
2016	Countdown	Julia Baker	Direct-to-video film
2016	A.R.C.H.I.E.	Brooke	Direct-to-video film
2018	Bad Times at the El Royale	Auntie Ruth
2021	Night of the Animated Dead	Barbara (voice)
2021	The Green Sea	Simone
2023	It's a Wonderful Knife	Gale Prescott

Television films

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1990	The Last Train Home	Sarah Bradshaw
1990	Burning Bridges	Emily Morgan
1991	Yes, Virginia, There Is a Santa Claus	Virginia O'Hanlon
1996	Prisoner of Zenda, Inc.	Fiona
1997	Married to a Stranger	Lacey Potter
1998	Voyage of Terror	Aly Tauber
2002	Due East	Reba
2002	The Secret Life of Zoey	Kayla
2002	Carrie	Tina Blake
2004	The Life	Amber Reilly
2004	Earthsea	Yarrow
2004	The Last Casino	Elyse
2006	Eight Days To Live	Lucinda
2006	Engaged to Kill	Maddy Lord
2006	Rapid Fire	Amber
2008	Ogre	Jessica
2008	Mail Order Bride	Jen
2009	Killer Hair	Cherise Smithsonian
2009	Hostile Makeover	Cherise Smithsonian
2009	Beyond Sherwood Forest	Alina
2010	Sins of the Mother	Ivy
2010	Smoke Screen	Wife
2012	Goodnight for Justice: Queen of Hearts	Lucy Truffaut
2017	Undercover Angel	Robin Bladen
2021	The Long Island Serial Killer: A Mother's Hunt for Justice	Shannan Gilbert

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1989	MacGyver	Violet	Episode: "The Madonna"; as Katie Murray [24]
1990	Neon Rider	Maxine 'Max' Forrest	Episode: "Running Man"
1992	The Ray Bradbury Theater	Mink	Episode: "Zero Hour"
1995	Children of the Dust	Young Rachel	Television miniseries
1995	Lonesome Dove: The Series	Francis Maitland	Episode: "Rebellion"
1996	Goosebumps	Kat Merton	Episode: "It Came from Beneath the Sink"
1996	Titanic	Ophelia Jack	Television miniseries
1997	Madison	Allysia Long	4 episodes
1998	The X-Files	Lisa Baiocchi	Episode: "Schizogeny"; worked with father Graeme Murray [1]
1998	Da Vinci's Inquest	Audrey	Episodes: "Little Sister: Part 2", "Little Sister: Part 3"
1998	First Wave	Elizabeth	Episode: "Book of Shadows"
1999	First Wave	Denise	Episode: "The Channel"
1999	Da Vinci's Inquest	Madeline Marquetti	Episodes: "A Cinderella Story: Parts 1 & 2"
1999	The Net	Malika	Episode: "In Dreams"
2000	The Fearing Mind	Josie Hogan	Episode: "Good Harvest"
2001	The Immortal	Taurez	Episode: "Wired"
2001	The Chris Isaak Show	Melissa	Episode: "Smackdown"
2001	Night Visions	Vicki	Episode: "Rest Stop"
2002	The Outer Limits	Tammy Sinclair	Episode: "Dark Child"
2002	Mentors	Anne Sullivan	Episode: "Breakthrough"
2002	John Doe	Shayne Pickford	Episode: "Blood Lines"
2003	Smallville	Sara Conroy	Episode: "Slumber"
2004	The Eleventh Hour	Petrel	Episode: "Stormy Peterel"
2005	Young Blades	Celeste La Rue	Episode: "To Heir is Human"
2006	Stargate SG-1	Valencia	Episode: "Camelot"
2006	Reunion	Courtney	Episode: "1998"
2007	Supernatural	Ava Wilson	Episodes: "Hunted", "All Hell Breaks Loose: Part 1"
2008	Psych	Sigrid	Episode: "Black and Tan: A Crime of Fashion"
2008	The Englishman's Boy	Norma Carlyle	Television miniseries
2008	Sanctuary	Sophie	Episode: "Nubbins"
2009	Heartland	Mindy Fanshaw	Episode: "Starstruck!"
2009	The L Word	Marci Salvatore	Episode: "Leaving Los Angeles"
2009	The Assistants	Paulette Reubin	Episode: "The Bully"
2009	The Good Wife	Cindy Lewis	Episode: "Pilot"
2011	Health Nutz	Jennifer	Episodes: "The Local Hero", "The Sponsor"
2011	Endgame	Danni	Main role, 13 episodes
2012	Flashpoint	Madelyn 'Maddie'	Episode "Run To Me"
2013–2014	Being Human	Susanna Waite	Recurring role; seasons 3–4
2013	Motive	Liane Healey	Episode: "Pushover"
2013	Eve of Destruction	Calla	Television miniseries
2013	Cedar Cove	Cecilia Rendall	Episode: "Pilot"
2014	Psych	Priscilla Morganstern	Episode: "Cloudy with a Chance of Improvement"
2014–2015	Hannibal	Margot Verger	Recurring role; seasons 2–3
2015	Rookie Blue	Detective Frankie Anderson	Episodes: "Integrity Test", "Ninety Degrees", "74 Epiphanies"
2017	Rosewood	Naomi	Episode: "Puffer Fish & Personal History"
2017–2018	The Arrangement	Hope	Recurring role; 8 episodes
2018–present	Little Dog	Ginny Ross	Main role
2019–2020	The Order	Vera Stone	Main role
2023	Transplant	Marissa	Episode: "Sinkhole"
2024	Tracker	Mallory Banks	Episode: "St. Louis"

Awards and nominations

Award nominations for Katharine Isabelle

Year	Title	Award	Category	Result	Ref(s)
2002	Ginger Snaps Turning Paige	Vancouver Film Critics Circle	Best Actress in a Canadian Film	Nominated	[25] [26]
2008	The Englishman's Boy	Gemini Awards	Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Supporting Role in a Dramatic Program or Mini-Series	Won	[27]
2011	Endgame	Gemini Awards	Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Supporting Role in a Dramatic Series	Nominated	[28]
2012	American Mary	Fantastic Fest	Special Mention in Horror Features	Won	[29]
2012		Screamfest Horror Film Festival	Best Actress	Won	[30]
2012		Toronto After Dark Film Festival	Best Leading Actress	Won	[31]
			Best Antihero (Mary Mason, played by Isabelle)	Won
2013		Fright Meter Awards	Best Actress in a Leading Role	Won	[32]
2014		Fangoria Chainsaw Awards	Best Actress	Won	[33]
2014	See No Evil 2	Fright Meter Awards	Best Supporting Actress	Nominated	[34]
2014	Lawrence & Holloman	Leo Awards	Best Supporting Performance by a Female – Motion Picture	Nominated	[35]
	Motive		Best Guest Performance by a Female – Dramatic Series	Won	[35]
2015	Primary	Leo Awards	Best Lead Performance by a Female – Motion Picture	Nominated	[35]
2016	How to Plan an Orgy in a Small Town	Canadian Film Festival	Best Ensemble Cast	Won	[36]
2019	The Order	Leo Awards	Best Supporting Performance Female – Dramatic Series	Nominated	[35]

References

1. Millar, John (January 6, 2013). "Revealed: Horror queen Katharine Isabelle says she's terrified of blood". Entertainment. Daily Record . Retrieved April 28, 2019.
2. "Katharine Isabelle - GINGER SNAPS - the movie" . Retrieved July 30, 2016.
3. "American Mary - A modern Horror Masterpiece" . Retrieved June 5, 2021.
4. Reid, Michael D. (November 6, 1998). "Behind the Screen: Spooked in Rockland" . Life & Arts. Times Colonist . p. C1. Retrieved April 28, 2019– via Newspapers.com.
5. "Ginger Snaps II : Unleashed". ginger-snaps.com (Press release). May 11, 2001. Retrieved April 28, 2019.
6. Kirst, Brian (November 16, 2009). "Flashback Weekend 2009 Recap". Horror Society. Retrieved April 28, 2019.
7. Inwood, Damian (July 19, 1990). "Siblings share movie stardom" . Entertainment. The Province . Retrieved April 30, 2019– via Newspapers.com.
8. Gardella, Kay (May 6, 1990). "ABC's 'Burning Bridges' lacks fire" . TV Week. Daily News . New York. p. 2. Retrieved April 30, 2019.
9. Stone, Jay (April 19, 1996). "Apple-eating moose steals the show" . Entertainment. Ottawa Citizen . p. C14. Retrieved April 30, 2019– via Newspapers.com.
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11. "Ginger Snaps (2001)". Pop Matters. Retrieved July 30, 2016.
12. "Ginger Snaps | Movie | 2001". Hollywood.com. Retrieved July 30, 2016.
13. "10 Badass Female Horror Villains". What Culture. July 18, 2014. Retrieved July 30, 2016.
14. "Ginger Snaps: The Menstrual Horror Movie Of Your Dreams". The Toast. Retrieved July 30, 2016.
15. "Ginger Snaps 2: Unleashed - Movie Review". Common Sense Media. Retrieved July 30, 2016.
16. "Katharine Isabelle". Filmbug. Retrieved July 17, 2014.
17. Barton, Steve (May 29, 2013). "Exclusive American Mary Clip Gets Bloody Revenge". Dread Central . Retrieved November 16, 2013.
18. "Katharine Isabelle: Talented Actress Dedicated to Her Art".
19. Liszewski, Bridget (February 7, 2019). "Little Dog's Katharine Isabelle on what Ginny may be trying to hide". The TV Junkies. Archived from the original on November 14, 2020. Retrieved February 27, 2019.
20. "Katharine Isabelle on Instagram". Instagram. Archived from the original on December 24, 2021. Retrieved May 22, 2020.
21. Bunke, Joan (February 12, 1989). "Kissable 'Cousins'" . At the Movies. Des Moines Sunday Register . p. 1F. Retrieved April 28, 2019– via Newspapers.com.
22. Carroll, Liz (October 1, 1989). "On Location: Clips" . Entertainment. The Sunday News. British Columbia. pp. A-9. Retrieved April 28, 2019– via Newspapers.com.
23. Griffin, John (January 31, 1993). "Gorey thriller Knight Moves will haunt you in the night" . The Gazette . Montreal. p. F3. Retrieved April 30, 2019– via Newspapers.com.
24. Carroll, Liz (October 29, 1989). "On Location: Early Christmas" . Entertainment. The Sunday News. British Columbia. pp. A-9. Retrieved April 28, 2019– via Newspapers.com.
25. Schaefer, Glen (January 31, 2002). "Memento tops with local critics". The Province . Vancouver, B.C. p. C2. ProQuest   269312708 . Retrieved June 10, 2020– via ProQuest.
26. Monk, Katherine (January 31, 2002). "Much more to the year in film than Harry Potter and hobbits". The Vancouver Sun . Vancouver, B.C. p. C27. ProQuest   242515494 . Retrieved June 10, 2020– via ProQuest.
27. Strachan, Alex (November 29, 2008). "The Englishman's Boy, Durham County top winners at Geminis". Ottawa Citizen . Canwest News Service. p. F4. Retrieved June 9, 2020– via Newspapers.com.
28. "Nominee List" (PDF) (Press release). Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television. August 3, 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 6, 2011. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
29. Borders, Meredith (September 25, 2012). "The Fantastic Fest 2012 Awards!". Fantastic Fest (Press release). Retrieved June 9, 2020.
30. "2012 Screamfest Awards" (Press release). Screamfest. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
31. "Award Winners Announced for Toronto After Dark 2012! Cockneys vs Zombies and American Mary Win Big!" (Press release). Toronto After Dark Film Festival. November 2, 2012. Archived from the original on November 14, 2012. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
32. "2013 Fright Meter Award Winners" (Press release). Fright Meter Awards. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
33. Gingold, Michael (May 29, 2014). "The 2014 FANGORIA Chainsaw Awards Results!". FANGORIA® (Press release). Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
34. "2014 Fright Meter Award Winners" (Press release). Fright Meter Awards. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
35. "Leo Awards, Past Nominees & Winners". Leo Awards . Retrieved June 9, 2020.
36. "How to Plan an Orgy in a Small Town & Winter Hymns Take Top Prizes at the 2016 Canadian Film Fest" (Press release). Canadian Film Fest. Archived from the original on May 1, 2016. Retrieved June 9, 2020.

External links

• Katharine Isabelle at IMDb
• Katharine Isabelle on Twitter