Short Biography

Margaret Grace Denig (born September 21, 1983), known professionally as Maggie Grace, is an American actress. Originally from Worthington, Ohio, she dropped out of high school to move to Los Angeles, California with her mother after her parents` divorce. While struggling financially, she landed her first role as the titular character in the web-based video series Rachel`s Room in 2001. She went on to earn a Young Artist Award nomination in 2002 with her portrayal of 15-year-old murder victim Martha Moxley in the television movie Murder in Greenwich.
In 2004 Grace was cast as Shannon Rutherford in the television series Lost, on which she was a main cast member for the first two seasons, winning a Screen Actors Guild Award shared with the ensemble cast. Leaving the series, Grace was keen to work more prominently in film having starred opposite Tom Welling in The Fog in 2005. She appeared in Suburban Girl, The Jane Austen Book Club (both 2007), and Taken (2008). She has completed production in the lead role of Alice in Malice in Wonderland, an upcoming modern take on Lewis Carroll`s novel Alice`s Adventures in Wonderland.

Life and career

Early life

Grace was born Margaret Grace Denig in Worthington, Ohio, the second of three children to parents Valinn and Rick Denig, who ran a family jewelry business.
Her family lived in a 200-year-old house, the first saltbox house in central Ohio.
She attended Worthington Christian School from kindergarten through ninth grade and briefly attended Thomas Worthington High School, where she began acting in school plays and community theater, including a Jewish Community Center`s Gallery Players` 2000 production of The Crucible.
Her parents divorced "amicably" when she was 16 years old, but her mother sought a "fresh start".
Grace dropped out of high school to move to Los Angeles, California with her mother, while her younger siblings Ian and Marisa continued to live with their father.
In Los Angeles, Grace and her mother moved around often as they struggled financially, taking out short-term rents rather than paying for permanent residence while eating a basic diet as it was all they could afford.
Career
Grace acquired an agent within a week of relocating to Los Angeles and enrolled in acting classes.
She landed her first role in Rachel`s Room, a 2001 web-based video series about the affairs inside a teenage girl`s bedroom that was created by Dawson`s Creek executive producer Paul Stupin.
Her next role was on the 2002 television series Septuplets, which was cancelled before the first episode had aired.
Her breakout role was on 2002`s television movie Murder in Greenwich, based on the true story of 15-year-old Martha Moxley`s murder.
She was nominated for a Young Artist Award for her portrayal of Moxley in the Best Performance in a TV Movie, Miniseries or Special – Leading Young Actress category, but lost to Clara Bryant for Tru Confessions.
She went on to feature in minor roles on the television series CSI: Miami, The Lyon`s Den, Miracles, Like Family, Cold Case and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, and the films Twelve Mile Road and Creature Unknown, before appearing in a season-long recurring role on Oliver Beene as a Swedish exchange student.
In mid-2004, Grace`s agent sent her the script for the pilot episode of Lost; she was given the role of Shannon Rutherford after a successful audition. She was nominated in 2005 for a Teen Choice Award

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