Fans of the hit sitcom The Big Bang Theory likely remember Courtney Ford for her recurring role as Alice, a love interest for Leonard during Season 4. While Ford’s time on the show was brief, appearing in just a handful of episodes, her career has continued to thrive in the decade since.
Background Info
Ford was born in Huntington Beach, California, on June 27, 1978. Her step-brothers are Robert Orci and J.R. Orci, the former a film and television producer as well as a screenwriter. She also has a step-sister named Taylor Orci.
Little is known about Ford’s upbringing or how she began acting.
Early Career
Ford has been acting since 1998. However, she claims that she struggled greatly during her first ten years in the business. She attended numerous auditions and was never awarded anything more than minor roles.
Her appearances included Scoreboard girl in BASEketball, a girl named Rita in Moesha, Staci in Theater Matrix, and a handful of comedy dramas, including Ugly Betty.
Acting Career
In 2008, Ford began receiving roles on a few higher-profile television series. She played Emily Carter in the series Monk, Vicky in How I Met Your Mother, Austin in Criminal Minds, and Tory Roberts in Cold Case.
Dexter
After a decade of trying to become an actress, she was ready to give up. However, in one of her alleged final auditions, Ford was given the role of Christine Hill, a reporter, in the television series Dexter.
She would reprise her role as the reporter for eleven episodes out of Dexter’s eight seasons.
The appearance on Showtime’s hit drama was reportedly her lucky charm, and in 2008 she began receiving more roles.
Ford continued to play minor yet notable characters. Including Laura in Human Target, Jill Meyer in Grey’s Anatomy, Petty Officer, 2nd class Kaylen Burrows in NCIS, and Vanessa Monroe in the Vampire Diaries.
True Blood
In 2011, Ford was awarded the role of Portia Bellefleur in True Blood. As Portia, Ford played an attorney in a romantic relationship with Bill Compton (Stephen Moyer).
Her first appearance is at the beginning of season four, though she is mentioned by name in season two. Ford appeared in eight episodes, with her final appearance in season six.
After this, Ford had one-time appearances as Gwen Walsh in Drop Dead Diva, Nicole Moore in CSI: N.Y., and a European Woman in NTSF:SD:SUV::.
The Big Bang Theory
In 2011, Courtney landed one of her most memorable role as Alice, a comic book enthusiast, in season five, episode seven of The Big Bang Theory.
Initially, Stuart (Kevin Sussman) is interested in her, but he fails to string a sentence together and she ultimately becomes a love interest for Leonard (Johnny Galecki).
Ultimately, though, Leonard comes clean that he cannot date her because he already has a girlfriend. Ford’s character Alice doesn’t believe him and kicks him out. This is the last time Ford appeared in The Big Bang Theory.
However, many fans really liked her and her character and wished it could have been a recurring role.
Parenthood
Ford briefly appeared as Suzy Green in Hawaii Five-0 before being cast as Lily in Parenthood. Her character was the short-lived girlfriend of Crosby Braverman (Dax Shepard), a recording artist and classically trained cello player.
She has a brief relationship with Crosby but gets upset when he leaves her for his former girlfriend, Jasmine (Joy Bryant). Ford appeared in six episodes in season three of the television series.
Afterward, Ford went on to have minor recurring roles in popular television series. She played Tonia Pyne in four episodes of Murder in the First, Kate Taylor in three episodes of Revenge, and one episode of Castle as Courtney.
Supernatural
In 2016, Ford auditioned for and received the role of Kelly Kline in Supernatural. She appeared in seven episodes of the series between 2016 and 2018.
Kelly Kline was the secret girlfriend and secretary of the president of the United States, Jefferson Rooney (David Chisum). She was also the mother of Lucifer’s child, Jack.
D.C.’s Legends of Tomorrow
During her role as Kline on Supernatural, Ford was cast as Nora Darhk/Marie Antoinette in Legends of Tomorrow.
The recurring role lasted for two years as she appeared in twenty-nine episodes in seasons three, four, five, and seven.
Voice Acting Roles
In addition to acting in television series, Ford has been cast in two voice roles. She was the voice for Maria in Gears of War 2 and Piper Wright in Fallout 4.
What is Courtney Ford Doing Now?
Ford continues to act. She recently appeared again as Nora Darhk in the television series The Flash.
She also was cast as SAC Tracy Chiles in the 2022 television series, The Rookie: Feds.
You can also find Courtney making appearances at fan conventions as well, namely due to her role in Legends of Tomorrow.
She recently appeared at the Planet Comicon 2022, Legends of Tomorrow Virtual Experience – GalaxyCon Live, and Speedy Comics Con Dubai Virtual Convention.
Personal Life
On November 24, 2007, Ford married Brandon Routh, an actor most known for playing the lead role of Superman in the film Superman Returns.
Brandon mentions in an interview that he met Courntey in 2003 while bartending at Lucky Strikes bowling alley in Hollywood, where Courtney was attending a party.
They have both worked together on a couple independent films as well as
D.C.’s Legends of Tomorrow.
In 2012, they welcomed a son named Leo James. Ford is active on both Instagram and Twitter, where she posts updates about her life and career.
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