Amanda Brugel

Early life

Brugel was born in Pointe-Claire, Quebec, Canada. Her mother is English, and immigrated to Canada, while her biological father, whom she never met, is African-American. Her mother would later marry a man of South Asian (or Southeast Asian) and of Jewish descent. He would adopt Brugel, and she has stated that she considers him her father.

She started out as a dancer but quit when she grew to be taller than her partners. She entered the renowned Theatre Program at York University with a Fine Arts talent scholarship and graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 2000.

Career

In 1999, Brugel made her acting debut in the HBO drama film Vendetta, alongside Christopher Walken. In 2000, she had a role in A Diva's Christmas Carol, a Christmas television film starring Vanessa Williams, Rozonda Thomas, and Kathy Griffin. She made her feature film debut as Geko in the slasher horror film Jason X (2001) and starred in the horror television film Kaw (2007).

Brugel appeared in guest or recurring roles in several television series, including Soul Food (2001), Wild Card (2004), Kojak (2005), Kevin Hill (2005), The Newsroom (2005), Paradise Falls (2008), MVP (2008), Saving Hope (2012), Flashpoint (2012), Nikita (2013), and Covert Affairs (2013).

In 2013, she earned critical praise for her starring role as Vanessa in the comedy film Sex After Kids. For her performance, she received an ACTRA Award for Outstanding Female Performance, and a nomination for a Canadian Comedy Award. From 2013 to 2014, she starred as Michelle Krasnoff in the Citytv comedy series Seed.

In 2014, Brugel appeared in David Cronenberg's satirical drama film Maps to the Stars, alongside Julianne Moore, and the crime thriller film The Calling, alongside Susan Sarandon. In 2015, she portrayed Marci Coates in several episodes of the Space science fiction series Orphan Black. That same year, she appeared as Officer Parker in the independent drama film Room, which earned a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Picture and won the Canadian Screen Award for Best Motion Picture.

In 2016, she appeared in the superhero film Suicide Squad. That same year, she began a recurring role as Pastor Nina Gomez in the CBC comedy series Kim's Convenience, for which she received the Canadian Screen Award for Best Guest Performance, Comedy. In 2017, she appeared in the Netflix drama film Kodachrome.

Brugel had recurring roles as Sita Petronelli in the USA Network drama series Eyewitness (2016) and as Sonia in the CBC comedy series Workin' Moms (2018), for which she was nominated for the Canadian Screen Award for Best Supporting Actress, Comedy.

Since 2017, Brugel has starred as a housekeeper named Rita, in the Hulu dystopian drama series The Handmaid's Tale, based on Margaret Atwood's acclaimed novel of the same name. As a part of the cast, she has received three nominations for the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series.

From 2019 to 2020, Brugel had a recurring role as Faith Hanlon in the USA Network teen drama series Dare Me. In 2020, she appeared as Eugenia in multiple episodes of the TNT post-apocalyptic drama series Snowpiercer, which is an adaptation of the film of the same name. Also that year, Brugel starred as Kayla in the action thriller film Becky.

In 2020, Brugel appeared as a panelist on Canada Reads, advocating for Samra Habib's memoir We Have Always Been Here. She successfully defended the memoir and won the competition.

On June 29, 2021, it was announced that Brugel, along with Brad Goreski, would join the judging panel of Canada's Drag Race for its sophomore season after season one judges Jeffrey Bowyer-Chapman and Stacey McKenzie announced their departures in March and June 2021 respectively. Alongside Goreski and main judge Brooke Lynn Hytes, Brugel served as a rotating judge with Traci Melchor. The group of judges won a Canadian Screen Award for their work on the second season. Before the third season, Brugel was removed from the panel, with no replacement given.

Personal life

Brugel has two children from her previous marriage to Marcel Lewis.

In 2013, Brugel founded Brugs Army, a non-profit organization that focuses on improving the lives of women and children.

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards and nominations

References

References

1. Joey Nolfi, [https://ew.com/tv/canadas-drag-race-season-2-judges-replacing-stacey-mckenzie-jeffrey-bowyer-chapman/ "Canada's Drag Race season 2 adds new head judges amid panel shake-up"] {{Webarchive. link. (2021-06-29 . ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]'', June 29, 2021.)
2. "Canadian actress, Amanda Brugel, becomes series regular on The Handmaid's Tale".
3. "Actress Amanda Brugel of Pointe Claire has major role in Handmaid's Tale".
4. "Canadian actress Amanda Brugel on culture, cinema and success".
5. Amanda Brugel, [https://fashionmagazine.com/wellness/handmaids-tale-amanda-brugel-race/ "Amanda Brugel of The Handmaid's Tale and Room Talks Race and Identity"] {{Webarchive. link. (2021-08-04 . ''[[Fashion (magazine)). Fashion]]'', August 2, 2018.
6. Zekas, Rita; [https://www.thestar.com/news/2008/01/12/she_shoots_she_scores_.html "She shoots, she scores . . ."] {{Webarchive. link. (2017-05-20 , ''[[Toronto Star]]'', 12 January 2008 (retrieved 15 February 2015).)
7. [http://www.amandabrugel.tv/resume "Amanda Brugel Resume"] {{Webarchive. link. (2015-02-16 , AmandaBrugel.tv (retrieved 15 February 2015).)
8. (June 26, 2013). "ENTERTAINMENT - The Guest List talks to Seed, Covert Affairs actor Amanda Brugel". Toronto.com.
9. Grove, Rashad. (November 27, 2019). "12 Best Black Holiday Movies Of All Time". BET.
10. (November 13, 2015). "Amanda Brugel on Instagram: ""Geko". Jason X. Friday the 13th part 10. My very first film (I was still in theatre school when this was shot). Happy Friday the Thirteenth everyone!! xxoo"".
11. "Amanda Brugel List of Movies and TV Shows". TV Guide.
12. Barnard, Linda. (February 6, 2014). "Sex After Kids: No sex please, we're parents: Review". The Star.
13. (February 22, 2014). "Winners Announced: ACTRA Awards in Toronto 2014". Newswire.
14. "NOMINATIONS & AWARDS ARCHIVES". Canadian Comedy Awards.
15. (May 27, 2014). "Most Beautiful 'Seed' star Amanda Brugel talks pregnancy on the red carpet". Hello Magazine.
16. Ruta, Mike. (February 5, 2017). "Whitby actor Amanda Brugel off to L.A. seeking more roles". Durham Region.
17. "The Calling - Colorado Springs Independent".
18. Yacovelle, Jess; [http://orphanblackfan.com/amanda-brugel-joins-the-cast-of-orphan-black/ "Amanda Brugel Joins the Cast of Orphan Black"] {{Webarchive. link. (2015-02-16 , OrphanBlackFan.com, 9 November 2014 (retrieved 15 February 2015).)
19. (August 27, 2019). "Amanda Brugel on The Handmaid's Tale, fighting for good roles and rejecting stereotypes". CBC.
20. "The Host: Amanda Brugel - Erenstines".
21. Debra Yeo, [https://www.thestar.com/entertainment/television/2020/05/27/cardinal-and-schitts-creek-get-multiple-going-away-gifts-from-the-canadian-screen-awards.html "‘Cardinal’ and ‘Schitt's Creek’ get multiple going-away gifts from the Canadian Screen Awards"] {{Webarchive. link. (2020-07-10 . ''[[Toronto Star]]'', May 27, 2020.)
22. Stanhope, Kate. (August 17, 2017). "'The Handmaid's Tale' Promotes Amanda Brugel to Series Regular (Exclusive)". Deadline Hollywood.
23. Petski, Denise. (April 12, 2016). "'Mistresses' Casts Micky Shiloah; Amanda Brugel Joins 'Eyewitness'". Deadline Hollywood.
24. "Amanda Brugel CBC Books". CBC.
25. (2016-09-30). "''The Handmaid's Tale'': Amanda Brugel Books Recurring Role on Hulu Series". TV Series Finale.
26. Giliberti, Lucas. (December 21, 2019). "Can 'The Handmaid's Tale' finally nab its maiden ensemble win at the SAG Awards?". Gold Derby.
27. Petski, Denise. (August 7, 2019). "'Dare Me': Adrian Walters & Amanda Brugel To Recur In USA Network Series". Deadline Hollywood.
28. Allen, Corrina. (April 3, 2020). "Yes, that's Canada's Amanda Brugel blowing up your TV screen". The Loop.
29. N'Duka, Amanda. (August 27, 2019). "Joel McHale, Amanda Brugel & Robert Maillet Join Kevin James In 'Becky' Thriller". Deadline Hollywood.
30. [https://www.cbc.ca/books/canadareads/meet-the-canada-reads-2020-contenders-1.5433115 "Meet the Canada Reads 2020 contenders"] {{Webarchive. link. (2020-02-09 . [[CBC Books]], January 22, 2020.)
31. Patrick, Ryan B.. (July 23, 2020). "The winner of Canada Reads 2020 is...". CBC.
32. Trumbley, Sarah. (April 26, 2018). "'The Handmaid's Tale' star Amanda Brugel on finding success in her 40s: "It doesn't end, it only begins"". Hello Magazine.
33. Cardoza, Riley. (August 4, 2019). "How Handmaid's Tale's Amanda Brugel Balances Her Sons' 'Different' Interests". Us Magazine.
34. [http://www.brugsarmy.com/ "Brugs Army"] {{Webarchive. link. (2015-02-16 , BrugsArmy.com (retrieved 15 February 2015).)
35. Dowling, Dar; [http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dar-dowling/trending-brugs-army-creat_b_3558690.html "Brugs Army – Creating Change for Women and Kids Using Social Media"] {{Webarchive. link. (2015-02-20 , ''[[The Huffington Post]]'', 9 September 2013 (retrieved 19 February 2015).)
36. "Sometimes the Good Kill". Lifetime.
37. (January 21, 2018). "SAG Awards Winners: Complete List". [[Variety (magazine).
38. McNary, Dave. (January 27, 2019). "SAG Awards: 'Black Panther,' 'Mrs. Maisel,' 'This Is Us' Take Ensemble Prizes". [[Variety (magazine).
39. [https://etcanada.com/news/435306/the-winners-canadian-screen-awards-presented-for-creative-fiction-storytelling/ "The Winners: Canadian Screen Awards Presented For Creative Fiction Storytelling"] {{Webarchive. link. (2019-05-30 . ''[[ET Canada]]'', March 28, 2019.)
40. Hipes, Patrick. (December 11, 2019). "SAG Awards Nominations: 'Bombshell', 'The Irishman', 'Once Upon A Time In Hollywood' Top Film List, 'Maisel,' 'Fleabag' Score In TV – Complete List Of Noms". [[Deadline Hollywood]].
41. [https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/sag-awards-winners-2022-complete-list-1235100358/ "SAG Awards: Winners List"] by Kimberly Nordyke at [[The Hollywood Reporter. www.hollywoodreporter.com]]
42. Brent Furdyk, [https://etcanada.com/news/867531/2022-canadian-screen-awards-nominees-announced/ "2022 Canadian Screen Award Nominees Announced, ‘Sort Of’ & ‘Scarborough’ Lead The Pack"] {{Webarchive. link. (2022-03-08 . ''[[ET Canada]]'', February 15, 2022.)