,
Santa Monica, California on May 11, 2009 Gilsig began her career as a voice actress. She moved to New York City in 1995 where she appeared in several
off-Broadway plays. However, it was her association with
David E. Kelley that led to her starring role in
Boston Public. Gilsig would leave the series after the end of the second season in May 2002. Following her departure from
Boston Public, Gilsig joined the cast of
Nip/Tuck in 2003 as Gina Russo, a role she continued until 2008. In 2004, she appeared in five episodes of
NYPD Blue, In addition to her extensive credits in television and theatre, Gilsig has appeared in film, beginning with a small role in the 1998 film
The Horse Whisperer. appeared in
See This Movie, and in one of the lead roles in the 2007 film
Flood. In 2007–2008 she had recurring roles in two television series, playing Shelley, the sister of
Tami Taylor, on
NBC's
Friday Night Lights, and
Claire Bennet's biological mother,
Meredith Gordon, on
Heroes. Gilsig went on to play the main role of
Terri Schuester on the
Fox show,
Glee, from 2009 to 2012. In 2013, Gilsig was a series regular, portraying Siggy Haraldson, wife of Earl Haraldson and paramour of
Ragnar Lothbrok's brother,
Rollo, on the
History Channel series
Vikings until 2015. In 2017 she joined the cast of
Scandal. On January 24, 2020, Gilsig joined the cast of the
Disney+ sports comedy-drama series
Big Shot as Holly Barrett with
John Stamos to replace
Shiri Appleby. ==Personal life==