Carpenter received recognition for her role in
Keenen Ivory Wayans' comedy
White Chicks, released in 2004. While the film was initially panned by critics, it was a commercial success and garnered a
cult following. David Rooney of
Variety called her appealing and sophisticated. Carpenter first attracted critical attention for her performance in
The Exorcism of Emily Rose. She was cast in the film at the suggestion of co-star
Laura Linney, who previously worked with Carpenter in a play.
Roger Ebert of the
Chicago Sun-Times called her performance "grueling" and Paul Arendt of
BBC believed the film was effective "thanks to a committed performance from Jennifer Carpenter". She took home the 2006
MTV Movie Award for
Best Scared-As-Shit Performance and won Breakout Performer at the 2006
Scream Awards. , Jennifer Carpenter,
Julie Benz and
Michael C. Hall at
San Diego Comic-Con in July 2009 Carpenter played the role of
Debra Morgan in the
Showtime crime drama television series
Dexter, which premiered October 1, 2006. Her portrayal of
the title character's adoptive sister impressed a number of critics, with Australian journalist
Jack Marx describing her portrayal of "cool and clumsy" Debra as "so perfect that many viewers appear to have mistaken the character's flaws for the actor's". For
Dexter, she received
numerous accolades in Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress categories, winning a
Saturn Award from eight consecutive nominations, and earning nominations for a
Critics' Choice Television Award and four
Screen Actors Guild Awards. In 2008, Carpenter starred in
Quarantine, an American
remake of the 2007 Spanish horror film
Rec, about a deadly zombie virus outbreak in an apartment complex. It received mixed reviews from critics but was a moderate commercial success. Staff at
Bloody Disgusting wrote, "if
Quarantine is remembered for anything it will be remembered for another gut-wrenching, physically draining performance from Jennifer Carpenter." In 2011, she starred in the off-Broadway play
Gruesome Playground Injuries at
Second Stage Theatre and had a guest appearance on the CBS drama
The Good Wife. In January 2014, it was announced that Carpenter would star in a new ABC drama
Sea of Fire, playing FBI agent Leah Pierce. However, the show was not picked up as a series. In August 2014, it was announced that she would provide the voice of Juli Kidman in the
survival horror video game
The Evil Within, marking her first video game appearance. The game was released in October 2014, and Carpenter provided voicework for two of
The Evil Within's
DLC chapters, "The Assignment" and "The Consequence", which featured Juli Kidman as the playable protagonist. However, Carpenter did not reprise the role in the game's sequel,
The Evil Within 2, and her character was recast. In early 2015, Carpenter was cast in the CBS drama series
Limitless. On July 13, 2021, Showtime confirmed that Carpenter would reprise her role of Debra Morgan in a 10-episode limited series,
Dexter: New Blood, with
Clyde Phillips returning as showrunner. The series premiered on November 7, 2021. In 2025, Carpenter played the recurring role of Mamie Fossett in the
Western drama series
1923, a prequel to
Yellowstone. She told
The Hollywood Reporter that it was a role she wanted "like I haven't wanted anything in a very long time". ==Personal life==