Born in
Gaithersburg,
Maryland, Brown began her career at age five. By the time she was 11, she had enjoyed success as a child model with
Ford Models, performed in multiple
Broadway shows and earned an
Emmy nomination for her portrayal of Marah Lewis on
Guiding Light. She found work as a voice actress, lending her voice to commercials, ''
A Bug's Life,
and the English dub of Vampire Princess Miyu.'' At 13, Brown was cast in her most notable film to date, the
Disney Channel Original Movie Halloweentown. In the movie, she played 13-year-old Marnie Piper, a young witch who is determined to learn magic from her grandmother Aggie, portrayed by
Debbie Reynolds. In September 2016, Brown recalled an audition for the film in which she had to react to a conversation when it was revealed that the character Marnie is a witch. Brown read for the role twice before being cast.
Halloweentown aired on October 17, 1998 and was well received by audiences, leading Disney Channel to produce three sequels; Brown reprised her role as Marnie in two of them. She was replaced by
Sara Paxton in the fourth installment,
Return to Halloweentown, a decision over which Brown expressed confusion and disappointment. Fans of the franchise were unhappy with Paxton's portrayal of the character, reflected in
BuzzFeed writing that the fourth movie, with its "False Marnie", is best left ignored, and
MTV News writing that fans should act as if the fourth film had never happened. Outside of
Halloweentown, Brown also starred in another Disney Channel original movie, the 2000 film
Quints. In 1999, Brown co-starred with
Janet McTeer in
Tumbleweeds which received positive reviews. In May 2021, it was announced she had joined the cast of
General Hospital.
Other ventures Brown and a friend run the
Etsy shop CraftilyCreative, which sells a variety of items, including
Halloweentown-themed merchandise. In 2016, Brown published a Halloween-themed children's book, ''Poppin's Pumpkin Patch Parade'', with co-author Diane Yslas. ==Personal life==