Kihlstedt made her film debut starring opposite
Rutger Hauer in the 1993 action thriller film
Arctic Blue. In 1995, she appeared in the ABC miniseries
Heaven & Hell: North & South, Book III and in 1995 played Lizzie Elmsworth in the BBC adaptation of Edith Wharton's last novel,
The Buccaneers. In 1997, Kihlstedt starred as Alice Ribbons, one of the criminals in the family comedy film
Home Alone 3. The following year, she appeared in the science-fiction film
Deep Impact, and co-starred opposite
Carla Gugino in the independent film
Jaded. Also in 1998, Kihlstedt starred with
Peter Gallagher in the television film
Brave New World loosely based on
Aldous Huxley's
1932 novel of the same name. Kihlstedt took a ten-year break from acting as she focused on motherhood and raising her two children. In 2009, she returned to screen appearing opposite her friend
Carla Gugino in the comedy film
Women in Trouble, and its sequel,
Elektra Luxx. Kihlstedt guest-starred in a number of television series, including
Covert Affairs,
Criminal Minds,
NCIS,
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, and
Drop Dead Diva. In 2011, she had a recurring role in the
Showtime crime drama series
Dexter as Dr. Michelle Ross. From 2012 to 2013, she played Marilyn Rhodes, a powerful record producer in the
ABC musical drama
Nashville. Also in 2013, she starred in the comedy film
3 Days in Havana directed by her husband
Gil Bellows. In 2015, Kihlstedt played the leading role in the independent horror film
The Atticus Institute. From 2015 to 2016, she starred as Erica Kravid in the
NBC science fiction miniseries
Heroes Reborn. Also in 2015, Kihlstedt was cast as
Tig Notaro's mother Caroline in the
Amazon Video original comedy series
One Mississippi. Kihlstedt later appeared in
Once Upon a Time,
Ray Donovan,
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and NBC 2017 miniseries
Law & Order True Crime. From 2018 to 2019, she had a recurring role as Julia Wagner in the CW series
Charmed. In 2019, she had a recurring role opposite Carla Gugino in her series
Jett, and played Kate Laswell in the video game
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare. Also in 2019, Kihlstedt starred in the season three of the Canadian crime drama
Cardinal, for which she received
Canadian Screen Award nomination. In 2020, Kihlstedt starred in the Hulu limited series,
A Teacher. In 2022, Kihlstedt recurred in
Superman & Lois as
Ally Allston, the main villain of the
second season and also played the
Fourth Sister in
Obi-Wan Kenobi. She later voiced the character in
Tales of the Empire in 2024. ==Personal life==