1995–2002: Early work and breakthrough After moving to Los Angeles in 1995, she began to work as a
DJ, booking gigs in local clubs and performance venues. Around that time, Sossamon established her early career by modeling for various companies including
Sassy Magazine, Unionbay Clothing,
American Eagle Outfitters, and
Planned Parenthood. She appeared in two television commercials for
Gap and in music videos for artists such as
Daft Punk,
The Goo Goo Dolls,
Cher,
DJ Quik, and the rock group 9xdead. In 1997, Sossamon guest-starred as several characters in three episodes of
Mr. Show with Bob and David, and two years later, she was discovered by
casting director Francine Maisler, while assisting a fellow DJ at
Gwyneth Paltrow's brother's birthday party. She was cast as Lady Jocelyn, the love interest of a peasant (Ledger) pretending to be a knight. The film premiered on May 11, 2001, and received average reviews, with her part getting an equally mixed response; Robin Clifford for
Reeling Reviews concluded that Sossamon was "pretty but little more than an object of affection" and Rob Blackwelder of
SPLICEDwire called her role "the movie's weakest link", noting that although Sossamon was a "wonderfully wicked flirt", her character "isn't terribly well established and she's the most jarringly modern sight in this ancient tale". ''A Knight's Tale'' grossed US$117 million worldwide, bringing Sossamon into mainstream audiences. It earned her two
Teen Choice Awards nominations as well as three
MTV Movie Awards nominations, including one for "Best Breakthrough Performance". Sossamon appeared in the music video for "God Gave Me Everything" by Mick Jagger in 2001. The video was directed by Mark Romanek and features Jagger, Lenny Kravitz, and Sossamon. In 2002, Sossamon starred in the romantic comedy
40 Days and 40 Nights, as Erica Sutton, the love interest of
Josh Hartnett's character, Matt Sullivan. It received mixed reviews from critics, but was a major box office success, earning a worldwide total of US$95 million against a production budget of US$17 million. Sossamon's part gained critical acclaim in general;
About.com noted that she was "already making a name for herself as a romantic leading lady. With starring roles opposite two of Hollywood's hottest young actors (Hartnett and Heath Ledger) under her belt, Shannyn's star is rising fast. Her exotic looks separate her from the pack, and her performances have, thus far, been exceptional". Praising Sossamon and co-star Harnett,
Elvis Mitchell wrote for
The New York Times: "Mr. Hartnett matches up with Ms. Sossamon, and not only because their eyebrows signal that they are both Vulcans. She is a more direct performer; what she does is not acting – yet – but she can look as if she's listening. Her approach contrasts hilariously with his gentility". Afterwards, both actors received a
Teen Choice Award nomination for "Choice Film Chemistry". Sossamon subsequently played Lauren Hynde in
Roger Avary's dark
satirical ensemble
The Rules of Attraction. The film, based on
Bret Easton Ellis'
1987 novel about three college students who become entangled in a love triangle, included scenes of
suicide, heavy
drug use, and sexual content. It received polarizing reviews from critics. Critical response for Sossamon was more favorable, with
Joblo.com commenting that the actress was "very believable and empathetic" as her character. David Noh of
Film Journal International found her performance "heartbreaking" and described it as "an uncanny blend of fragile-fey and urchin-tough, marked by a feverish wit which often proves her undoing as much as her salvation". Also showing approval of her portrayal, Avary remarked during an interview the actress was "like a wild animal you can't really control. What she does and what she brings is complete and honest truth to the scene. Something real.” Ellis, meanwhile, stated that Sossamon "hasn't had much of a chance to shine before, but she's a star. She seems freer in this movie than she was before and is totally empathetic, which is a quality that doesn't come easily to most actors".
Rules of Attraction is considered a
cult hit; it grossed US$11.8 million worldwide, against its US$4 million budget.
2003–05: Hiatus Sossamon and
Heath Ledger starred together again in Brian Helgeland's supernatural thriller
The Order. It was released in late 2003, to extremely poor reviews. Critical reception for Sossamon was average with
7M Pictures finding the movie "well acted" by the leads but
eFilmCritic.com remarking that she, "so charming in both "''A Knight's Tale
and 40 Days and 40 Nights'', is given very little to do besides utilize her 'tortured soul with dark eye makeup' schtick". The movie failed at the box office, opening at number six at the charts; it finished its theatrical run with US$11 million on a budget of US$35 million. After Sossamon filmed
The Order, she became pregnant and took a hiatus from working on film productions; "It was almost like she was out on a lark, and she found herself in this big circumstance that she hadn't planned on, which I think made it easier for her to go off and have a baby and stop working", director Helgeland said on the actress' motherhood and subsequent acting break. Her only acting appearance of 2004 was a guest-starring role on the
NBC series
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, in the episode “Doubt”. Her next vehicle was the
horror thriller
Devour, in which she played Marisol, one of several friends who become increasingly addicted to a video game that has an evil agenda. A
B movie, it did not receive a theatrical release and instead, went
directly-to-DVD in 2005. Critical reception towards the picture was unanimously negative, but a few reviewers showed approval of the cast members' performances, with
DVD Talk noting that Sossamon, alongside co-star
Dominique Swain, "do the best they can with the material they're given, but end up as not much more than eye-candy stuck in a sea of aimless gore and maddeningly vague plot droppings". At the time, she had a small role in the black action comedy
Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005). at the
2006 Sundance Film Festival. She played Josie in the dramedy
Undiscovered, which followed a group of aspiring entertainers who intend to establish their careers in
Los Angeles. Distributed for a limited release to certain parts of the United States only, it premiered on August 26, 2005, to lackluster sales and critical failure.
Chasing Ghosts, a mystery thriller starring Sossamon, was released straight-to-video in late 2005. As
Undiscovered, this movie received negative reviews and was a
box office bomb, failing to recoup its budget.
2006–08: Wristcutters and Moonlight Sossamon was cast as the female lead in the
indie romantic black comedy
Wristcutters: A Love Story, which was based on an
Etgar Keret short story and co-starred
Patrick Fugit, revolving around two characters who fall in love in
purgatory after committing
suicide. It was shown at both
The Sundance Film Festival and
The Seattle International Film Festival Awards in early 2006, before going on to open in a limited theatrical run in October 2007. The movie premiered to popular and critical acclaim, garnering a
cult following since then. Sossamon, similarly, received positive feedback for her performance;
Variety felt she made her character "feisty and alluring" in a "resigned
goth-girl kind of way", while Matthew Turner of
View London remarked that she "gives her best performance to date." She appeared as Maggie,
Jack Black's girlfriend in
Nancy Meyers' romantic comedy
The Holiday. The movie co-starred
Kate Winslet,
Cameron Diaz, and
Jude Law, and premiered in December 2006. It was a commercial success, with US$205 million grossed worldwide. On January 2, 2007, she debuted on
Courteney Cox's drama series
Dirt on
FX. She played Kira Klay, a troubled young drug-addicted actress who kills herself after realizing that she is pregnant. She appears in the pilot episode and four more episodes as a ghostly figment of
Ian Hart's character's imagination, becoming a sort of love interest. Her last airdate was on March 27, 2007 (episode "Ita Missa Est"). She also starred in the horror movie
Catacombs as Victoria, a young woman trying to find her way out of the
Paris Catacombs while being pursued by a killer. It received a theatrical release in countries like
Italy and
Japan throughout 2007, but came out directly-to-DVD in
United States in February 2008.
Catacombs and Sossamon generated mostly negative reviews; About.com wrote that her "
Ambien-induced acting doesn't help matters", and
DVD Verdict stated: "This film is all Sossamon and I feel for her. Aside from the uninspired twist finale, her performance is solely of gasping and looking worried and furrowing her brow and screaming and gazing worriedly at her flickering flashlight". Sossamon signed on as a series regular on
CBS' vampire drama
Moonlight, to play the character of Coraline Duvall. The series began airing on September 28, 2007, and was watched by 8.54 million viewers, finishing first among total viewers and adults 18–49 for its night. CBS ordered a 16-episode first season, but over the season, viewership decreased to around 7.5 million viewers. The series had a very large fan base, but despite fans' efforts, CBS canceled the series after the first season. Sossamon starred as Beth Raymond in
One Missed Call, a remake of
Takashi Miike's
2003 Japanese horror film of the same name. It revolved around a group of college students who start receiving voice-mails from their future selves which include the date and time of their deaths. The movie had its U.S. premiere on January 4, 2008, and fared "decently" on its opening weekend, with an estimated US$13.5 million in sales. It grossed US$45 million in theaters, on a production budget of US$20 million. Reception towards the film was heavily negative, with critics describing it as one of the "weakest"
J-horror remakes to be released.
Georgia Straight writer Steve Newton felt that Sossamon tried "desperately to bring some substance to her role", but the "preposterous script" made it a "lost cause". Despite the critical reaction, the actress was nominated for the "Choice Film Actress – Horror" Award at the 2008
Teen Choice Awards.
2009–12: Indie film route She played Concetta, a woman faced with the challenges of raising her sick child and supporting her husband in the indie drama
Life Is Hot in Cracktown, directed by
Buddy Giovinazzo, and co-starring
Kerry Washington,
Lara Flynn Boyle and
Brandon Routh. The movie was first screened at the 2009
Fantasia International Film Festival, and received a limited theatrical release in June that year; it went to DVD two months later. She also made a brief appearance in the romantic comedy
Our Family Wedding and appeared as one of the leads in the thriller
The Heavy, which had a U.S.
straight-to-video release in April 2010. Around that time, she served as a feature jury at the 8th Indian Film Festival in Los Angeles. Sossamon signed on to play a recurring character (Gingy Wu) in the
HBO television series
How to Make It in America. The series premiered in February 2010, with the actress appearing in eight episodes throughout the show's first season. She created
Maudegone Theater also in 2010, an online-video project under which she releases short and musical features directed by herself. Eight videos have been premiered under the moniker as of 2013. During an interview with Keba Robinson, of
Hook and Line magazine, Sossamon explained that her initiative for creating
Maudegone was about having "some sort of control and do creative things and feel like it was something that I started. I like the feeling of independence and freedom". Sossamon starred in
Monte Hellman's independent
romantic thriller
Road to Nowhere. Her role was Laurel Graham, a non-professional actress invited to star in a movie by a director who falls in love with her. Sossamon was the first person to be cast in the film after writer Steven Gaydos saw her in a restaurant rehearsing a scene with another person. Reluctant, Gaydos gave the actress his card saying, "I don't do this often, but I wonder if you or your agent would contact [director] Monte Hellman". The movie screened at the
67th Venice International Film Festival in September 2010, and received a very limited theatrical release in the U.S. the following year. It generated mostly positive reactions from critics, with Sossamon's role gaining a similar response. Kevin Thomas, of
Los Angeles Times remarked that the film "ultimately stands on the beauty and talent of its femme fatale, and Shannyn Sossamon is so stunning and gifted she actually withstands a remark comparing her to
Louise Brooks". Meanwhile, Colin Convert for
Star Tribune wrote in his review: "The key to the movie is casting the right femme fatale, and non-actress Shannyn Sossamon, the mystery woman's eerie doppelgänger, wins the part and her director's heart". She was cast with
Ashley Bell,
Dominic Monaghan and
Shawn Ashmore in the indie thriller
The Day, which follows a group of people fighting to stay alive in a
post-apocalyptic future. The picture premiered at the
2011 Toronto International Film Festival and later received a theatrical release in a limited run in August 2012. It received generally mixed or average reviews; while
The Los Angeles Times and
The New York Daily News praised the cast,
Blu-ray.com and
Paste magazine criticized Sossamon for "weaving in and out" of her character's southern accent. On January 15, 2012,
The Cyclist, a short film starring Sossamon, premiered; it was screened later that year at the
Las Vegas Film Festival. She appeared in the indie romantic drama
The End of Love as Lydia, a single mother and the love interest of
Mark Webber's character. The movie debuted at the 2012
Sundance Film Festival and opened theatrically in a limited run in March 2013. Reviews for the film were largely positive, with Sossamon earning top notices.
Chicago Sun-Times critic Charlie Schmidlin concluded that the actress "radiates warmth" and noted that her part in the movie "is the most natural and welcome performance I've seen from her".
The Hollywood Reporter and
Time Out found Sossamon "captivating" and "enormously appealing", respectively.
2013–present: television work Sossamon then appeared in
Desire, another short feature and a collaboration between
Jaguar and
Ridley Scott Associates, to help kick off the 2014 Jaguar F-Type. The 13-minute video, directed by
Adam Smith and co-starring
Damian Lewis, is about a car delivery man who gets caught up in a dangerous chase involving a woman in trouble (who is played by Sossamon). It had initially a debut at the 2013 Sundance London Film and Music Festival and was then posted on
YouTube. On June 30, 2013, she debuted as Alex in the ABC drama
Mistresses. Her character had a "multi-episode arc" during the first season of the series, with her last airdate being September 2 (episode "When One Door Closes..."). Sossamon accepted the role as it was a "softer character" for her to play, given she had been in a career hiatus due to her second pregnancy. At the time, it was announced that Sossamon was cast to play one of the main parts in
M. Night Shyamalan's limited series for FOX,
Wayward Pines. Her role was Theresa Burke, the wife of
Matt Dillon's character, and the show premiered on May 14, 2015.
Wayward Pines received mostly favorable reviews from critics and after a debut described as "soft" by
Deadline Hollywood, viewership for the series grew in subsequent episodes. She provided her voice for a character named Lorna during an episode of
Over the Garden Wall, which aired on November 6, 2014 ("Chapter 7: The Ringing of the Bell"). She next had a starring role in the supernatural horror sequel
Sinister 2, where she played a mother whose sons are tormented by ghostly children. The movie was released worldwide on August 21, 2015, generating overwhelmingly negative reviews from critics. It grossed US$53 million against a budget of US$10 million. Sossamon played Pandora in the third season of FOX's
Sleepy Hollow, in which she was a series regular. == Personal life ==