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Jaclyn Hales

Jaclyn Hales

Actor · Born September 4, 1986 (40) · Syracuse, New York, USA

Jaclyn Hales was born on September 4th, in Syracuse, New York to Julie Lea Hales, a homemaker and real estate agent, and James Rulon Hales, a retired pharmaceutical district sales manager. She is of Scottish, Italian, and English descent. At age six, Hales made her stage debut as "The Shrunken Alice" in a production of Alice in Wonderland, at the Seacoast Repertory Theater in Portsmouth, New Hampshire where she grew up. She appeared in many more productions throughout her childhood until her family moved to North Salt Lake, Utah at the age of fourteen. There she decided it was time to try TV/Film. It was at a Janet Jackson Concert that she was first scouted by a modeling agent. The modeling didn't pan out due to her not wanting to quit the swim team, leave her friends behind, or lose the extra inch off her waist they wanted. However, at sixteen she was able to meet a talent agent in an office down the hall and quickly booked her first television role on The WB called Everwood. This was the beginning of her professional quest to be a full-time actress. Hales studied acting at Utah Valley University and graduated with a BS in theater performance. She was awarded "Best Actress 2009" and "Best Student Director 2009" by the theater department. Her career truly began when she was offered the lead role in the Indie feature 'Unicorn City' (Jon Gries, 2011) winning her the Best Actress award at the LA Comedy Festival (2012). This led to her appearing in several more films and TV shows including FX's 'Legion' (Jean Smart, Jemaine Clement), HBO's 'Mosaic' (Garrett Hedlund, Sharon Stone), and 'Christmas Eve' (Patrick Stewart). She has played two series regular roles; Lynn in 'Extinct' (2017), which aired on BYUTV, and Claire in 'Cypher' (2021) which aired on The Roku Channel as their first exclusive series. This year (2025-26) she landed a Top of Show Guest Star role on Apple TV's 'Imperfect Women' (Elizabeth Moss, Kerry Washington, Kate Mara), directed by Leslie Linka Glatter. In 2020, Hales co-wrote with Ash Lendzion, a scripted dark comedy podcast called 'The Bystanders'. Producers Heather Morris (Glee) and Black Label Media (La La Land, Sicario) helped them bring it to life. The Bystanders, Season 1 (2021) starring, Jane Lynch (Glee), Kristin Chenoweth (Wicked), Oscar Nunez (The Office), Ed Westwick (Gossip Girl), and Michael Hitchcock (Best in Show), took off with rave reviews, landing them another season. The Bystanders, Season 2 (2023) stars, Jane Lynch (Glee), Kathleen Turner (Romancing the Stone), Margaret Cho (PsyCHO), Beth Dover (Orange is the New Black), Joe Lo Truglio (Brooklyn Nine-Nine), Jon Gries (Napoleon Dynamite), Luke Cook (Chilling Adventures of Sabrina), Darren Chris (Glee), and Wayne Knight (Jurassic Park). Now a writer, producer, and director, as well as actor, Hales keeps busy with a well-rounded career that brings many hats to the table.

Read more

Biography from IMDb.

Born
September 4, 1986 (40)
From
Syracuse, New York, USA
Works as
Actor
Titles
12 on MovieCove · 13 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 64 days to Oct 27Down 11% in 30 days

What are Jaclyn Hales' films like?

Across their 8 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Self and Bonds.

Genres

Comedy3 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 36th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Comedy movies
Drama2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 10th percentile
: browse their Drama movies

Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.

Themes

share of theme weight
Self
36%
Bonds
32%
Morality
12%
Survival
12%
Society
8%
Self-worth3 titles, browse their movies with this themeSurvival2 titles, browse their movies with this themeFamily bonds2 titles, browse their movies with this themeDeception2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 7 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Light: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their light movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

Light 4 · Serious 2 · Dark 1

Grounded: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their grounded movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 6 · Stylized 1 · Heightened 0

Gentle: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their gentle movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

Gentle 5 · Charged 1 · Intense 1

Steady: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their steady movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 5 · Shifting 2 · Whiplash 0

Straight-faced: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their straight-faced movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 5 · Some laughs 1 · Funny 1

Slow burn: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their slow burn movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 4 · Even-paced 3 · Relentless 0

Casual: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their casual movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 5 · Engaged 2 · Full focus 0

Resolved: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their resolved movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 5 · Open-ended 1 · Ambiguous 1

Roles they play

5 analyzed roles
Ally
1 of 5
Shadow
1 of 5
Hero
1 of 5
Shapeshifter
1 of 5
Herald
1 of 5

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
4
Hopeful
4
Romantic
2
Warm
2
Melancholic
2
Other
6

How their films linger

Feel-good4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteThought-provoking2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFun2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteUnsettling2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHopeful2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 1 with a twist

  • Happy4
  • Bittersweet2
  • Ambiguous2

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Jaclyn Hales' films?

As of October 24, 2026, 11 of their 12 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Jaclyn Hales' titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

13 credits, 12 with a MovieCove page.

  • Imperfect Women(2026)

    Show 1 episode · as Patty

    Midcredits score: 22nd percentile of all shows

  • Time for Sunset(2025)

    Actor

    Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all films

  • A Belgian Chocolate Christmas(2022)

    as Kate

    Midcredits score: 23rd percentile of all films

  • Cypher (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2021)

    Show 8 episodes · as Claire

  • Retreat to Paradise(2020)

    as Regina

    Midcredits score: 51st percentile of all films

  • The Sinister Surrogate(2018)

    as Kailee

    Midcredits score: 19th percentile of all films

  • Extinct(2017)

    Show as Lynn

    Midcredits score: 24th percentile of all shows

  • FML(2016)

    as Sasha

    Midcredits score: 48th percentile of all films

  • Alienate(2016)

    as Samantha Hayes

    Midcredits score: 1st percentile of all films

  • Christmas Eve(2015)

    as Lila

    Midcredits score: 15th percentile of all films

  • Changing Hearts(2012)

    as Kate

    Midcredits score: 30th percentile of all films

  • Unicorn City(2012)

    as Marsha

    Midcredits score: 43rd percentile of all films

  • Scents and Sensibility(2011)

    as Lucy Steele

    Midcredits score: 36th percentile of all films

Career shape

Star power in the 80th percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 12 titles from 2011 to 2026; peak year 2011.

Highest rated

Retreat to Paradise (2020)

Midcredits 51st

Most popular right now

Extinct (2017)

Film career

20112026

Peak 2011 · steadily prominent in film for years. Film roles by billing, audience size and rating; 25+ votes. A show carries a single first-air date, so shows are not on the curve.

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting12 of 12: 12 only acting, 0 with another role · typical Midcredits score30th

By decade

2010s7 · acting2020s5 · acting

Billing

usually 4th · top billed in 0% of 6 roles

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored. Billing is TMDB cast order for roles with 25+ votes, billed in the top 30.

How do Jaclyn Hales' films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 33rd percentile, the median of all 10; across their 7 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 40th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

40thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 7

Approval · how many liked their films

29thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 7

Reach · how many have seen their films

47thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 7

Midcredits score across 12 titles, by percentile

  • 50th to 74th2
  • 25th to 49th4
  • Below 25th6

Shape of the crowd

8 of their 12 titles are Mixed.

  • Universally Panned1
  • Loved with Detractors1
  • Cult Classic1
  • Crowd Pleaser1
  • Mixed8

Most divisive · actor

FML (2016)

95th percentile spread · 21% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · actor

Time for Sunset (2025)

Midcredits 68th · 50% liked

Reviewers score the acting 47/100 in their films, across 7 reviewed titles; fans 69, detractors 26. The element that speaks to their work as an actor.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Who does Jaclyn Hales work with?

People who share at least 2 of Jaclyn Hales' MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Brian Brough shares the most, 2.

Directors

Writers

Composers