Jessica Parker Kennedy (born October 3, 1984) is a Canadian actress. She played Melissa Glaser in the CW series The Secret Circle, Max in the Starz original series Black Sails and Nora West-Allen / XS in The Flash, and has also appeared in the television series Smallville, Undercovers, Kaya and Colony.

Early life

Kennedy was born in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, the child of an Afro-Canadian father and a Jewish European mother, part Italian and part Russian. Growing up, Kennedy says there were very few people of colour around, and she was friends with the sole black girl at her school. She had gravitated to friendships with other black people later as a means of finding community. Kennedy was raised Jewish.

Career

Kennedy portrayed supervillain Plastique in the television series Smallville, the role of Tami in the 2008 comedy film Another Cinderella Story and the recurring character of Natalee on the 2007 television series Kaya on MTV. Kennedy was originally cast in the J. J. Abrams-produced 2010 spy drama series Undercovers as the younger sister of the female lead (played by Gugu Mbatha-Raw) but was later replaced by Mekia Cox. Kennedy played Melissa Glaser in the CW series The Secret Circle, until the show was cancelled after one season in May 2012. Kennedy was cast as the ambitious Nassau prostitute named Max on the Starz TV show Black Sails. In 2017, Kennedy joined the CW's Arrowverse, appearing primarily on the live-action series The Flash. Her character appeared throughout the fourth season and was eventually revealed as Nora West-Allen, and was promoted to series regular for the fifth season using the superhero name XS. She then returned in recurring capacities for seasons seven and eight. She appeared as a guest star in the 3rd season of the sketch comedy TV series I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson in 2023. Kennedy appeared in a guest role as Medusa in the Disney+ series Percy Jackson and the Olympians.

Personal life

She is married to Israeli-American actor Ronen Rubinstein. They reside in Los Angeles. Parker Kennedy expressed encouragement for him coming out as bisexual in 2021. They married in August 2022, with a Jewish wedding ceremony. They welcomed their first child, Boydd Parker-Rubinstein, on September 29th, 2024.

Filmography

Film

Television