Betsy Russell

Born: 1963-09-06

Elizabeth "Betsy" Russell (born September 6, 1963) is an American actress who is best known for her roles in Private School (1983), Tomboy (1985), and as Jill Tuck, one of the primary characters of the Saw film series from 2006 to 2010. Russell was born in San Diego, California, the daughter of Constance (née Lerner) and Richard Lion Russell, a stock analyst, and the granddaughter of journalist and educator Max Lerner. Her father and maternal grandfather were Jewish. Russell wanted to be an actress since the age of eight and started acting in school plays. She appeared in a Pepsi commercial that was taped locally while in high school. After graduating from Mission Bay High School in 1981, she moved to Los Angeles and began taking acting classes before landing her first role. She did a masters program in Spiritual Psychology at the University of Santa Monica and is a certified hypnotist and life coach, also from the University of Santa Monica. Russell's first role was in the 1982 film Let's Do It! That same year, she landed roles on T. J. Hooker, Family Ties, and The Powers of Matthew Star. In 1983, Russell's breakout role came as Jordan Leigh-Jensen in the sex comedy Private School. While shooting the action film Avenging Angel, she was offered to audition for the 1985 film Silverado but turned it down. She said in an interview, "Everything happens for a reason. I always believe my career would have been different had I done that part. I can't say if it would have been better or worse. I’ve had a great run." She went on to star in a series of B movies in the 1980s, including the comedy Tomboy and the slasher film Cheerleader Camp. Russell also appeared on TV series such as The A-Team, Murder, She Wrote, 1st & Ten, and an episode of Superboy, which was a reunion with her Tomboy co-star Gerard Christopher. Russell resides in Malibu, California. In August 1988, Russell was engaged to actor Vincent Van Patten, son of Dick Van Patten. They were married nine months later on May 27, 1989, in North Hollywood. Their wedding reception was at Van Patten's father's Sherman Oaks home which was attended by numerous A-list celebrities. They divorced in 2001 and have two sons: Richard Van Patten (March 1993) and Vincent Van Patten, Jr. (September 3, 1995) Russell was previously engaged to film producer Mark Burg. After a brief retirement from acting, Russell appeared in a small role in Saw III playing John Kramer's ex-wife, Jill Tuck. She went on to star in the sequels, Saw IV, Saw V, Saw VI, and Saw 3D. She played a role in the 2010 film Chain Letter, the SyFy film Mandrake, and My Trip Back to the Dark Side. Description above from the Wikipedia article Betsy Russell, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.


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as Jill Tuck
Released: 2006-10-26

Jigsaw has disappeared. Along with his new apprentice Amanda, the puppet-master behind the...

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Don't See

Saw 3D

as Jill Tuck
Released: 2010-10-22

As a deadly battle rages over Jigsaw's brutal legacy, a group of Jigsaw survivors gathers to...

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as Jill Tuck
Released: 2007-10-25

Despite Jigsaw's death, and in order to save the lives of two of his colleagues, Lieutenant Rigg...

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Don't See

Saw VI

as Jill Tuck
Released: 2009-10-22

Special Agent Strahm is dead, and Detective Hoffman has emerged as the unchallenged successor to...

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Saw V

as Jill Tuck
Released: 2008-10-23

Following Jigsaw's grisly demise, Detective Mark Hoffman is commended as a hero, but Agent...

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Private School

as Jordan Leigh-Jenson
Released: 1983-06-29

Private-school student Christine loves Jim. But her classmate, Jordan, is also vying for Jim's...

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Mandrake

as Felicia
Released: 2010-09-11

An expedition led by adventurer Darren McCall and funded by the wealthy Harry Vargas braves the...

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Non-Stop

as Gayle
Released: 2013-11-29

Mysterious emotional thriller about a woman who, after being left at the altar, has a brief...

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Avenging Angel

as Molly Stewart/Angel
Released: 1985-01-11

Molly Stewart, now a law student at UCLA, is determined to leave her prostitute past behind....

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Cheerleader Camp

as Alison Wentworth
Released: 1988-06-01

A cheerleader named Alison is plagued by nightmares about the upcoming all-state finals and...

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Tomboy

as Tomboy
Released: 1985-01-25

A budding female race-car driver finally meets her racing idol and unbelievably they fall in...

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Chain Letter

as Sergeant Hamill
Released: 2010-10-01

Six friends receive a mysterious chain letter via text messaging and in their email accounts...

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Skin: A History of Nudity in the Movies

as Self
Released: 2020-08-18

The definitive documentary on the history of nudity in feature films from the early silent days...

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Amore!

as Cheryl Schwartz
Released: 1993-11-01

Saul Schwartz, a married successful businessman, is bored with his life and decides he has had...

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Delta Heat

as Vicky Forbes
Released: 1992-12-30

An L.A. cop investigates the death of his partner in the swamps of Louisiana. Enlisting the help...

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The Break

as Candy
Released: 1995-09-01

A washed-up tennis pro begins coaching a hopeful teen, Joel Robbins, whose overbearing father...

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Knock 'em Dead

as Louanne the Maid / Laurie Grant
Released: 2014-06-01

Three rival actresses and their crew, desperate and hating each other, reunite for a horror...

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Celebrity Nude Revue: Easy 80's Volume 1

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2011-10-26

The naked floodgates burst open in the Saucy 70s and the 80s continued the trend. Welcome to the...

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Out of Control

as Chrissie Baret
Released: 1985-05-01

Upon graduation from high school eight teens take a seaplane trip, intending to celebrate on...

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Blood of 1000 Virgins

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2013-05-14

The question of "who hunts virgins" and more will be stripped down and explored in the sexiest...

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My Trip Back to the Dark Side

as Destiny
Released: 2014-05-14

Shawn Stone is having a bad day. The funding for his film project is not there, his personal...

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Bully High

as Beth White
Released: 2022-07-25

A coming-of-age drama that tackles some of today's most prevalent issues including religious...

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Camp Fear

as Jamie
Released: 1991-01-01

Some sorority sisters opt for camping in the woods with a handsome professor instead of going to...

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Trapper County War

as Lacey Luddigger
Released: 1989-01-01

A pair of city boys get in trouble with a backwoods North Carolina family, when the boys try to...

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Let's Do It!

as Kittie
Released: 1982-07-09

Freddie really wants to please his girlfriend, Melody. But, because he's too eager, he can't...

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Roxanne: The Prize Pulitzer

as Liza Pulitzer
Released: 1989-01-01

When young Roxanne Ulrich (Chynna Phillips) meets wealthy charmer Herbert Pulitzer (Perry King)...

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Murder, She Wrote

as Doris Robinson
First aired: 1984-09-30

An unassuming mystery writer turned sleuth uses her professional insight to help solve real-life...

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The A-Team

as Tina
First aired: 1983-01-23

A fictional group of ex-United States Army Special Forces personnel work as soldiers of fortune...

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The A-Team

as Adrian Prescott
First aired: 1983-01-23

A fictional group of ex-United States Army Special Forces personnel work as soldiers of fortune...

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T. J. Hooker

as Teenager
First aired: 1982-03-13

Sergeant Thomas Jefferson Hooker is a tough-as-nails veteran police officer with the LCPD who...

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Family Ties

as The Girl
First aired: 1982-09-22

Former 1960s flower children Steven and Elyse Keaton raise their conservative son Alex,...

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Superboy

as Serene
First aired: 1988-10-08

Superboy is a half-hour live-action television series based on Kal-El's early years as Superboy....

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The Adventures of Superboy

as Serene
First aired: 1966-09-10

The Adventures of Superboy is a series of six-minute animated Superboy cartoons produced by...

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Platypus Man

as Becky
First aired: 1995-01-23

Platypus Man is an American sitcom that aired on UPN in 1995. Starring comedian Richard Jeni,...

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