Who is Stana Katic? Everything You Need to Know

Quick Facts

Age: 45 Years, 45 Year Old Females

Family:

Spouse/Ex-: Kris Brkljac (m. 2015)

father: Peter Katić

mother: Rada Katić

Born Country: Canada

Actresses American Women

Height: 5'9" (175 cm), 5'9" Females

Ancestry: Serbian Canadian, Croatian Canadian, Serbian American, Croatian American, Canadian American

City: Hamilton, Canada

More Facts

education: University Of Toronto, DePaul University

Recommended For You

Recommended Lists:

University Of Toronto

Taurus Actresses

American Actresses

Childhood & Early Life

Stana Katic was born on April 26, 1978, in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, to a Serbian father and Croatian mother. Her parents are originally from the Dalmatian Coast in Croatia and relocated to Aurora, Illinois when she was a teenager. She is the oldest daughter of her parents and has four brothers and a sister.

She holds citizenships of Canada and the United States both, and frequently moved between the two countries during her teenage years. She can speak six languages fluently: English, Serbian, Croatian, French, Italian, and Slovenian.

She attended West Aurora High School, from where she graduated in 1996. She then enrolled into the University of Toronto to pursue a course on international law and economics.

Stana Katic studied acting at the DePaul University Goodman School of Drama from 2000 to 2002. Following the advice of a renowned casting director in Los Angeles, she also took classes at The Beverly Hills Playhouse Acting School.

After relocating to LA, she spent nights at hostels for a few months or even in her car when she was short of money. After securing a job of a saleswoman at a departmental furniture store, she rented an apartment.

Continue Reading Below

Recommended Lists:

Actresses Who Are In Their 40s

Women Film & Theater Personalities

American Film & Theater Personalities

American Female Film & Theater Personalities

Career

A few months after moving to Los Angeles, Stana Katic met her manager who booked television and film roles for her. While she first acted in the short film 'Acid Freaks' in 1999, she made her feature film debut with the shot-on-video thriller 'Shut-Eye' in 2003.

In 2004, she bagged guest roles in a number of television shows, starting with the CBS crime series 'The Handler'. Later that year, she appeared on TV shows such as 'Alias', 'L.A. Dragnet', 'The Shield' and 'JAG'.

She acted in the 2005 action film 'Pit Fighter', which was not received well by the critics. That same year, she appeared in an episode of the television series 'The Closer' and also featured on two episodes of the medical drama series 'ER'.

In 2006, she made guest appearances in three episodes of the television series '24', and one episode of 'Brothers & Sisters'. She played Ava in the telefilm 'Dragon Dynasty', and was cast in the pilot, 'Faceless', though the show was cancelled.

Throughout 2007, Stana Katic continued to appear on a number of television shows including 'Heroes', 'CSI: Miami' and 'The Unit'. She had a role in the film 'Feast of Love', which also starred Morgan Freeman.

She was cast in the lead role of Raina in the 2008, direct-to-video action film 'Stiletto', and also appeared in a short role in the bond movie 'Quantum of Solace', starring Daniel Craig. She starred in another movie that year, 'The Spirit', which had a star cast including Scarlett Johansson, Eva Mendes and Samuel L. Jackson.

Stana Katic next appeared in two episodes of the television miniseries 'Would Be Kings' and acted in the telefilm 'The Librarian: Curse of the Judas Chalice'. In 2008, she overtook 100 other actresses to bag her breakthrough role as Kate Beckett on the ABC television series 'Castle', which began airing the next year.

For eight seasons between 2009 and 2016, she played the NYPD homicide detective on the popular series 'Castle', which also starred Nathan Fillion in the lead. The two eventually grew apart after Fillion reportedly bullied her on the sets, which caused her to leave the show in 2016, following which the show was cancelled.

In 2011, she played lead roles in the suspense film 'Truth about Kerry', the romantic movie 'For Lovers Only', and appeared in the spy-film 'The Double' starring Richard Gere and Topher Grace. She was a jury member at the 2011 Film Festival Zlín, where she performed the song 'Hey Blue Eyes', which she also wrote.

Continue Reading Below

She lent her voice to Talia al Ghul in the 2011 video game 'Batman: Arkham City' and voiced Lois Lane in the 2013 animated superhero film 'Superman: Unbound'. She had significant roles in the adventure drama 'Big Sur' and the historical film 'CBGB' in 2013. In 2012, she was a presenter at the 64th Annual Directors Guild of America Awards ceremony.

She had starring roles in the action-adventure film 'The Rendezvous' and the Lifetime television film 'Sister Cities' in 2016. The next year she starred in the romantic drama film 'Lost in Florence'.

She plays the lead role of FBI agent Emily Byrne in the upcoming American thriller drama 'Absentia' which is scheduled to air on AXN in 2017. She also plays the female lead in the upcoming horror film 'Cadaver'.

Recommended Lists:

Taurus Women

Major Works

Stana Katic's most memorable role so far has been that of Kate Beckett in the crime drama series 'Castle'. . The show ran successfully for eight seasons with good ratings, till it was cancelled after she left the show.

Awards & Achievements

For her performance in the series 'Castle', Stana Katic has received many awards including three 'People's Choice Awards' in 2014, 2015 and 2016. The same role also earned her a 'Shorty Award' in 2011, a 'PRISM Award' in 2012 and two 'TV Guide Magazine's Fan Favorites Awards' in 2011 and 2012.

Personal Life & Legacy

Stana Katic established her own production company, Sine Timore Productions (Latin for "without fear"), in 2008.

In 2010, she started the campaign 'The Alternative Travel Project' which encourages everyone to go car-free for just one day. The project was granted the status of a non-profit organization in January 2015.

Stana Katic has been in a longtime relationship with business efficiency consultant Kris Brkljač. On April 25, 2015, the day before her 37th birthday, she got married to him in a ceremony at a private family monastery on the Dalmatian Coast. She welcomed her first child in December 2022.

Trivia

Stana Katic is an avid reader and is interested in a wide range of topics including science, travel, music and art. She is also an athlete and performs her own stunts. A good singer, she sang the love theme from 'The Librarian: The Curse of the Judas Chalice'.

2016	Favorite Crime Drama TV Actress	Winner
2015	Favorite Crime Drama TV Actress	Winner
2014	Favorite Dramatic TV Actress	Winner

Stana Katic Biography