Riley Voelkel

Biography

Riley Emilia Voelkel is a American-born Canadian actress. She is known for portraying Freya Mikaelson on The CW television series The Originals and Legacies. Voelkel also played the role of Jenna Johnson on the HBO television series The Newsroom.

Just a month away from going to college, a modeling scout came to her town and she decided to try her luck. The scout picked her and she went to Los Angeles where she was very much liked by several agents. She moved to Los Angeles to model, but, soon after, she joined an acting class recommended by an agent.

Voelkel’s first role was of a club girl in The Social Network, winning the part by audition. Afterwards, she signed with an agent, and booked her first starring role, as Carrie in the independent film, The Secret Lives of Dorks, released in 2013. In 2012, she joined the HBO series The Newsroom only for the pilot episode, but later became the character of Jenna. In 2014, she was cast as one of the leads in the Amazon pilot Point Of Honor.

In fall 2014, Voelkel was cast in an unnamed recurring role on The CW series The Originals during its second season. Her character on The Originals, Freya Mikaelson, was upgraded to a series regular for the show’s third season.