Moira Kelly Had an Impressive Film and TV Career — From Animated Films to Teen Dramas

Fans loved her as the voice of reason on One Tree Hill and they loved her actual voice bringing to life one of The Lion King characters. Moira Kelly is a name quickly recognized and associated with these classics. But did you know that the actress starred in dozens of other projects that you may recognize her from? Moira Kelly graced our screens more than a few times.

Whether you grew up with Kelly as Lucas Scott’s mom or remember her skating her way through The Cutting Edge (1992), the actress is a star. From her early days is cult classics to her most recent project role in Citadel (2023), catch up with Moira Kelly and see what she is up to today.

Early career

Born on March 6, 1968, in Queens, New York, Moira Kelly has been on the stage since her school days. She had a small role in a high school production of Annie and thus began her career on the screen.

The actress had a few minor roles before booking the lead in The Cutting Edge (1992), a film that has made its way to cult-classic status. Kelly even says that is the movie she still gets recognized for today. “People will say, "Your voice sounds so familiar. Were you in that ice skating movie?" I don't know what it is, but I suppose there's something about my voice that stays with people.”

That same year, Kelly starred in Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me as Donna Hayward after the original actress, Lara Flynn Boyle, couldn’t return to play her in the film. The role ended up being Kelly’s breakout role and continued to further her career.

Major film roles for Kelly

In 1994, the actress starred in With Honors, alongside Patrick Dempsey, Joe Pesci and Brendan Fraser. But her most iconic role came that same year when she booked the role of Nala in The Lion King. The Oscar-winning film brought fame to Kelly’s name and spawned a lengthy career as the voice of Nala.

“It was just a lovely experience,” Kelly shared in an interview. “And every time you went it they had the film animated a little further along so you got to see more and more of it coming together which was nice.”

After her time on The Lion King, Kelly booked multiple movie roles including Little Odessa (1994), Unhook the Stars (1996) and Dangerous Beauty (1998). She then booked her own TV show, To Have & to Hold (1998), but the series only lasted for 13 episodes. Kelly then had a 22-episode stint on The West Wing as Mandy Hampton.

Moira Kelly goes to Tree Hill

In 2003, Kelly took on the voice of reason as Karen Roe, the mother of Chad Michael Murray’s character, Lucas Scott, in One Tree Hill. The actress starred on the show for four years, with special appearances for the next two, until she left to raise her children.

“This was kind of like coming home,” Kelly explained after attending a One Tree Hill convention in 2019. “I am blown away by the joy and the love for the show that these fans have. It really makes you feel great to see that something you do impacts people so deeply.”

Kelly has explained that she is now recognized as Karen by a whole new generation of fans. “It all started coming back around when my kids’ friends started watching the show and they would come over and be like, ‘Oh my god, you’re Karen!’”

Moira Kelly today

Kelly married her husband, Steve Hewitt in 2000. The couple has two children together, daughter Ella and son Eamon. She has continued to book roles over the years, including Christmas in Louisiana (2019), The Resident (2020) and most recently Citadel (2023).