Biography
Midwest-born actress Sarah Habel worked steadily, if anonymously, in features and on television before scoring her biggest showcase to date as a youthful, morally conflicted version of vinegar-lipped teacher Miss Grundy on "Riverdale" (The CW, 2017- ). Born in Michigan on July 30, 1982, Habel developed an interest in acting at an early age, and explored it through a variety of outlets, from elementary school productions to summer theater camp and children's theater, before deciding to make it her profession. She earned her bachelor's degree in theater from Michigan State University and gained further training in both London and New York before delving into her professional career. Habel made her professional screen debut in the direct-to-video thriller "Butterfly Effect 3: Revelations" (2009), which was quickly followed by the Drew Barrymore-directed action-drama "Whip It" (2009), which followed a young woman's introduction to roller derby. From there, she worked in guest roles on episodic television series, and drew positive notices from the underground media for her turn as a malevolent seductress in "Hostel: Part III" (2011). Habel vaulted to series regular work on the MTV comedy-drama "Underemployed" (2012-13), playing one of five recent college graduates contending with the realities of the job market. The show proved short-lived, as was her next series effort, the medical-crime drama "Rush" (USA Network, 2014), with Tom Ellis as a doctor catering to exclusive clientele and Habel as his long-suffering assistant. In 2017, she returned to both features and television with "Atomica" (2017) and "Riverdale," respectively; in the former, she was top-billed as a safety inspector investigating strange goings-on at a nuclear facility, while in the latter - an updated, noir-influenced take on the "Archie" comics - she played Miss Grundy, here depicted as a younger woman involved in an illicit affair with KJ Apa's moody Archie Andrews. Habel left the series when her character arc came to a sudden end early in the second season.
