YANCY BUTLER
(Jessie Crossman) made her motion picture starring debut last year in John Woo's "Hard Target" with Jean-Claude Van Damme. Prior to shooting "Drop Zone, Butler starred in an independent film, "Annie's Garden". The 24-year-old actress stars in the upcoming ensemble drama about dance, "Let It Be Me" with Patrick Stewart, Jennifer Beals, Campbell Scott, Leslie Caron and Elliott Gould, written and directed by Eleanor Bergstrom.

Butler's television debut in "Law & Order" landed her the series lead in "Mann and Machine", which led to the starring role in "South Beach."

Butler was born in New York and is the daughter of Joe Butler, drummer of The Lovin' Spoonful. She is a graduate of Sarah Lawrence College, where she studied liberal arts, appeared in a dozen stage performances and became a Griggs scholar.

YANCY BUTLER
(Police Officer Anne-Marie Kersey in BROOKLYN SOUTH)

It's not unusual that Yancy Butler chose to be an actor. Born in New York City, Butler is third generation showbiz. Her father, Joe Butler , is the lead singer and drummer for the reunited Lovin' Spoonful ; her mother, Leslie, was a company manager for Broadway shows, and her grandparents were also involved in various aspects of the theater. At the age of 13, Butler began studying at the prestigious HB Studios in New York, and continued to do so until entering Sarah Lawrence College.

Upon graduation, and with a dozen stage credits on her resume, she subsequently landed a guest star role in the drama "Law & Order," which directly lead to her auditioning for and landing the lead role in the series "Mann & Machine." Following this, she appeared as a regular in the Miami Beach-based series "South Beach."

Butler later segued into feature films as the female lead opposite Jean-Claude Van Damme in "Hard Target," and next took on the role, originally written for a man, opposite Wesley Snipes in the skydiving adventure "Drop Zone." Other film credits include "The Ex" and, most recently, the independent feature film "The Treat."