Spotlight On: Amanda Righetti

In her first big break on television, Amanda Righetti was introduced as Hailey Nichol, the black-sheep sister of Kirsten Cohen in The O.C. After a successful run of 12 episodes on The O.C., Righetti was then immediately cast as Tessa Lewis, a manipulative con artist, in the Hawaiian romp North Shore. Alas, North Shore only ran for one season. But as luck was on Righetti’s side, she was quickly cast as Jena Moretti, the aging starlet, in the mystery series Reunion. While the role was more substantive than her earlier work, and better showcased Righetti’s talents, the fickle TV fans jumped ship once they realized how serialized the show was and the series lasted only 13 episodes (only 9 of which were actually broadcast).

So despite consistently working, Righetti seemed doomed to be cast on TV shows that could not make it past their first season. Taking a 2 year break to focus on her film career and working on such films as Marlowe, Return to House on Haunted Hill, and Friday the 13th (the remake), Righetti surfaced again in 2008, appearing in the unassuming role of Grace Van Pelt on a new TV series called The Mentalist.

Simon Baker and Amanda Righetti co-star in The Mentalist / CBS

On paper the series looked to be a generic version of just about every other police procedural on the television landscape. But, for anyone who saw the premiere episode, The Mentalist was anything but a copycat procedural. Instead, it was an out-of-the-gate sensation, with over 15 million viewers and landing itself in the #10 spot as one of the most viewed TV shows that week. From that point on, the ratings increased and The Mentalist has stayed well-within the Top 10 each week ever since. It even reached the coveted #1 spot within just a few months of its debut.

Cast as the youngest and newest member of the fictional CBI unit (California Bureau of Investigation) in The Mentalist, Righetti’s fresh face and youthfulness stood-out amongst her more widely-recognized co-stars, Robin Tunney and Simon Baker, who each have been in the entertainment business nearly twice as long as Righetti. Portraying Grace Van Pelt, these attributes are perfectly-suited and they allow Righetti to meld the character to fit some of her stronger assets.

As Grace Van Pelt, Righetti portrays a government agent anxious to prove that she is just as good as her teammates. She stubbornly refuses to be coddled or benched when things appear dangerous and willingly embraces the toughest assignments. Additionally, Righetti uses her strong physical attributes to her advantage, for a beautiful young woman is frequently underestimated by friend and foe alike. This seeming innocence belies a steely core of ferocious energy and tenacity.

Another aspect that works well for Righetti is she is one of the few characters allowed to have a personal life on the show. Last season Van Pelt was shown having a boyfriend (despite the fact he turned out to be stalking Patrick Jane), and more than one episode has shown glimpses into her feelings for teammate Wayne Rigsby (Owain Yeoman), which appear to be reciprocated. As such, Van Pelt is perhaps one of the more well-developed characters on the show – having both a professional life and a personal life to balance her character. This duality allows Righetti to stretch as an actor and she rises to the occasion displaying finely-tuned nuances of emotion. Simon Baker may be the star and the guy we are rooting for, but Amanda Righetti is clearly the heart. We feel what she feels and we want to be there with her.

The Mentalist airs Thursdays at 10/9c on CBS.