Biography:

Margarita Levieva is an American actress. Born in the Soviet Union, she was a competitive gymnast before going on to star in the films The Invisible, Adventureland and Spread. On television, she is known for her role as the faux Amanda Clarke/real Emily Thorne on Revenge.

Levieva, a Russian Jew, was born in Leningrad, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union (now Saint Petersburg, Russian Federation). At the age of three, she began the training program of a competitive rhythmic gymnast. When she was 11, Levieva's mother moved her and her twin brother to Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn in New York City.

She continued to train for a few more years after emigrating to the United States and achieved success regionally but did not compete at the U.S. Championships – she did not then hold U.S. citizenship and her family were undocumented immigrants at the time. She attended high school in Secaucus, New Jersey. Levieva majored in economics at NYU and worked as a fashion buyer. Her continuing interest in acting led her to be accepted into the Meisner Training Program at the William Esper Studio.

Levieva made a guest appearance on Law & Order: Trial by Jury in 2005. In 2005, New York Magazine featured her as one of the 50 Most Beautiful People in New York. In 2006, she starred in the Fox series, Vanished. Her feature film credits include The Invisible, the independent film Billy's Choice, and Noise starring Tim Robbins, Bridget Moynahan and William Hurt.

In 2009, Levieva played Lisa P. in the comedy Adventureland. The same year, she made an appearance in the NBC drama Kings (in the episode "First Night") and starred in the play The Retributionists. She also starred in the HBO comedy-drama series How to Make it in America. In 2011, she appeared in the thriller film The Lincoln Lawyer, with Matthew McConaughey. Her other film credits include The Stand Up, Knights of Badassdom, For Ellen and Loft.

From 2011 to 2013, Levieva appeared on the ABC drama series Revenge in the recurring role of the original Emily Thorne, who agreed to switch identities with Amanda Clarke (Emily VanCamp). Levieva's character was killed in the February 17, 2013 episode. In 2012, it was announced she would join the second season of HBO's Luck in the recurring role of Sarah Israel. However, the series was canceled after its first season.

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