Leighton Meester is an American actress and aspiring singer-songwriter, best known for her role as Blair Waldorf in the TV show Gossip Girl. Her first acting role on a television program was on NBC's legal drama Law & Order in 1999. Other series in which Meester has appeared include Surface, Entourage, CSI: Miami, 8 Simple Rules, 24, 7th Heaven, and House.

Meester became interested in acting when she appeared in a local production of The Wizard of Oz. When she was eleven, she moved with her family to New York City and soon after began working as a model with Wilhelmina, booking a Ralph Lauren campaign shot by Bruce Webber and working with then-photographer Sofia Coppola.

Other roles include a role as Savannah Barnett on Surface. She has guest starred as Debbie Pandletin on Season 4 of the FOX drama 24, as Ali, an underage teenager who has a crush on Dr. House in episode 3 and 4 of Season 3 of the FOX drama, House, as Carrie Bishop on Season 1 of the UPN drama Veronica Mars and Chandler's new girlfriend Kendall in Season 8 of the WB drama 7th Heaven, as well as the role of Justine Chapin in Season 1 of the HBO comedy Entourage, a role she reprised in Season 5. Meester made her film debut in the feature Hangman's Curse, based on the best-selling novel by Frank Peretti. She was also in Numb3rs as Karen Camden. She also starred in the independent comic-thriller Flourish with House co-stars Jennifer Morrison and Jesse Spencer.

In 2006, she wrapped the female lead role in the comedy/horror film Drive-Thru. She has also recorded a song for the soundtrack of Drive-Thru. In the spring of 2006, she played a part in the ensemble comedy/drama entitled Remember the Daze.

Currently, Meester stars as Blair Waldorf in The CW series Gossip Girl, from Josh Schwartz, creator of The O.C.. The show is based on the book series about the lives of New York's privileged Upper East Side high school students. Meester has stated in interviews that she identifies with Blair "on every level, in one way or another," and her performance has been met with critical acclaim. She has also recently guest starred on CSI: Miami and has a recurring role on James Woods' court drama Shark. When on the set, Meester, who attended Beverly Hills High School, pursues her talent for music and creative writing. She currently resides in the West Village, New York. She has worked with actress Kristen Bell on two TV series. In Gossip Girl, Bell provides the voice of Gossip Girl and Leighton plays Blair Waldorf, and in Veronica Mars, which starred Bell, Leighton appeared briefly as gossip queen Carrie Bishop. Additionally, she has worked with fellow Gossip Girl co-star Penn Badgley in her previous lead role film Drive-Thru, where Penn played Val Espinoza.

Name: Leighton Marissa Claire Meester
Born: April 9, 1986
Origin: Marco Island, Florida
Occupation: Actress
Years active: 1999-present