Monica Gregg Potter (née Brokaw; born June 30, 1971) is an American actress. She is known for her starring roles in the films Con Air (1997), Patch Adams (1998), and Along Came a Spider (2001). She also appeared in the horror films Saw (2004) and The Last House on the Left, a 2009 remake film. Potter has also appeared on television, as a series regular on Boston Legal, as well as a Golden Globe-nominated role as Kristina Braverman in the NBC drama series Parenthood (2010–2015). She was a series regular in the CBS drama Wisdom of the Crowd. Potter is also known as the founder and principal owner of Monica Potter Home, an upscale home goods, natural skin care and home decor business in Cleveland, Ohio. With the family business struggling to make money, the company was featured on the reality TV show, The Profit. Early life Potter, Monica Gregg Brokaw, was born on June 30, 1971, in Cleveland, Ohio, to Nancy and Paul Brokaw. Her mother was a secretary in a hospital, and her father invented the first flame-resistant car wax. Potter has three sisters (Kerry, Jessica, and Brigette). Her maternal grandparents were Irish immigrants, and she was raised Catholic. As a child, Potter wanted to be a nun. During her childhood she attended the Villa Angela Academy, and graduated from Euclid High School. She also spent part of her early years in Arab, Alabama. Potter had wanted to be an actress since childhood. She began acting at the Cleveland Play House when she was in elementary school. Starting at age 12, she worked at a flower shop, and later in her teens, she worked in a sub sandwich shop and did some modeling for newspaper and magazine ads and local commercials. After appearing in several commercials in Chicago, Potter relocated to Los Angeles in 1994. In 1995 she appeared in the Alan Jackson music video for "Tall, Tall Trees". Career Potter made her screen debut in 1994, on CBS soap opera The Young and the Restless as Sharon Newman. In 1995, Potter was featured in the music video for the song "Tall, Tall Trees" by country artist Alan Jackson. She later appeared in several feature films, including Con Air (playing the wife of Nicolas Cage's character) and starring opposite Robin Williams in Patch Adams. In 1998, she played the love interest of doomed distance runner Steve Prefontaine in