Connie Britton began her acting career playing country music sensation Rayna Jaymes in the television series Nashville (2012) after wrapping up her five-season long stint in Friday Night Lights (2006) alongside Kyle Chandler. Prior to that, she appeared in the 2004 film adaptation of Friday Night Lights, directed by Peter Berg and starring Billy Bob Thornton and Edward Burns, as well as Edward Burns' independent feature Looking for Kitty (2004).
Born Constance Elaine Womack in Boston, Massachusetts, to Linda Jane (Cochran) and Edgar Allen Womack, Jr., a physicist and energy company executive, Britton is of Irish, German, and English descent. She received critical acclaim for her starring roles in Edward Burns' independent films The Brothers McMullen (1995) and No Looking Back (1998),the latter of which won the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival.
Britton's breakthrough role came when she nearly canceled her audition with director Edward Burns, only to be convinced to stay and land the part that would launch her career. Born in Boston, she moved to Lynchburg, Virginia at the age of seven with her family, including her fraternal twin sister. She attended Dartmouth College, where she majored in Asian studies and spent a term in Beijing, China. After graduating, she moved to New York, where she spent two years at the Neighborhood Playhouse studying with Sanford Meisner, and two additional years performing in regional theater and off-Broadway productions. She then moved to Los Angeles after the success of The Brothers McMullen (1995).
Britton's television credits include ABC's Lost at Home (2003) opposite Mitch Rouse and Gregory Hines, The Fighting Fitzgeralds (2001) opposite Brian Dennehy, a recurring role in the highly-acclaimed drama The West Wing (1999),and a starring role in the award-winning comedy Spin City (1996) opposite Michael J. Fox. She has also appeared in the feature films The Next Big Thing (2001) and One Eyed King (2001).
In her free time, Britton enjoys hiking, yoga, and doing volunteer work. She currently resides in both New York and Los Angeles.
