Born on October 11, 1980, actress Julie McNiven grew up in Amherst, Massachusetts. As a teenager, she studied swinging trapeze at French Woods Festival of the Performing Arts, establishing her passion for entertainment. She continued with her enthusiasm for the craft, attending the summer program at Circle in the Square and Shakespeare and Company's month long intensive in the Berkshires. She has also spent a couple of summers in college singing and dancing in shows at Six flags New England, as well as taking extra work as costume characters during the winter. She graduated from Salem State College, earning her degree in theatre in May 2003. Afterwards, she worked as a singer/dancer for The Spirit of Boston Cruise Ship and eventually sang the National Anthem at a Red Sox game.
Julie McNiven later became Lindsay Lohan’s stand-in and photo/body double for her role in Chapter 27, as well as for the latter part of Just My Luck. Even so, McNiven has gained prominence in her other roles. She had an uncredited part in 1997’s Old Man Dogs, before she played a secretary in 2000’s The Gypsy Years. Five years later, she starred in Dangerous Crosswinds, before landing a part in Carlito’s Way: Rise to Power. This was followed by The Groomsmen and Doses of Roger in 2006, before McNiven was cast as Suzie Waller on an episode of Law and Order: Criminal Intent. In 2007, she was seen in Go Go Tales, as well as on Across the Universe. She also had a role in three episodes of Brotherhood, and later played a model on New Amsterdam. It was also during that year that she was cast as Hildy on the series Mad Men. This earned her the most attention, leading her to be cast in the hit CW series Supernatural as Anna Milton. Later on, she signed to play roles in The Cave Movie and Failing Better Now.