Kelli Giddish is an American actress born in Cumming, Georgia, primarily recognized for her starring roles in crime-drama television series.
Raised in Georgia, Giddish was encouraged by her paternal grandfather to pursue an acting career, regularly attending the Fox Theatre in Atlanta with him. She attended Forsyth Central High School, where she became a favorite pupil of drama teacher Yatesy Harvey. Giddish was frequently cast in Harvey's plays at a local community theater and participated in sleepover drama camps. In 1998, she was crowned the State Literary Champion for Girls' Dramatic Interpretation.
Giddish received her college education at the University of Evansville in Indiana, majoring in theater performance. Following her graduation, she moved to New York City and started appearing in Broadway plays. Her first regular television role was in 2005 as Diana "Di" Henry in the soap opera "All My Children". Giddish left the series in September 2007.
Giddish's first major television role was in the crime-drama series "Past Life" (2010),where she portrayed Dr. Kate McGinn, a character who believes in reincarnation and investigates modern crime cases. The series was inspired by the novel "The Reincarnationist" (2007) by M. J. Rose. However, only seven episodes were produced, and two of them were left unaired.
Giddish was then cast in the leading role of Deputy Marshal Annie Nolan Frost in the crime-drama series "Chase" (2010-2011),which focused on a team of U.S. Marshals tracking down fugitives. Although the series only lasted for 18 episodes, Giddish received praise for her portrayal of the main character.
Giddish was subsequently cast in the regular role of Detective Amanda Rollins in the long-running series "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (1999-present). Introduced during an attempted revamp of the series following the departure of co-star Christopher Meloni, Giddish's character dynamic rapidly changed, and new characters were being introduced.
Giddish continued to play Amanda Rollins regularly from the 13th season of SVU to its 24th, becoming one of the longest-serving members of the cast. She has also portrayed Amanda in guest appearances on other series, including "Chicago Fire", "Chicago P.D.", Law & Order: Organized Crime, and "Law and Order". The series often contrasted Amanda's life and career with that of her younger sister Kim Rollins (played by Lindsay Pulsipher),a mental patient with bipolar disorder.
In her personal life, Giddish married Lawrence Faulborn in 2015 and gave birth to two sons between 2015 and 2018. However, the couple divorced in 2018. In 2021, Giddish married her second husband, Beau Richards. In late May 2023, she announced that she was pregnant again, expecting her third child at the age of 43.
