Amy Jo Johnson - Acting Career

Acting Career

At the age of eighteen, after graduating from Dennis-Yarmouth Regional High School, Johnson moved to New York City to pursue an acting career. She attended the Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute and the American Musical and Acting Academy. She moved to Los Angeles to audition for her first part.

Johnson's first role was as Kimberly Ann Hart, the Pink Ranger, in the 1993 series Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. She acquired the role within the first month of her main stay in L.A. Her gymnastics background was an advantage for her in fight scenes, as the Hart character was also an accomplished gymnast. Her martial arts skills were learned from choreographers in the studio. The series achieved unexpected success, and Johnson had a fair share of media exposure. Her appearances on the show jump-started her career and served as a positive influence for many younger viewers and fans. After she left the series in 1995, Johnson went on to star in the Disney Channel's Susie Q and the Saved by the Bell: The New Class episode "Backstage Pass" as Linda.

In 1997, she starred in NBC's adaptation of Lois Duncan's novel Killing Mr. Griffin as Susan McConnell and also played Andie Bradley, a gymnast with an eating disorder, in Perfect Body. Johnson also participated in the film Without Limits. She also reprised her role as Kimberly Hart in Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie. She jokingly stated in the I Love the '90s 1993 special that having been the Pink Power Ranger was something she would "never live down." When she was interviewed on both Live with Regis and Kathie Lee and The Sharon Osbourne Show, Johnson said that Power Rangers was a "great first job." In 2012, Johnson revealed in an interview that becoming famous because of the show was overwhelming and gave her nightmares, but she did say that she learned many things from being on the show and is grateful to the fans who watched her on the program as children.

In 1998, Johnson played the part of a vampire in Cold Hearts. Soon after, she was invited to play Julie Emrick, a college freshman who becomes the best friend of the title character on The WB series Felicity (who was played by Keri Russell). She was in the series for two and a half years. Her character in the series was originally described as a dancer, but Johnson convinced the producers to change that to a singer and guitarist, which led Johnson to being able to perform "Puddle of Grace", a song she wrote. The song was added to the show's official soundtrack. Her talent in music also led her to star in Sweetwater: A True Rock Story, a biography about Nancy Nevins and Sweetwater, who were the first band to play at the Woodstock festival.

Johnson then took roles in Interstate 60, Pursuit of Happiness, Infested, and Hard Ground. She also had guest starring roles on Spin City and E.R. She starred as Stacy Reynolds in the fourth season of The Division. She released her debut album, The Trans-American Treatment, and performed in the Los Angeles area with "The Amy Jo Johnson Band". She released another album, Imperfect, in March 2005.

In 2006, Johnson co-starred in Magma: Volcanic Disaster, a Sci-Fi Channel telefilm. Johnson also was on ABC Family's original show Wildfire as Tina Sharp, the villain of the first season. She also starred a few episodes of What About Brian, as Karen, Brian's girlfriend. She has also taken on roles in two independent films, Veritas, Prince of Truth and Islander. Johnson also starred in the Lifetime Television movie Fatal Trust.

In December 2007 she contributed guest vocals to Koishii & Hush's cover of The Cars track "Since You're Gone", which was released as a single.

Beginning in 2008, Johnson became a cast member of Flashpoint as Jules Callaghan, a member of the Strategic Response Unit of the Toronto Police service. The series premiered on CTV and CBS on July 11, 2008. Her song "Dancing In-Between" was featured on Flashpoint and was released as a single. The show received 19 nominations at the 24th Gemini Awards, including Best Performance by an Actress in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role for Johnson.