We wrote the biography of actress Cobie Smulders, whom some know as Robin Scherbatsky in 'How I Met Your Mother' and others as agent Maria Hill in superhero movies.
Her real name is Jacoba Francisca Maria, she was born on April 3, 1982 in Vancouver, British Columbia. She was born to a Dutch father and an English mother. Cobie grew up in White Rock and has four sisters. She later changed her name to "Cobie" from her great-aunt, and to "Smulders", who described her surname as a fluent listener of French.
Moving to the West Point Gray neighborhood, where she attended high school at Lord Byng Middle School, Smulders wanted to become a marine biologist. Despite this, she was interested in theater throughout her high school education. Then, studying at Victoria University, Smulders decided to turn her career into acting.
She made her acting debut in 2002, making a guest appearance on the science fiction/comedy television series "Special Unit 2" on UPN and the post-apocalyptic action drama television series "Jeremiah" on the Showtime network. Later, she had roles in the supernatural drama television series "Calling Truth" on Fox and the superhero television series "Smallville" based on the DC Comics character Superman. Later, she appeared in the adventure drama series "Veritas: The Quest" which aired on ABC.
She made her film debut in 2004 with a supporting role in the action movie "Walking Tall" directed by Kevin Bray. In 2005, she continued her career by appearing in a space opera television series called "Andromeda" developed by Robert Hewitt Wolfe. In the same year, she continued with her role in the Canadian comedy film "The Long Weekend". Later, she appeared as Leigh Ostin in the TV series "The L Word" aired on Showtime.
That year, she took a lead role as Canadian news reporter Robin Scherbatsky in the CBS sitcom "How I Met Your Mother" (2005-2014). The series, which received great acclaim after its release, continued for nine seasons. After the first season, the series began to receive more mixed reviews from critics in the following seasons. The series, which won a total of 21 awards, including 10 Emmy Awards during its broadcast, was also nominated for 91 awards. Smulders garnered widespread fanfare and appreciation for her performance, earning her a People's Choice Award nomination.
During this time, she starred in the comedy movie "The Slammin' Salmon" directed by Kevin Heffernan. She later appeared in the pilot episode of the comedy-drama television series "How to Make It in America" aired on HBO. In 2010, Smulders made her off-Broadway debut in the Westside Theater play "Love, Loss, and What I Wore" based on the book of the same name.
In 2012, she starred as Clair in the political black comedy film "Grassroots", based on the book and directed by Stephen Gyllenhaal. That same year, she appeared as agent Maria Hill in the superhero movie "The Avengers", based on the Marvel Comics superhero team of the same name. For her role in the film, in which she was part of a large cast, she received training from a Los Angeles SWAT team trainer to use weapons. At the time of its release, the film received great praise and acclaim. It was also the third highest-grossing film of all time and the highest-grossing film of 2012. The movie has been recognized as one of the top 100 movies of all time.
The following year, she co-starred with Julianne Hough and Josh Duhamel in the romantic drama fantasy thriller "Safe Haven" directed by Lasse Hallström. The film, which received negative reviews, achieved a successful revenue at the box office. She then co-starred with Vince Vaughn and Chris Pratt in the comedy-drama film "Delivery Man" written and directed by Ken Scott. The film received mixed reviews, grossing twice its production budget at the box office.
She then appeared in three episodes of the superhero television series "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D" aired on ABC. In 2014, she reprized the same role in the superhero movie Captain America: The Winter Soldier. The film received praise and applause from both the audience and critics. In addition, it managed to become the seventh highest-grossing film of 2014 with its revenue. That year, she starred in the satirical romantic comedy film "They Came Together" directed by David Wain. She then appeared in the computer-animated adventure comedy film "The Lego Movie" distributed by Warner Bros Pictures. The film was successful at both the box office and critically.
The following year, she appeared again in the same role in the superhero movie "Avengers: Age of Ultron", which is the sequel to the series. The film, which received generally positive reviews from critics, also achieved success as the fourth highest-grossing film of 2015 and the fifth-highest-grossing film of all time. Later, she got a lead role as Samantha Abbott in the drama film "Unexpected" directed by Kris Swanberg. She then starred in the independent romantic comedy film "Results" written and directed by Andrew Bujalski.
In 2016, she co-starred with Tom Cruise in the action thriller "Jack Reacher: Never Go Back" directed by Edward Zwick. The film, which was successful at the box office, was met with mixed reviews. She then starred in the adult animated comedy television series "Animals" created by Phil Matarese and Mike Luciano. In 2017, she played the character of "Mother", also known as Miss Quagmire, in the black comedy drama online television series "A Series of Unfortunate Events" based on the book series of the same name.
In the same year, she starred in the comedy film "Literally, Right Before Aaron" written and directed by Ryan Eggold as one of the leading roles and in the mock documentary action comedy "Killing Gunther" written and directed by Taran Killam. From 2017 to 2019, she appeared in the main role of Lisa Turner in the comedy television series "Friends from College" created by Francesca Delbanco and Nicholas Stoller.
In 2018, she was seen again in the sequel "Avengers: Infinity War" as agent Maria Hill. The film, which has a large cast and a large production budget, became the highest-grossing film of 2018 with its revenue. It was also a huge success, breaking numerous box office records. She then co-starred with Richard Elis and Jessica Hynes in the comedy-drama film "Songbird" written and directed by Jamie Adams.
She then appeared in the same role in the sequel "The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part" computer-animated adventure comedy. The film, which was generally received positively, also resulted in a successful revenue at the box office. In 2019, she played the same character in the superhero movie "Avengers: Endgame", which is the sequel. The film garnered great praise and positive reviews from both the audience and critics. It also broke multiple box office records, including being the highest-grossing film of all time.
That same year, she played the same role in the superhero movie "Spider-Man: Far From Home" based on the Marvel Comics character Spider-Man. The film, which received positive reviews, became the fourth highest-grossing film of 2019 with its box office gross. She then appeared in the television sitcom "Arrested Development" created by Mitchell Hurwitz and the television anthology series "Room 104". Later, she appeared as Dexedrine "Dex" Parios in the crime drama television series "Stumptown".
In 2020, she continued as Sophie in the romantic drama movie "Cicada" directed by Matthew Fifer and Kieran Mulcare, and in the animated sitcom "The Simpsons" on Fox. The following year, she starred in the true crime anthology television series "Impeachment: American Crime Story" aired on FX. In 2022, she reprized the role of Robin Scherbatsky in the sitcom "How I Met Your Father", which premiered on Hulu.
Later in the year, she appeared in a recurring role as Simone in the coming-of-age drama streaming television series "High School" based on the memoir of the same name. In 2023, she reprized the role of agent Maria Hill in the Disney Channel animated series "Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur". She then appeared in the television mini-series "Secret Invasion" based on the Marvel Comics story of the same name. The series is scheduled to be released on June 21, 2023.
Most recently, she appeared as Maria Hill in the superhero movie "The Marvels" based on Marvel Comics. The movie is scheduled to be released on November 10, 2023.
Private life
In 2005, Smulders met actor Taran Killam. The couple got engaged in 2009 and married in 2012. The couple has two daughters, Shaelyn Cado Killam, born in 2009, and Janita Mae Killam, born in 2015. Smulders lives with her family in California.
In 2020, Smulders has dual citizenship, Canadian and American. In addition, Smulders supported different campaigns, funds and donations for many associations, organizations and institutions in various fields.