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This article's subject relates to Season 2 of 24.This article's subject relates to Season 3 of 24.This article's subject relates to Season 4 of 24.This article's subject relates to Season 5 of 24.This article's subject relates to the 24 expanded universe.This is a production article written from an out-of-universe perspective
"What's great about the fanbase is that it's such an engaging show and it attracts people that want to be stimulated and not just veg out. The show really attracts an intelligent audience."
Reiko Aylesworth on the appeal of 24


Reiko M. Aylesworth (born December 9, 1972; age 51) played Michelle Dessler on the second, third, fourth and fifth seasons of 24 in addition to voicing the same character in 24: The Game.

Biography[]

Reiko was born in Chicago on 1972. Coincidentally, she was born in the same hospital as her on-screen husband, Carlos Bernard. Reiko is half-Dutch, one quarter Japanese, and one quarter Welsh. When she was 15, Reiko moved to Seattle, Washington. She attended the University of Washington where she studied neural science.

Reiko debuted in 1993 on the TV series One Life to Live. After that, she has appeared on shows like Law & Order (with Frank John Hughes), the short-lived CBS show Now and Again (with Dennis Haysbert), The Dead Zone, Conviction (with Eric Balfour), and Stargate Universe (with Lou Diamond Phillips, Robert Carlyle, Justin Louis and Carlo Rota). Reiko also made a guest appearance in the fifth season premiere of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (with Jose Zuniga). Her role was supposed to be a recurring role, but when she was asked to return for the fourth season of 24, she stepped down. She was replaced by Aisha Tyler, who had played Marianne Taylor during the first episodes of that same season.

Day 3 Michelle Smiles

Reiko's also had recurring roles on series like Damages, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, All Souls, The American Embassy, ER (with Leland Orser, Jesse Borrego, and Marcus Brown), and Lost (with Daniel Dae Kim, Jon Gries, John Terry, François Chau and Doug Hutchison).

Aside of her television work, Reiko also starred on films like Magma: Volcanic Disaster, The Last Full Measure (both with Xander Berkeley), You've Got Mail, Random Hearts (with Dennis Haysbert, Kate Mara, and Christina Chang), Man on the Moon (with Mary Lynn Rajskub and Brent Briscoe), Fathers and Sons (with Phillip Rhys), Crazylove (with JoBeth Williams, John Terry, and Paul Schulze), First (with DB Woodside), and more recently AVPR: Aliens vs. Predator Requiem.

Since 2011, she has starred on the successfully rebooted Hawaii Five-0, playing the wife of Chin Ho Kelly, who is played by Daniel Dae Kim. From 2013 to 2014, Reiko also had a recurring role on the NBC series Revolution (with Billy Burke, Colm Feore, Kim Raver, Conor O'Farrell, Annie Wersching, Leslie Hope and Glenn Morshower), which ran for two seasons. In 2016, she guest starred in NCIS (with Pauley Perrette). In that NCIS episode, she worked alongside real-life First Lady Michelle Obama.

Role on 24[]

Reiko originally auditioned for the parts of Nina Myers on Season 1, and Kate Warner on Season 2. However, after losing to Sarah Clarke and Sarah Wynter respectively, the producers asked her to play Michelle Dessler. Reiko has said that Michelle is her favorite of all the characters she has played, and she describes her as "a strong woman with a big heart" and "she's based on my mom".

Tony&MichellePhoto

Carlos and Reiko

She and her on-screen husband Carlos Bernard are still friends even after their time together on 24 concluded. On the commentary for season 2's "Day 2: 11:00am-12:00pm," Bernard, Wynter and Michelle Forbes spoke at length about their praise for Reiko's performance.

24 Day 5 Filming Death of Michelle

Reiko in make-up as she prepares to film her final episode.

24 credits[]

24-related appearances[]

Selected filmography[]

  • Dark Harbor (2019)
  • Oh Lucy! (2017)
  • Buzzkill (2012)
  • The Assistants (2009)
  • Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem (2007)
  • Crazylove (2005)
  • No Deposit, No Return (2000)
  • Man on the Moon (1999)
  • Childhood's End (1996)

Television appearances

  • Hit-Monkey (2022)
  • Tommy (2020)
  • Scorpion (2016-2018)
  • Major Crimes (2017)
  • NCIS (2016)
  • Castle (2015)
  • Revolution (2014)
  • Hawaii Five-0 (2011-2014)
  • Drop Dead Diva (2013)
  • Person of Interest (2012)
  • Lights Out (2011)
  • The Good Wife (2010)
  • SGU Stargate Universe (2009-2010)
  • Damages (2010)
  • Lost (2009)
  • ER (2007-2008)
  • CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (2004)
  • The Dead Zone (2003)
  • All Souls (2001)
  • Law & Order (1997)
  • One Life to Live (1993-1994)

External links[]

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