# Sarah Steele
**Sarah Steele** (birth name Sarah Jane Steele) is an American actress born in 1988 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, known for her film debut as Bernie Clasky in the 2004 [James L. Brooks](https://www.edgepedia.org/james-l-brooks) dramedy *Spanglish* and for playing Marissa Gold across *The Good Wife*, *The Good Fight*, and *Elsbeth*.[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/sarah-steele/) • [2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/sarah_steele) Alongside screen work she has built a substantial New York theater career, originating roles in Stephen Karam's *Speech & Debate* and *The Humans*.[3](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Sarah-Steele/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1988, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; birth name Sarah Jane Steele[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/sarah_steele) • [4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1511685/bio/) |
| Film debut | *Spanglish* (2004), as the eldest daughter of Adam Sandler and Téa Leoni's characters[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/sarah-steele/) |
| Signature TV role | Marissa Gold, daughter of Eli Gold (Alan Cumming), on *The Good Wife* (22 episodes) and as a series regular on *The Good Fight*[5](https://www.cinemablend.com/interviews/after-elsbeth-shouted-out-good-wife-fan-favorite-carrie-preston-talked-sarah-steele-reunion) |
| Theater | Originated Diwata in *Speech & Debate* (Off-Broadway, 2007) and Brigid Blake in Karam's Tony-winning *The Humans* (Off-Broadway 2015, Broadway 2016)[3](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Sarah-Steele/) • [6](https://res.cloudinary.com/roundabout-theatre-company/image/upload/v1545236580/PDFs-and-FORMS/UPSTAGE/The-Humans-Final-Web.pdf) |
| Education | Comparative literature major, Columbia University, class of 2011[7](https://www.inquirer.com/philly/entertainment/20130726_Sarah_Steele_finding_herself_on_everybody_s_to-hire_list.html) |
| Recent work | Recurring guest roles as Marissa Gold on *Elsbeth* (2025–2026) and as Sofia on NBC's *Brilliant Minds* season 2[5](https://www.cinemablend.com/interviews/after-elsbeth-shouted-out-good-wife-fan-favorite-carrie-preston-talked-sarah-steele-reunion) • [8](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1511685/news/) |
## Early life and education
Steele grew up in the Philadelphia area as the daughter of two physicians: her mother, Dr. [Katherine A. High](https://www.edgepedia.org/katherine-a-high), was a hematologist at the [Children's Hospital of Philadelphia](https://www.edgepedia.org/childrens-hospital-of-philadelphia), and her father, Dr. [George Steele](https://www.edgepedia.org/george-steele), a nutritionist on the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine.[7](https://www.inquirer.com/philly/entertainment/20130726_Sarah_Steele_finding_herself_on_everybody_s_to-hire_list.html) She has said her commitment to theater began at age seven, when her parents took her to a production of *Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat*; as a teenager she performed with the Rainbow Company, a Prince Music Theater program presenting shows for inner-city schoolchildren.[7](https://www.inquirer.com/philly/entertainment/20130726_Sarah_Steele_finding_herself_on_everybody_s_to-hire_list.html) She attended The Episcopal Academy during her high school years.[9](https://www.famousbirthdays.com/people/sarah-steele.html)
Despite early fame, she deliberately kept acting secondary to her studies. She enrolled at Columbia University as a comparative literature major, class of 2011, and has said she wanted to study something other than acting and that finishing college expanded how she saw the world.[7](https://www.inquirer.com/philly/entertainment/20130726_Sarah_Steele_finding_herself_on_everybody_s_to-hire_list.html)
## Film and television
**Breakthrough.** Steele broke into Hollywood in her mid-teens in *[Spanglish](https://www.edgepedia.org/spanglish-film)* (2004), playing Bernie, the eldest daughter of the characters played by [Adam Sandler](https://www.edgepedia.org/adam-sandler) and [Téa Leoni](https://www.edgepedia.org/tea-leoni); she wore body padding for the role of Sandler's overweight daughter.[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/sarah-steele/) • [7](https://www.inquirer.com/philly/entertainment/20130726_Sarah_Steele_finding_herself_on_everybody_s_to-hire_list.html) Further film and television work followed, including *The Good Student* (2008), guest spots on *Law & Order* and a two-episode stint on *Gossip Girl* in 2009.[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/sarah-steele/) • [7](https://www.inquirer.com/philly/entertainment/20130726_Sarah_Steele_finding_herself_on_everybody_s_to-hire_list.html)
Her best-known film roles include Abby in [Nicole Holofcener](https://www.edgepedia.org/nicole-holofcener)'s black comedy *Please Give* (2010), her highest-rated film on Rotten Tomatoes at 85 percent, Wendy in *The To Do List* (2013), and Sarah in *The Mend* (2014).[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/sarah_steele) She reprised her stage role as Diwata in the 2017 film adaptation of *Speech & Debate*.[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/sarah_steele)
**Marissa Gold.** In her final year at Columbia, Steele was cast as Marissa Gold, daughter of Eli Gold, Alan Cumming's character on the CBS drama *The Good Wife*; she has said she got the part in a brief moment during college, expected it to be a two-episode arc, and returned to school thinking acting might just be a phase.[7](https://www.inquirer.com/philly/entertainment/20130726_Sarah_Steele_finding_herself_on_everybody_s_to-hire_list.html) • [10](https://www.cbsnews.com/losangeles/news/sarah-steele-the-good-fight-cbs/) The role became a mainstay: she appeared in 22 episodes of the original series and, when creators [Robert and Michelle King](https://www.edgepedia.org/robert-and-michelle-king) launched the spin-off *The Good Fight* in 2017, reprised Marissa as a series regular.[5](https://www.cinemablend.com/interviews/after-elsbeth-shouted-out-good-wife-fan-favorite-carrie-preston-talked-sarah-steele-reunion) • [11](https://www.channel4.com/press/news/interview-robert-and-michelle-king-creators-good-wife) Marissa evolved from the lawyer's sharp-tongued daughter into an investigator at the firm, and Steele played her through the show's run.[12](https://www.tvline.com/interviews/sarah-steele-good-fight-interview-season-5-marissa-sex-scene-1234714402/) Co-creator Michelle King said that in the decade Steele played Marissa she never gave a single performance that was off.[12](https://www.tvline.com/interviews/sarah-steele-good-fight-interview-season-5-marissa-sex-scene-1234714402/)
The character has followed her into later projects. She returned as Marissa Gold in a recurring guest role on *Elsbeth*, the *Good Wife* spin-off starring [Carrie Preston](https://www.edgepedia.org/carrie-preston), beginning with season 3 in 2025, and appeared in multiple season 3 episodes.[5](https://www.cinemablend.com/interviews/after-elsbeth-shouted-out-good-wife-fan-favorite-carrie-preston-talked-sarah-steele-reunion) • [8](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1511685/news/) In 2026 she joined NBC's medical drama *Brilliant Minds* for season 2 in a recurring guest role as Sofia, a patient with a medical mystery who befriends [Zachary Quinto](https://www.edgepedia.org/zachary-quinto)'s Dr. Oliver Wolf, first appearing in the episode "The Boy Who Feels Everything."[8](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1511685/news/)
## Theater
Steele's stage career is closely tied to playwright Stephen Karam. She originated the role of Diwata, an overachieving theater nerd and activist, in the original 2007 [Off-Broadway](https://www.edgepedia.org/off-broadway) production of his *Speech & Debate*.[3](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Sarah-Steele/) • [13](https://www.broadwaybox.com/daily-scoop/five-burning-questions-with-speech-debate-star-sarah-steele/) Karam then wrote the role of Brigid Blake in *[The Humans](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-humans-play)* for her after her work on that first play at Roundabout Theatre Company; she played Brigid in the 2015 Off-Broadway production and the 2016 original Broadway production of the play, which won the Tony Award.[6](https://res.cloudinary.com/roundabout-theatre-company/image/upload/v1545236580/PDFs-and-FORMS/UPSTAGE/The-Humans-Final-Web.pdf) • [14](https://www.backstage.com/magazine/article/sarah-steele-talks-auditioning-steve-martin-5107/)
Her other stage credits include Becky in Lincoln Center Theater's *Slowgirl* (2012), Mira in The New Group's *Russian Transport* (2012), Susie Keegan in Broadway's *The Country House* (2014), and Blanche Bushkin in the 2023 Classic Stage Company revival of *I Can Get It For You Wholesale*; she also appeared in the 2024 Off-Broadway premiere of *Pre-Existing Condition*.[3](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Sarah-Steele/) • [15](https://www.geffenplayhouse.org/people/sarah-steele/)
## Working style
Steele has described playing Marissa Gold as teaching her to keep performances spontaneous rather than hitting marks she had rehearsed mentally, a lesson she attributes to working as a child actor and reading scripts in theater.[14](https://www.backstage.com/magazine/article/sarah-steele-talks-auditioning-steve-martin-5107/) Carrie Preston, who directed her on *The Good Fight* and welcomed her back on *Elsbeth*, described her as a guest player who always says yes, wants to try something, comes with fresh ideas, and arrives prepared.[5](https://www.cinemablend.com/interviews/after-elsbeth-shouted-out-good-wife-fan-favorite-carrie-preston-talked-sarah-steele-reunion)
## References
1. [Sarah Steele – Actress, TV Insider](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/sarah-steele/)
2. [Sarah Steele Movies & TV Shows List, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/sarah_steele)
3. [Sarah Steele (Actor) – Broadway & Theatre Credits, BroadwayWorld](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Sarah-Steele/)
4. [Sarah Steele – Biography, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1511685/bio/)
5. [After Elsbeth Shouted Out A Good Wife Fan Favorite…, CinemaBlend](https://www.cinemablend.com/interviews/after-elsbeth-shouted-out-good-wife-fan-favorite-carrie-preston-talked-sarah-steele-reunion)
6. [Interview with Actor: The Humans, Roundabout Theatre Company Upstage](https://res.cloudinary.com/roundabout-theatre-company/image/upload/v1545236580/PDFs-and-FORMS/UPSTAGE/The-Humans-Final-Web.pdf)
7. [Sarah Steele finding herself on everybody's to-hire list, Philadelphia Daily News via Inquirer](https://www.inquirer.com/philly/entertainment/20130726_Sarah_Steele_finding_herself_on_everybody_s_to-hire_list.html)
8. [Sarah Steele – News, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1511685/news/)
9. [Sarah Jane Steele – Age, Bio, Family, Famous Birthdays](https://www.famousbirthdays.com/people/sarah-steele.html)
10. [Sarah Steele On 'The Good Fight', Christine Baranski & Her Career, CBS Los Angeles](https://www.cbsnews.com/losangeles/news/sarah-steele-the-good-fight-cbs/)
11. [Interview with Robert and Michelle King, creators of The Good Wife, Channel 4](https://www.channel4.com/press/news/interview-robert-and-michelle-king-creators-good-wife)
12. [The Good Fight's Sarah Steele Reflects On Her Slow, Steady Rise, TVLine](https://www.tvline.com/interviews/sarah-steele-good-fight-interview-season-5-marissa-sex-scene-1234714402/)
13. [Five Burning Questions with Speech & Debate Star Sarah Steele, BroadwayBox](https://www.broadwaybox.com/daily-scoop/five-burning-questions-with-speech-debate-star-sarah-steele/)
14. [Sarah Steele Talks Auditioning for Steve Martin, Backstage](https://www.backstage.com/magazine/article/sarah-steele-talks-auditioning-steve-martin-5107/)
15. [Sarah Steele – Actor, Geffen Playhouse](https://www.geffenplayhouse.org/people/sarah-steele/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screen actors of the Anglosphere and Europe › American actors: 2000s onward › Surnames Sp to S*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license