Blue-eyed brunette Meg Foster was born in Reading, Pennsylvania on May 10, 1948 to David and Nancy. She has four siblings and grew up in Rowayton, Connecticut. Foster studied acting at New York's Neighborhood Playhouse.
Foster's first role came about in 1969, when she appeared in an episode of
NET Playhouse (1964). Throughout the '70s, she guest starred in numerous TV shows including
Barnaby Jones (1973),
The Six Million Dollar Man (1974), and
Hawaii Five-O (1968), and played Hester Prynne, a young woman who has an affair with a pastor, in the miniseries
The Scarlet Letter (1979). Foster did not really come to attention until 1982, though, when she replaced
Loretta Swit as Christine Cagney in
Cagney & Lacey (1981); she herself was later replaced by
Sharon Gless (CBS reportedly wanted a more "feminine" actress playing the role of the detective).
Foster began to appear in more movies throughout the late '80s, primarily
Masters of the Universe (1987), in which she played the nefarious Evil-Lyn. Other notable films include the satirical science fiction flick
They Live (1988), the horror sequel
Stepfather II: Make Room for Daddy (1989), and the comedic martial arts movie
Blind Fury (1989) (
Terry O'Quinn also appeared in the latter two).
Foster continued to work prolifically throughout the '90s, mostly appearing in science fiction films. She also guest starred in many popular television shows such as
Quantum Leap (1989),
ER (1994),
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993),
Murder, She Wrote (1984), and
Sliders (1995).
After appearing in a 2000 episode of
Xena: Warrior Princess (1995), Foster took a decade-long break from the acting industry. She returned in 2011 with roles in indie flicks
25 Hill (2011) and
Sebastian (2011), and had a villainous role as a revenge-seeking witch in
Rob Zombie's '70s-esque horror movie
The Lords of Salem (2012). Additionally, Foster appeared in the TV show
The Originals (2013), as well as
Pretty Little Liars (2010) and its short-lived spin-off
Ravenswood (2013). She re-teamed with Rob Zombie in 2016 for his horror film
31 (2016), in which Foster plays a kidnapped carnival worker.
Foster has a son, Christopher, with
Ron Starr. At one point, she was married to actor
Stephen McHattie.
Masters of the Universe: Revolution(2024)as Motherboard
The Accursed(2022)as Ms. Ambrose
Hellblazers(2022)as Mary
Haunted: 333(2021)as Momma McDonald
There's No Such Thing as Vampires(2020)as Sister Frank
In Hell Everybody Loves Popcorn: The Making of 31(2016)as Self
Groovey.TV's Celebration of Badassery Interview Series(2009)as Self
Abnormal Entertainment Presents(2010)as Self
Alpha to Omega: Exposing 'the Osterman Weekend'(2004)as Self
Special Collector's Edition(2010)as Evil-Lyn
The Making of 'A Different Story'(2006)as Self - Actress, Stella Cooke
Joe Bob's Drive-In Theater(1987)as Amanda Faberson
Dan August: Murder, My Friend(1980)as Em Jackson
