Bethany Joy Lenz was born on April 2, 1981 in Hollywood, Florida. Lenz is an only child to Robert George Lenz, a history teacher and therapist, and Catharine Malcolm Holt Shepard, a personnel manager and entrepreneur. She is of Australian(from her paternal side), Scottish, German and Irish descent. She actually has lineage that trace all the way back to the Scottish King Malcolm Her grandfather, George Lenz, was a regular on the Broadway stage in the 1950s starring in musicals Wish You Were Here, South Pacific, and many others. Following in her grandfather's footsteps, Lenz began singing at the early age of three at The Carpenter's Church in Lakeland, Florida. At the age of seven, Joy and her family moved to Arlington, Texas where she attended Pope Elementary. She was also enrolled in The Creative Arts Theater and School where she took dance, tap, jazz, acting and theater classes. At seven years old, Lenz landed her first stage role playing a Munchkin in a local production of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Three years later, Lenz played Scout in the production of To Kill a Mockingbird at the Irving Community Theater in Texas.
At the age of seventeen, Lenz earned a nine episode gig as the teenage clone of Reva Shayne on the CBS Daytime soap opera Guiding Light. Her stint earned her such favorable reviews from viewers, critics and Guiding Light executives alike that Lenz was eventually recast as Michelle Bauer Santos upon Rebecca Budig's exit - an unusual move that was "unheard of" in the industry according to CBS producer, Mickey Dwyer-Dobbin. In 1999 while working on the demanding daytime serial Guiding Light, she graduated from Eastern Christian High School in New Jersey and landed the role of Rose Cronin in Mary and Rhoda; a made-for-television movie that reunited Mary Tyler Moore and Valerie Harper as Mary Richards and Rhoda Morgenstern. At the time Lenz juggled a heavy storyline, a television movie portraying Mary Tyler Moore's daughter, a one-year run of a New York cabaret called Foxy Ladies Love/Boogie 70's Explosion, and the lead role in an independent film. Lenz also filmed two pilots; one playing the daughter of Paul Sorvino, and the other as the lead in the WB's 1972.
At the end of her two year contract with The Guiding Light she seized the opportunity to leave her role as Michelle Bauer Santos and moved from New York City to Los Angeles to gain exposure in different avenues. Out west, Lenz was directed by Garry Marshall in "Happy Days: the Musical" (playing Pinky Tuscadero; musical directors Carole King and Paul Williams) and by Arthur Allan Seidleman in a staged reading of a musical version of The Outsiders. During this time Lenz also landed guest appearances on Off-Centre, Charmed, Felicity, Maybe It's Me and The Guardian. In 2002 Lenz joined the cast of Bring It On Again as the co-captain of the varsity squad, Marni Potts.
At the age of twenty two Lenz was cast in the WB's television series One Tree Hill. Lenz originally auditioned for the roles of Brooke Davis and Haley James but ultimately landed the role of Haley James, the quintessential girl-next-door who is best friends with Lucas Scott, portrayed by Chad Michael Murray and wife of Nathan Scott, portrayed by James Lafferty. During her time on One Tree Hill, Lenz was also offered the role of Belle in Beauty and the Beast when it was still in production on Broadway, but turned it down due to scheduling conflicts with the show. Furthermore, Lenz appeared in an episode of Life Unexpected alongside Kate Voegele as part of a crossover-event between One Tree Hill and Life Unexpected.
In the sixth season, Lenz made her directorial debut and stepped behind the camera to call all the shots. Lenz initially approached producer Greg Prange in 2007 with the idea of directing but was not given the opportunity to direct until two years after her request. Over the course of season six Lenz shadowed several directors, watched them prep and went on [location] scouts. Since her directorial debut, Lenz directed two additional episodes.
In February 2011, Lenz announced the arrival of their daughter, Maria Rose Galeotti, and a year later made the unexpected announcement that she would be divorcing her husband. Lenz released the following statement, "you'll all be wondering soon why everyone is calling me "Bethany Joy Lenz" again. I'm sorry to say that Michael and I have decided to divorce. We remain friendly and dedicated to raising our beautiful girl in love and we appreciate your prayers and support during this difficult time." Due to the divorce, Lenz now resides in Los Angeles with her daughter.
In December 2012, Lenz and her daughter, Maria were photographed shopping. With them was fellow actor and close friend, Wes Ramsey. Speculations began to surface whether the two were an item. On March 10, 2013 the pair was seen arriving and leaving the Lakers Youth Foundation event holding hands, confirming them as a couple.
Source: wikipedia.org