Jen Lilley still remembers the phone call.
She had spent weeks studying silent films, immersing herself in the work of Clara Bow and Charlie Chaplin while teaching herself the nuances of 1920s hair, makeup, and style. When a casting notice arrived for a small film called The Artist, Lilley had a feeling.
"I told my agent, 'If you get me in that room, I will book it.'"
She did.
The film went on to win five Academy Awards, including Best Picture, and became the launchpad for a career that would eventually include General Hospital, Days of Our Lives, dozens of Hallmark favorites, and a devoted fan base spanning generations. This November, Lilley will return to the big screen portraying Gloria Stewart in Jimmy, the highly anticipated film chronicling the life of legendary actor and decorated war hero Jimmy Stewart.
Looking back, however, Lilley doesn't measure her life by movie premieres, red carpets, or television ratings.
"I love storytelling and I love empathy," she says.
That sentiment surfaces repeatedly throughout our conversation. It appears when she talks about acting, motherhood, and when she discusses foster care, adoption, and the children who ultimately changed the course of her life.
Long before Hallmark Christmas movies became a staple in living rooms across America, Lilley was a college student in Virginia who never imagined acting would become a career. In fact, she thought she might become a journalist.
An open casting call changed everything.
After landing a role in an independent film, she discovered something unexpected.
"I got on set and was just like, 'Oh, I love the camera. I'm not afraid of the camera. I'm good at ignoring it.'"
The industry took notice.
The Artist led to General Hospital. General Hospital led to Days of Our Lives. Days opened the door to Hallmark, where Lilley became one of the network's most familiar faces.
Yet what resonates most with her isn't fame. It's impact.
Fans regularly approach her to share stories about how one of her films helped them through grief, illness, or an especially difficult season of life.
"I get messages like, 'My mom died this year and your Christmas movie was the only 90 minutes I didn't cry.'"
Others tell her they watched her films while undergoing cancer treatments.
"That makes acting feel like a job that's worth doing."
While her career continued to grow, Lilley found herself searching for a cause that felt equally meaningful.
After researching issues affecting children in the United States, she connected with Childhelp, the Arizona-founded organization dedicated to helping abused and neglected children. She became a celebrity ambassador and volunteered through the organization's Special Friends mentoring program.
There, she met an eight-year-old girl who would ultimately change the trajectory of her life.
When the child faced reunification, which in her case was extremely dangerous, Lilley and her husband made a decision they never anticipated.
They became licensed foster parents.
Like many first-time foster families, they entered the process with optimism and more than a few misconceptions.
"We thought we'd foster, do our part, help a child reunify with their family, process the grief, maybe take a vacation, and then foster again," Lilley says with a laugh. "We were idiots."
The reality was far more complicated.
Their first foster placement was a four-month-old baby named Kayden. What was intended to be a temporary placement became a years-long journey through court hearings, uncertainty, and a system that often moves far more slowly than the families living inside it.
For more than three years, Lilley and her husband loved Kayden while waiting for decisions they could not control.
"You are living in limbo," she says.
The experience taught her one of the lessons she now shares most often.
"The goal of foster care is not adoption. The goal of foster care is to help families heal so children can safely return home."
It is a distinction many people misunderstand. Foster parents are asked to love children deeply while accepting that reunification may ultimately be the best outcome.
Lilley is equally passionate about challenging another misconception.
"Children in foster care have entered into a very broken system through no fault of their own."
Many people assume foster children are troubled or difficult. Lilley sees something entirely different.
"More times than not, it's neglect. Sometimes it's neglect that could have been prevented."
That perspective has also shaped the compassion she extends toward biological families. Rather than viewing foster care as a battle between parents and foster parents, Lilley believes many of the adults involved are carrying wounds of their own.
"Foster care is a cycle of abuse."
The challenges are often far more complicated than they appear from the outside.
Eventually, Lilley and her husband adopted Kayden. Years later, they adopted his younger brother, Jeffrey.
Today, the boys are ten and eight years old.
"We don't view them any differently than our two biological daughters."
Their family may not have been built the way they originally envisioned, but Lilley wouldn't change a thing.
The experience became the foundation for her newest book, Call to Foster? An Honest Guide to Getting Started.
Part memoir and part practical guide, the book combines real-life stories with practical advice for families considering foster care. Lilley shares the moments most people never see: the court hearings, the heartbreak, the uncertainty, the setbacks, and the victories. She wanted to create the resource she wishes she had when she first started.
Her goal isn't to convince everyone to become foster parents.
It's to help people understand that everyone can play a role.
Whether that's mentoring a child, supporting a foster family, volunteering, donating resources, or simply learning more about the system, Lilley believes meaningful change begins when people choose to get involved.
Today, Lilley balances motherhood, advocacy, writing, and a thriving acting career that shows no signs of slowing down.
This November, audiences will see her portray Gloria Stewart in Jimmy, a film she believes arrives at the right moment.
"This film is going to remind us that we're far more similar than we are different."
When asked what lesson she carries with her every day, Lilley's answer comes quickly.
"You really never know what another person is going through."
For an actress whose career has been built around stepping into other people's lives, it feels like a fitting conclusion.
Empathy isn't just something Jen Lilley portrays on screen. It's the principle that has shaped the life she has built beyond it.
instagram.com/jen_lilley
Listen to the full interview on the Now With Nadine podcast, streaming everywhere.
"Empathy isn't just something I portray on screen."
"The goal of foster care is not adoption. The goal of foster care is to help families heal so children can safely return home."