Why Molly From Hallmark's Hannukah On Rye Looks So Familiar
If you'd have told anyone 15 years ago that Hallmark was on the cusp of becoming the small-screen king of holiday cinema, they'd likely have said you were nuts. Yet here we are, with the greetings card company cranking out beloved, holiday-themed hits at such a staggering clip, it's almost impossible to keep up with them all. And yes, it's even harder not to watch them.
Though Christmas flicks remain Hallmark's bread and butter in the holiday market, they've been dabbling in movies set during the eight crazy nights of Hanukkah of late. The most recent addition to Hallmark's Hanukkah oeuvre is a charming little rom-com by the name of "Hanukkah on Rye," which finds competing deli owners Molly and Jacob (Jeremy Jordan) being unwittingly cast together by a traditional Jewish matchmaker. As they try to figure out how they'll make their opposing businesses work, they also form a personal bond deeper than they ever expected.
As is often the case with Hallmark flicks, they do so almost begrudgingly, with the actors behind the roles bringing a resonant humanity to their respective roles. It's a safe bet many viewers recognized the face of the stubbornly sweet Molly in "Hanukkah on Rye." It belongs to rising star Yael Grobglas. Here's where you might've seen her before.
Grobglas was a scene-stealing delight on Jane the Virgin
To be sure, the wide eyes and warming smile of Yael Grobglas have been front and center in several intriguing projects since she turned pro back in 2007. But if those distinctive features are at all familiar to you, it's most likely because you were a fan of The CW hit "Jane the Virgin." That beloved comedy made its network debut in 2014, doing so with breakout star Gina Rodriguez in the title role of a young woman who becomes pregnant after a doctor inadvertently inseminates her artificially. That almost unfathomable twist of fate is only the jumping-in point for the Emmy-nominated series, which ran for five kooky seasons before getting the axe.
As it was, Grobglas appeared in all 99 episodes of "Jane the Virgin" that went to air over that span, doing so as Jane's frequent arch-nemesis, sometimes romantic rival, and eventual BFF Petra Solano. She, of course, also portrayed Petra's, shall we say, "complicated" twin sister Anežka. But for the bulk of her "Jane the Virgin" tenure, Grobglas was indeed working in the coddled skin of Petra. And if you caught her work on the series over the years, you know her at times delightfully over-the-top turn was the very definition of scene-stealing.
Grobglas tangled with Superman's cousin on Supergirl
"Jane the Virgin" was not Yael Grobglas' last appearance on a CW hit. And as it happens, "Hanukkah on Rye" was not the only project the actor shared a screen credit with alongside Jeremy Jordan. Grobglas' romantic "Hanukkah" partner was, of course, a regular presence in The CW's "Arrowverse," appearing in 69 episodes of "Supergirl" and a pair of "The Flash" tales as Winn Schott. And yes, their paths did cross on "Supergirl" when Grobglas turned up as the powered bank thief Gayle Marsh.
Marsh also went by the alias Psi on "Supergirl," making her first appearance during a Season 3 episode titled "Triggers." That first episode pit Grobglas' thief against the Kryptonian hero, with Marsh bending Kara Danvers (Melissa Benoist) and anyone else who got in her wicked way to her will by psycho-kinetically filling them with crippling fear. Kara and her team eventually found a way to take Psi down, with the D.E.O. taking her into custody at the episode's end. Marsh returned in the Season 3 episode "Fort Rozz," this time fighting alongside Kara and her allies in their ongoing battle with big, bad supervillain Reign (Odette Annable).
Though she saved Supergirl's life in that tussle, Gayle Marsh was still taken back into custody after the fight. Though she never made another appearance on "Supergirl," Grobglas still has the distinct honor of playing one of the series' best villains, and most memorable heroes.