Minka Kelly is an American actress. She was born in Los Angeles, California and is an only child, the daughter of former Aerosmith guitarist Rick Dufay. According to Kelly, her childhood was "pretty rough," and she held resentment for Dufay, as he had abandoned her and her mother. However, at seventeen, she decided to try and reconcile by inviting him out to New Mexico.

After graduating from high school, Kelly returned to Los Angeles with her father to pursue acting as a hobby while she went to school to become a surgical technician. However, after her first acting class she got "hooked" and began pursuing acting as a career. Success came slowly, and she began her career with small roles in various movies and shows, including the film State's Evidence, and a recurring-guest role on the TV program What I Like About You.

In the spring she was cast as Lyla Garrity on the show Friday Night Lights. In preparation for the role, she trained with the Pflugerville High School cheerleading squad. Kelly has received praise for her acting on Friday Night Lights, with the New York Times calling her performance "heartbreaking".

She shot a cameo for The Kingdom, alongside Jamie Foxx Peter Berg, the creator and pilot director of Friday Night Lights, directed the film.