Katherine Marie Heigl (pronounced /ˈhaɪɡəl/; born November 24, 1978) is an American actress . She is best known for her role as Dr . Izzie Stevens on Grey's Anatomy and her starring role in the movies Knocked Up, 27 Dresses and The Ugly Truth . In 1986, her older brother Jason died of injuries suffered in a car accident, after being thrown from the back of a pickup truck while out for lunch with some of his high school classmates . Following his death, the family decided to donate his organs . Afterward, their parents converted to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (prior to that her mother was Lutheran and her father Catholic) . Heigl is now a strong proponent of organ donation . Although she is no longer a "strong practicing Mormon", she stated that she hopes to " . . .find my way back as I get older and a little less selfish ." When Heigl was nine, an aunt visiting the family decided to take a number of photographs of her . After returning to her home in New York, her aunt sent the photos to a number of modeling agencies, with the permission of Heigl's parents . Within a few weeks, Heigl was signed with Wilhelmina Models as a child model . Soon after signing with the agency, a client slated Heigl for use in a magazine advertisement where she made her debut. At the time, she was earning $75 an hour posing for Sears and Lord & Taylor catalogs. Heigl appeared in her first national television spot for Cheerios cereal. She made her acting debut in the 1992 movie That Night. Heigl appeared as Christina Sebastian in Steven Soderbergh's Depression-era drama King of the Hill before being cast in her first leading role in the 1994 comedy My Father the Hero. During this time, Heigl continued to attend New Canaan High School, balancing her film and modeling work with her academic studies. Heigl dropped out of New Canaan High School after her sophomore year to pursue her career in Hollywood. .