<P> Deschanel obtained her first leading film role debut in the independent drama All the Real Girls (2003) as Noel, a sexually curious 18 - year - old virgin who has a life - changing romance with an aimless 22 - year - old . The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and was an arthouse success . Her performance received wide critical acclaim, and Variety remarked: "Performances are all credible and naturalistic, but standing out from the rest is Deschanel's work, which evinces an impressively direct connection to her character's emotions . The actress does a wonderful job presenting a young woman who is trying, with varying degrees of success, to give voice to all sorts of things she has never felt or expressed before". She received an Independent Spirit Award nomination for Best Actress . Also in 2003, Deschanel starred opposite Will Ferrell in the Christmas comedy Elf as a deadpan department store worker and the love interest of a man raised by Santa's elves . Reviewers found the film to be a "spirited, good natured family comedy", as part of an overall positive critical response, and budgeted at US $33 million, Elf made US $220.4 million worldwide . </P> <P> In 2004, Deschanel starred in Eulogy and in 2005, she played Trillian in the film adaptation of Douglas Adams's science fiction novel The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy . She acted in Winter Passing (2005), co-starring Will Ferrell . Deschanel next appeared in Failure to Launch (2006), as the neurotic roommate of Sarah Jessica Parker's character . She also had a recurring role in four episodes of the Showtime television series Weeds from 2006 to 2007 where she played Kat, Andy Botwin's quirky ex-girlfriend . In September 2006, it was announced that Deschanel had signed on to play 1960s singer Janis Joplin in the film The Gospel According to Janis, to be co-written and directed by Penelope Spheeris . The film was scheduled to begin shooting in 2006, but was then postponed indefinitely; it was then resurrected again, with a planned release date of 2012, before being cancelled altogether in 2011 . Deschanel expressed frustration with the cancellation, saying she had spent three years working on imitating Joplin's scratchy singing voice . </P> <P> In 2007, Deschanel appeared in two children's films: Bridge to Terabithia, in which she played a quirky music teacher, and the animated film Surf's Up, voicing a penguin . She took on the brief role of Dorothy Evans in the revisionist Western The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford and starred in the B comedy Flakes, which was released in only one theater . Deschanel starred as DG in the Syfy Channel miniseries Tin Man, a re-imagined science fiction version of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz . It aired in December 2007 . Deschanel also narrated the children's book Players in Pigtails . She voiced Mary, Cletus's daughter in three episode of The Simpsons since debuting on the April 27, 2008 episode, "Apocalypse Cow". </P> <P> In M. Night Shyamalan's thriller The Happening (2008), she starred opposite Mark Wahlberg as a couple trying to escape from an inexplicable natural disaster . Despite largely negative reviews, critic Roger Ebert felt that Wahlberg and Deschanel's performances "bring a quiet dignity to their characters", and globally, the film made US $163 million . She starred in the independent comedy Gigantic (2008), which screened at the Toronto International Film Festival and was distributed for a limited release in certain parts of the United States only . In the comedy Yes Man (also 2008), she played an unorthodox singer and the girlfriend of Jim Carrey's character . The film grossed US $223.1 million around the world . </P>

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