Jordana Brewster breakthrough (2001

Breakthrough (2001–2008)
In 2001, she starred with Cameron Diaz and Christopher Eccleston in The Invisible Circus, a drama feature based on Jennifer Egan's best-selling novel. The film was not well received by critics, however, Brewster's performance was praised. Reviewer James Berardinelli stated that "The film's saving grace is the performance of Jordana Brewster (whose only previous significant screen credit was as one of the students in Robert Rodriquez's The Faculty), whose reading of Phoebe pulls as much depth from the character as Brooks' direction will allow. Phoebe's mixture of self-confidence, bewilderment, and vulnerability is entirely credible."
Brewster had her breakthrough role when she starred opposite Vin Diesel and Paul Walker in the car-themed action film The Fast and the Furious, which was a box office hit (with an over $207 million worldwide gross) and received critical acclaim. Todd McCarthy of Variety.com stated that Brewster "is looking good and doing a better job here than she did as a searching teen in the recent The Invisible Circus." In 2004, she played one of the main characters in the action comedy D.E.B.S., as Lucy Diamond, a lesbian criminal mastermind who is the love interest of Sara Foster's character. She was cast in the 2005 independent teen drama film set in late 1970s, Nearing Grace. The film is based on the novel by Scott Sommer.
In 2006, Brewster released the drama film Annapolis. The film is about a young man who dreams of one day attending the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. That same year, she appeared in the high-profile horror film The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning, which was released theatrically in October. In the film, she had the starring role of Chrissie. The Beginning was not well received by critics, however, grossed over $51 million worldwide, a modest hit. For her performance, Brewster was nominated for both "Choice Movie Actress: Horror" and "Choice Movie: Scream" at the 2007 Teen Choice Awards. Brewster appeared in Win a Date with Tad Hamilton!, but her scenes were deleted.
Brewster portrayed the role of Mrs. Smith, the role depicted in the film by Angelina Jolie, in Mr. and Mrs. Smith, a spin-off pilot to the 2005 film of the same name which was made for the ABC network. However, ABC decided not to commission the series. She also joined the cast of the NBC television series Chuck, as a recurring character, Jill Roberts, Chuck's ex-girlfriend from Stanford. She has appeared in four episodes of the show between 2008 and 2009.