Kristin Bauer van Straten (born November 26, 1966) is an American film and television actress, notable for her roles as vampire Pamela Swynford De Beaufort on the HBO television series True Blood, Jerry's girlfriend Gillian on Seinfeld, and as sorceress Maleficent in the ABC series Once Upon a Time.
Van Straten was born Kristin Neubauer in Racine, Wisconsin. She is of German descent. During childhood, she played sports, rode horses, and fired shotguns. She graduated from The Prairie School in Racine. Van Straten studied fine arts at Washington University in St. Louis as well as in Boston and New York (Parsons The New School for Design) in her youth, but decided to become an actress and moved to Los Angeles, where she has been living since she began acting in 1994. She continues to draw and paint. Her works include commissioned portraits. Van Straten carries out conservation work to improve the treatment of animals.