Vanessa Lee Chester (born July 2, 1984) is an American actress.^[1] She began her career as a child actor in the films A Little Princess (1995) and Harriet the Spy (1996), before her breakthrough role in Steven Spielberg's The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997).

Chester was born on July 2, 1984, at Brooklyn, New York City,^[2] to Guyanese parents who immigrated to the United States. In her early childhood, she relocated with her mother to Los Angeles, California, where she began auditioning for and appearing in commercials.^[2]

Chester made her film debut in the comedy CB4 (1993) starring Chris Rock. The following year, she appeared in a supporting role in Alfonso Cuarón's A Little Princess (1995).^[1] In 1996, she appeared opposite Michelle Trachtenberg as Janie in the Nickelodeon film Harriet the Spy, which was a moderate box office success.^[3] The following year, she was cast in a lead role as Kelly in Steven Spielberg's The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997),^[4] playing the daughter of Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum). The film was a box office hit, grossing over $600 million worldwide.^[5] Chester later worked mostly in television, most notably appearing in Malcolm in the Middle and The West Wing. She was nominated for a Saturn Award (The Lost World: Jurassic Park), Image Award (The Lost World: Jurassic Park), Young Artist Award (A Little Princess) and took home the Young Artist Award for Best Performance in a Feature Film – Supporting Young Actress (Harriet The Spy).^[6] In early 2012, Chester began work on an unnamed film by Ty Hodges.^[6]