In 1999, Brugel made her film debut in Vendetta alongside Christopher Walken. In 2000, she had a role in A Diva's Christmas Carol, a Christmas television film starring Vanessa Williams, Rozonda Thomas, and Kathy Grffin. She went on to appear in films such as Jason X, KAW, Splice, and The Calling.
Brugel started out as a Dancer but quit when she grew to be taller than her partners. She entered the renowned Theatre Program at York University with a Fine Arts Talent Scholarship, and graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 2000.
In 2013, Brugel founded Brugs Army, a non profit organization that focuses on improving the lives of women and children.
In 2014, she appeared in the David Cronenberg film Maps to the Stars and The Calling alongside Susan Sarandon. In 2015, she portrayed Marci Coates in several episodes of Orphan Black.
More recently, she has starred as a recurring character in the USA Network series Eyewitness (2016). She has also played a recurring character, a housekeeper named Rita, in the Hulu series The Handmaid's Tale, based on Margaret Atwood's novel of the same name.
