Ellen Burstyn
Acting

Ellen Burstyn

Born 7 December 1932 · Detroit, Michigan, USA
+ Follow

Ellen Burstyn (born Edna Rae Gillooly; December 7, 1932) is an American actress. Known for her portrayals of complex women in dramas, she has received numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, a Tony Award, and two Primetime Emmy Awards, making her one of the few performers to achieve the "Triple Crown of Acting". She has also received a BAFTA Award and a Golden Globe Award. Burstyn made her acting debut on Broadway in Fair Game in 1957 before winning the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play for Same Time, Next Year (1975). She earned the Academy Award for Best Actress as the widow Alice Hyatt in Martin Scorsese's romantic drama Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974). Her other Oscar-nominated roles were in The Last Picture Show (1971), The Exorcist (1973), Same Time, Next Year (1978), Resurrection (1980), and Requiem for a Dream (2000). Her other notable films include Harry and Tonto (1974), How to Make an American Quilt (1995), Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood (2002), W. (2008), Interstellar (2014), The Age of Adaline (2015), and Pieces of a Woman (2020). She won Primetime Emmy Awards for her guest role in the NBC legal drama Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (2009) and supporting role in the USA Network political miniseries Political Animals (2013). Her other Emmy-nominated roles include Pack of Lies (1988), Mrs. Harris (2005), Big Love (2008), Draft Day, Flowers in the Attic (both 2014), and House of Cards (2016). Since 2000, she has been co-president of the Actors Studio, a drama school in New York City. In 2013, she was inducted into the American Theatre Hall of Fame for her work onstage.

Known for

Interstellar
Requiem for a Dream
The Exorcist
The Age of Adaline
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
House of Cards
The Fountain
The Wicker Man
Pieces of a Woman
The Exorcist: Believer
Draft Day
The Last Picture Show
Place to Be
Flesh Impact
Mother, Couch
E. Jean Carroll v. Donald J. Trump
The Exorcist: Believer
Three Months
Queen Bees
Watch on the Rhine
Pieces of a Woman
The House of Tomorrow
Lucy in the Sky
American Woman
The Tale
Nostalgia
All I Wish
Wiener-Dog
Custody
The Age of Adaline
About Scout
Unity
Interstellar
Draft Day
Flowers in the Attic
River of Fundament
The Calling
Two Men in Town
Petals on the Wind
Wish You Well
Someday This Pain Will Be Useful to You
The Mighty Macs
Another Happy Day
Main Street
According to Greta
The Velveteen Rabbit
Lovely, Still
W.
The Loss of a Teardrop Diamond
Mitch Albom's For One More Day
The Stone Angel
The Fountain
The Wicker Man
The Elephant King
30 Days
Our Fathers
Mrs. Harris
The Five People You Meet In Heaven
The Madam's Family: The Truth About the Canal Street Brothel
Brush with Fate
Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood
Within These Walls
Requiem for a Dream
The Yards
Mermaid
Walking Across Egypt
Night Ride Home
Playing by Heart
The Patron Saint of Liars
You Can Thank Me Later
Deceiver
Flash
A Deadly Vision
The Spitfire Grill
Timepiece
How to Make an American Quilt
The Baby-Sitters Club
Roommates
Follow The River
When a Man Loves a Woman
Getting Gotti
Trick of the Eye
Getting Out
The Cemetery Club
Shattered Trust: The Shari Karney Story
Taking Back My Life: The Nancy Ziegenmeyer Story
Earth and the American Dream
When It Was a Game 2
Dying Young
Grand Isle
Mrs. Lambert Remembers Love
When You Remember Me
The Color of Evening
Hanna's War
Dear America: Letters Home from Vietnam
Pack of Lies
Act of Vengeance
Something in Common
Twice in a Lifetime
The Ambassador
Surviving
Into Thin Air
People vs. Jean Harris
Silence of the North
Resurrection
Same Time, Next Year
A Dream of Passion
Providence
Harry and Tonto
Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore
Thursday's Game
The Exorcist
The King of Marvin Gardens
The Last Picture Show
Alex in Wonderland
Pit Stop
Goodbye Charlie
For Those Who Think Young
Ricochet
Easy Out?
Ellen Burstyn · Midrow