Ellen Burstyn Highlights

  • 2008: Portrayed former first lady Barbara Bush in Oliver Stone's controversial biopic "W."
  • 2008: Cast in Stephen Adly Guirgis' "The Little Flower of East Orange" directed by Philip Seymour Hoffman in a joint production of LAByrinth Theater Company and the Public Theater
  • 2008: Earned an Emmy nomination for her guest starring role on NBC's "Law & Order: SVU" as the bipolar estranged mother of Detective Elliot Stabler (Christopher Meloni)
  • 2007: Cast in the TV-movie, “Mitch Albom’s For One More Day” (ABC); earned a SAG nomination for Outstanding Female Actor in a Television Movie
  • 2007: Appeared on an episode of HBO's "Big Love," playing the mother of Polygamist wife Barbara Henrickson; earned an Emmy nomination in 2008 for Guest Actress in a Drama Series
  • 2006: Played a key role as Lilian in Darren Aronofsky's "The Fountain"
  • 2006: Earned an Emmy nomination for her role in "Mrs. Harris" (HBO); her nomination created controversy, because her performance, in its entirety, consisted of two lines of dialogue and a total of thirty-eight words, which resulted in fourteen seconds of screen time
  • 2005: Cast in Showtime's "Our Fathers," an adaptation of David France's epic book about the sex scandals in the Roman Catholic Church
  • 2004: Cast in the CBS TV-movie "Canal Street Brothel" about a family of women who ran a bordello out of their New Orleans home
  • 2004: Cast in the ABC TV-movie "The Five People You Meet in Heaven"
  • 2002: Portrayed an elder Viviane 'Vivi' Abbott Walker in "The Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood"; based on the best-selling novel by Rebecca Wells
  • 2000: Played a woman addicted to diet pills who fantasizes about competing on a game show in Darren Aronofsky's "Requiem For a Dream"; received Best Actress Oscar nomination
  • 2000: Cast in the CBS series "That's Life" as the meddling mother of the central character (Heather Paige Kent)
  • 1999: Co-starred as the matriarch of a troubled family in the CBS TV-movie "Night Ride Home"
  • 1998: Played a woman coming to terms with her grown son's batlle with AIDS in "Playing by Heart"
  • 1998: Played the mysterious subject of a town legend in the CBS movie "The Patron Saint of Liars"
  • 1996: Played the owner of "The Spitfire Grill" a restaurant that serves as a troubled young woman's ticket to a new life
  • 1995: Featured in "How to Make an American Quilt" as Finn's (Winona Ryder) grandmother and one of the women who share their coming-of-age stories with the aimless bride-to-be while crafting the titular gift
  • 1995: Starred on Broadway as Sister Grace in "Sacrilege"
  • 1993: Played a widow in "The Cemetary Club"
  • 1992: Featured in "Grand Isle" (TNT) the TV-movie adaptation of Kate Chopin's "The Awakening"
  • 1992: Acted in the short-lived Broadway production "Shimada"
  • 1991: Played the titular woman on the run from authorities with her grandchild in "Mrs. Lambert Remembers Love" (CBS)
  • 1989: Succeeded Pauline Collins as the titular heroine in the one-person show "Shirley Valentine"
  • 1987: Starred in the TV-movie "Pack of Lies" (CBS) an adaptation of Hugh Whitmore's hit play about a London couple who allow British intelligence to use their home to spy on their longtime friends and neighbors; earned second Emmy nomination
  • 1986: Starred in the fact-based TV-movies "Into Thin Air" (CBS) and "Act of Vengeance" (HBO)
  • 1985: With Marsha Mason, starred as mothers whose teenage children fulfill a suicide pact in "Surviving" (ABC)
  • 1982: Named first female President of Actor's Equity Association (resigned in 1985)
  • 1981: Earned Emmy nomination for her work in the fact-based NBC miniseries "The People vs. Jean Harris"
  • 1980: Stage directing debut, "Judgement"
  • 1980: Gave an Oscar-nominated performance in "Resurrection"
  • 1978: Reprised role in the film version of "Same Time, Next Year" opposite Alan Alda; earned fourth Oscar nomination
  • 1975: Starred on Broadway with Charles Grodin in "Same Time, Next Year"; won a Tony Award
  • 1974: Starred in "Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore"; also produced; hired then relatively unknown director Martin Scorsese to direct
  • 1973: Played the mother of a possessed young girl in "The Exorcist"; earned second Oscar nomination, this time as Best Actress
  • 1972: Offered a memorably performance as an aging beauty in "The King of Marvin Gardens" co-starring Jack Nicholson
  • 1971: Breakthrough screen performance, as Lois Farrow in "The Last Picture Show"; nominated for Best Supporting Actress Oscar
  • 1970: Changed billing to Ellen Burstyn for "Alex in Wonderland"
  • 1967: Joined the Actors Studio
  • 1965: Played Doctor Kate Bartok on NBC daytime drama "The Doctors"; credited as Ellen McRae
  • 1964: Feature acting debut in "Goodbye, Charlie"; billed as Ellen McRae
  • 1964: Moved to NYC
  • 1963: Had lead in TV series pilot "The Big Brain" (CBS)
  • 1957: Broadway debut in "Fair Game"
  • 1956: Debut as a TV regular as a dancer on "The Jackie Gleason Show" (CBS); billed as Erica Dean
  • Worked as a model in Texas and NYC
  • Starred on Broadway in "84 Charing Cross Road"
  • Starred in the ABC western series "Iron Horse" as a frieght line operator; credited as Ellen McRae
  • Acted in commercials using the name Keri Flynn
  • Lived in L.A.
  • Succeeded Lee Strasberg as co-artistic director (with Al Pacino, who served 1982-1984) of the Actors Studio
  • Appeared in own comedy series, "The Ellen Burstyn Show" (ABC)

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