Glenn Close is an American actress, screenwriter and film producer with an extensive career in film, television, and stage work. She began her professional career in 1974 with a role in the stage play Love for Love and was mostly a stage actress in New York until the early 1980s. Her work included Broadway productions of Barnum in 1980 and The Real Thing in 1983, for which she won the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play.
Her film debut came in The World According to Garp (1982), which was followed by supporting roles in the films The Big Chill (1983) and The Natural (1984); all three earned her nominations for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Close went on to establish herself as a Hollywood leading lady with roles in Fatal Attraction (1987) and Dangerous Liaisons (1988), both of which earned her nominations for the Academy Award for Best Actress.
Close won two more Tony Awards for Death and the Maiden in 1992 and Sunset Boulevard in 1995. She won her first Primetime Emmy Award for the 1995 television drama film Serving in Silence: The Margarethe Cammermeyer Story, and she continued a successful film career with starring roles in Reversal of Fortune (1990) and Air Force One (1997), among others, and became even more widely known as a result of her portrayal as the villainous Cruella de Vil in 101 Dalmatians (1996) and its sequel 102 Dalmatians (2000). In 2003, Close portrayed Eleanor of Aquitaine in the television film The Lion in Winter, which earned her a Golden Globe Award. From 2007 to 2012 she starred as Patty Hewes in the television drama series Damages, which won her a Golden Globe Award and two Primetime Emmy Awards. In 2014, she returned to the Broadway stage, appearing in a revival of A Delicate Balance. During this period, she received two additional Best Actress Academy Award nominations for Albert Nobbs (2011) and The Wife (2017). She also won her third Golden Globe for her performance in The Wife. In 2020, she starred in Hillbilly Elegy, earning her a fourth Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress (her eighth nomination in any category), making her one of the five most-nominated actresses in Academy history.
Filmography +Key Denotes works that have not yet been released Film Year Title Role Notes 1982 The World According to Garp Jenny Fields 1983 The Big Chill Sarah Cooper 1984 The Natural Iris Gaines The Stone Boy Ruth Hillerman Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes Jane Porter Voice, uncredited 1985 Jagged Edge Theodosia "Teddy" Barnes Maxie Jan Cheyney / Maxie Malone 1987 Fatal Attraction Alexandra "Alex" Forrest 1988 Dangerous Liaisons Marquise Isabelle de Merteuil Light Years Queen Ambisextra Voice, English dub of French film 1989 Immediate Family Linda Spector 1990 Reversal of Fortune Sunny von Bülow Hamlet Queen Gertrude 1991 Hook Gutless Cameo Meeting Venus Karin Anderson 1993 The House of the Spirits Ferula Trueba 1994 The Paper Alicia Clark 1996 Mary Reilly Mrs. Farraday 101 Dalmatians Cruella de Vil Mars Attacks! First Lady Marsha Dale 1997 Paradise Road Adrienne Pargiter Air Force One Vice President Kathryn Bennett In & Out Herself Cameo 1998 Welcome to Hollywood 1999 Cookie's Fortune Camille Dixon Tarzan Kala Voice, Reprised role in 2002 DVD Read-Along 2000 102 Dalmatians Cruella de Vil Things You Can Tell Just by Looking at Her Dr. Elaine Keener 2001 The Safety of Objects Esther Gold 2003 Le Divorce Olivia Pace Pinocchio The Blue Fairy Voice 2004 The Stepford Wives Claire Wellington 2005 Heights Diana Tarzan II Kala Voice, direct-to-DVD The Chumscrubber Carrie Johnson Nine Lives Maggie 2006 Hoodwinked! Granny Puckett Voice 2007 Evening Mrs. Wittenborn 2011 Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil Granny Puckett Voice Albert Nobbs Albert Nobbs Also writer and producer Touch of Evil The Vamp Short from A Video Gallery of Cinematic Villainy 2014 Low Down Gram Guardians of the Galaxy Nova Prime Irani Rael 2015 5 to 7 Arlene Anesthesia Marcia Zarrow The Great Gilly Hopkins Nonnie Hopkins 2016 Warcraft Alodi Uncredited cameo The Girl with All the Gifts Dr. Caroline Caldwell 2017 What Happened to Monday Nicolette Cayman The Wilde Wedding Eve Wilde Also executive producer The Wife Joan Castleman Crooked House Lady Edith Father Figures Helen Baxter 2020 Four Good Days Deb Wheeler Hillbilly Elegy Bonnie "Mamaw" Vance 2021 Cruella Executive producer Swan Song Dr. Scott 2023 Heart of Stone King of DiamondsCameo 2024 The Deliverance Alberta Jackson Brothers Cath Munger The Summer Book Grandmother 2025 Back in Action Ginny Curtis Animal Farm Freida Pilkington Voice Wake Up Dead Man Martha Delacroix 2026 La bola negra Isabelle Durand The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping Drusilla Sickle Post-production
Television Year Title Role Notes 1975 Great Performances Neighbor Episode: "The Rules of the Game" 1979 Too Far to Go Rebecca Kuehn Television film Orphan Train Jessica 1982 The Elephant Man Princess Alexandra 1984 Something About Amelia Gail Bennett 1987–1988 Rabbit Ears Storybook Classics Narrator Episodes: "The Emperor and the Nightingale, "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" 1988 Stones for Ibarra Sara Everton Television film 1989–1992 Saturday Night Live Herself (host) 2 episodes 1990 The Tracey Ullman Show Virginia Episode: "Creative Differences" 1991 Sarah, Plain and Tall Sarah Wheaton Television film, also executive producer 1992 Lincoln Mary Todd Lincoln (voice)Television film 1993 Skylark Sarah Witting Television film, also executive producer 1995 Serving in Silence Margarethe CammermeyerTelevision film Inside the Actors Studio Herself Season 2, episode 4 1995–2024 The Simpsons Mona Simpson (voice) 12 episodes1996–1998 The Little Lulu Show Mrs. Van Snobbe / Mrs. Hoggenswallow Voice; 9 episodes 1997 In the Gloaming Janet Television film 1998 Ellen Herself Episode: Ellen: A Hollywood Tribute: Part 1 1999 Sarah, Plain and Tall: Winter's End Sarah Witting Television film, also executive producer 2000 Baby Adult Sophie (voice) Television film, narrator, also executive producer 2001 The Ballad of Lucy Whipple Arvella Whipple Television film, also executive producer South Pacific Nellie Forbush 2002 Will & Grace Fanny Lieber Episode: "Hocus Focus" 2003 Brush with Fate Cornelia Engelbrecht Television film The Lion in Winter Eleanor of Aquitaine Freedom: A History of US Eliza Andrews, Mary Antin PBS Documentary 2004 The West Wing Evelyn Baker Lang Episode: "The Supremes" Strip Search Karen Moore Television film 2005 The Shield Captain Monica Rawling Main role; 13 episodes (season 4) 2007–2012 Damages Patricia "Patty" Hewes Main role; 59 episodes 2015 Louie Woman Episode: "Sleepover" 2016 Family Guy Herself (voice) Episode: "A Lot Going on Upstairs" 2017 Sea Oak Aunt Bernie Pilot; also executive producer 2018–2019 3Below: Tales of Arcadia Mothership (voice) 22 episodes 2020 Jeopardy! The Greatest of All Time Herself - Clue Giver / Video Clue Presenter 2 episodes 2022 The Woman in the House Across the Street from the Girl in the Window Woman in the seat 2A Episode: "Episode 8"; Cameo 2022 Tehran Marjan Montazami Main role (season 2) 2024 The New Look Carmel Snow 3 episodes 2025–present All's Fair Dina Standish Main role; also executive producer 2026 Hollywood Squares Self Panelist; 2 episodes Maud Oldcastle Main role; upcoming seriesAlso executive producer Upcoming series
Documentaries Year Title Role 1988 American Experience Executive producer 1990 Divine Garbo Host 1992 Broken Hearts, Broken Homes Executive producer 1999 The Lady with the Torch Host 2003 In Search of the Jaguar Narrator What I Want My Words to Do to You A Closer Walk 2007 Gabon: The Last Eden 2009 Home 2010 Pax Executive producer and director 2011 Not My Life Narrator 2012 Love, Marilyn Casting By Herself 2015 Mind/Game: The Unquiet Journey of Chamique Holdsclaw Narrator 2016 Broadway: Beyond the Golden Age Herself 2021 The Me You Can't See
Stage YearTitleRole(s)Notes 1974 Love for Love AngelicaBroadway play (New Phoenix Rep at Helen Hayes Theatre) The Rules of the Game Neighbour Rex Princess Mary The Member of the Wedding Janice1975King LearCordeliaMilwaukee Repertory Theatre 1976 A Streetcar Named Desire Stella Kowalski McCarter Theatre 1977 The Crazy LocomotiveSophia Tenser / Jeanne Cackleson Off-Broadway (Chelsea Theater Center) Uncommon Women and OthersLeilah Off-Broadway (Phoenix Theatre) 1978 The Crucifer of Blood Irene St. Claire Helen Hayes Theatre 1979 Wine Untouched Off-Broadway (Clurman Theater)(Marymount Manhattan Theatre) The Winter DancersKettle 1980 Barnum Chairy Barnum St. James Theatre 1981 Uncle Vanya Elena Yale Repertory Theatre 1982 The Singular Life of Albert Nobbs Albert Nobbs Off-Broadway (Manhattan Theater Club) 1983 The Real Thing Annie Plymouth Theatre 1985 For No Good Reason/Childhood Off-Broadway (Samuel Beckett Theatre) Joan of Arc at the Stake Concert (Theatre of the Church of the Heavenly Rest) Benefactors Jane Brooks Atkinson Theatre 1991 Brooklyn Laundry Los Angeles (Coronet Theatre) 1992 Death and the Maiden Paulina Salas Brooks Atkinson Theatre 1993 Sunset Boulevard Norma Desmond Shubert Theatre 1994 Minskoff Theatre 2002 A Streetcar Named Desire Blanche DuBois National Theatre 2003 The Play What I Wrote Mystery Guest Star Lyceum Theatre 2006 Busker Alley Dame Libby St. Albans Off-Broadway musical at the Kaye Playhouse Theater at Hunter College (one-performance benefit concert) 2010 The Normal Heart Dr. Emma Brookner Walter Kerr Theatre (one-performance benefit concert) 2012 Into the Woods The Giant (pre-recorded voice)Delacorte Theater 2013 The Pirates of Penzance Ruth 2014 A Delicate Balance Agnes John Golden Theatre 2016 Sunset Boulevard Norma Desmond London Coliseum 2017 Palace Theatre 2018 Mother of the Maid Isabelle Romée The Public Theater
Commercials +YearOrganizationTitleRef.2024 Booking.com Tina Fey Books Whoever She Wants to Be
Video game +YearTitleRoleNotes2002Quest for the CodeChalktishaVoice
Theme park attractions +YearTitleRoleVenue2022Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic RewindNova Prime Irani RaelEpcot
See also List of awards and nominations received by Glenn Close
References
External links