Two-time Oscar nominee Marcia Gay Harden has forged a remarkable body of work, always staying true to her chameleon style of “becoming the character.”
Oscar Nominations: 2
Supporting Actress, Pollock (2001)
Supporting Actress, Mystic River (2003)
Oscar Awards: 1
Supporting Actress, Pollock
Oscar Context:
In 2003, the winner of the Supporting Actress Oscar was Renee Zellweger for Anthony Minghella's "Cold Mountain," in a race that also included Shoreh Aghdashlou in "House of Sand and Fog," and Patricia Clarkson in "Pieces of April."
Career
Marcia's character portraits have been described by critics as “searing”, “heartbreaking”, “inventive”, “pure and profane simultaneously”, “astonishing”, “authentic”, and “sensuous”. From the glamorous Ava Gardner in SINATRA, to the artist Lee Krasner in POLLOCK (for which she won Best Supporting Actress Oscar), to the down and out Cecelia in MYSTIC RIVER (another Academy Award nomination) Marcia has created a signature style based in character transformation. Her versatility and wide-range have been praised in such films as MILLERS CROSSING, THE FIRST WIVES CLUB, MEET JOE BLACK, MONA LISA SMILE, THE HOAX and USED PEOPLE.
Marcia has chosen a life away from mainstream Hollywood, crossing between independent and studio films, and television and theatre. She recently garnered a Best Actress Tony® Award for her starring role in the Tony Award winning Broadway play God of Carnage. Her nominated co-stars in the play include James Gandolfini, Hope Davis and Jeff Daniels. Additionally, she received an Outer Circle Critics Award for her performance, as well as nominations from the Drama Desk and Drama League. She was recently nominated for an Emmy® Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or Movie for her role in “The Courageous Heart of Irena Sendler.” Other nominations include a Tony nomination for Tony Kushner’s Angels in America (for which she won the Drama Desk and Theatre World Awards), an Emmy nomination for her guest appearance on “Law and Order: SVU,” also an Independent Spirit Award nomination for AMERICAN GUN.
Marcia’s most recent films include CANVAS, RAILS AND TIES, Stephen King’s THE MIST (for which she won a Saturn Award,) Sean Penn’sINTO THE WILD, andTHE CHRISTMAS COTTAGEwith Peter O’Toole. Next up, Marcia stars the comedy THE MAIDEN HEIST with William H. Macy, Morgan Freeman, and Christopher Walken. On the television front Marcia co-starred in the critically acclaimed FX drama “Damages” opposite William Hurt and Glenn Close.
Marcia graduated from the University of Texas with a B.A. in Theatre and an MFA from the Graduate Acting program at New York University. She resides in Harlem with her husband and three children.
