Hilary Swank Career Summary
My Oscar Book:
Hilary Ann Swank (born July 30, 1974), American actress, first became known in 1992 for her role on the TV series “Camp Wilder.”
She made her film debut with a minor role in Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1992), at age 18.
Swank came to international recognition for her performances as Brandon Teena in Kimberly Peirce’s Boys Don’t Cry (1999), and as Maggie Fitzgerald in Clint Eastwood’s Million Dollar Baby (2004). Both performances earned her critical acclaim and numerous accolades, including two Best Actress Oscars.
In 2005, she was named by Time as one of 100 most influential people in the world.
Swank later ventured into producing with Amelia (2009), Conviction (2010), You’re Not You (2014), and What They Had (2018), also starring in all of them.
Other notable appearances include as Carly Reynolds on the eighth season of Beverly Hills, 90210 (1997–98), the TV film Iron Jawed Angels (2004), and the feature films The Next Karate Kid (1994), The Black Dahlia (2006), Freedom Writers (2007), The Resident (2011), The Homesman (2014), Logan Lucky (2017), The Hunt (2020), and Fatale (2020).
In 2022, she starred in the TV drama series “Alaska Daily.”
Hilary Ann Swank was born on July 30, 1974, in Lincoln, Nebraska, to Judy Kay (née Clough) and Stephen Swank. Many of Swank’s family members are from Ringgold County, Iowa. Her maternal grandmother, Frances Martha Clough (née Domínguez), was born in El Centro, California, and was of Mexican descent. Swank’s paternal grandmother was born in England; her other ancestry includes Dutch, German, Ulster-Scots, Scottish, Swiss, and Welsh. The surname “Swank”, originally “Schwenk,” is of German origin.
At age six, after living in Spokane, Washington, Swank’s family moved into a home near Lake Samish, near Bellingham, Washington. She attended Happy Valley Elementary School, Fairhaven Middle School, and Sehome High School in Bellingham until she was 16.
She competed in the Junior Olympics, the Washington state championships in swimming, and ranked fifth in all-around gymnastics.
Swank made her first appearance on stage when she was nine, starring in The Jungle Book.
Living in a Car
When Swank was 15, her parents separated, and her mother, supportive of daughter’s desire to act, moved with her to Los Angeles. They lived in their car until her mother saved enough money to rent an apartment. Swank has called her mother the inspiration for her acting career and her life.
In California, Swank enrolled in South Pasadena High School, later dropping out. She described that time: “I felt like such an outsider. I didn’t feel like I fit in. I didn’t belong in any way. I didn’t even feel like the teachers wanted me there. I just felt like I wasn’t seen or understood.”
She became an actor because she felt like an outsider: “As a kid, I felt that I belonged only when I read a book or saw a movie, and could get involved with a character. It was natural that I became an actor because I longed so much to be those other people, or at least to play them.”
Swank made her film debut in the 1992 comedy horror film Buffy the Vampire Slayer, playing a supporting role, after which she acted in direct-to-video drama Quiet Days in Hollywood, where she co-starred with Chad Lowe, to whom she was married from 1997 to 2007.
Her first lead film role was in the fourth installment of the Karate Kid series, The Next Karate Kid (1994) as Julie Pierce.
The role used her gymnastics background and paired her with Pat Morita. In 1994, she also starred in the drama, Cries Unheard: The Donna Yaklich Story, as the abused stepdaughter who was protected by Donna (Jaclyn Smith). In 1995, she appeared with British actor Bruce Payne in Kounterfeit. In 1996, she starred in a TV movie, family drama Terror in the Family, as a troubled teenager. In September 1997, Swank played single mother Carly Reynolds in Beverly Hills, 90210 and was initially promised it would be a two-year role, but saw her character written out after 16 episodes in January 1998.[3] Swank later stated that she was devastated at being cut from the show, thinking, “If I’m not good enough for 90210, I’m not good enough for anything.”[16]
Being cut from Beverly Hills, 90210 freed her to audition for the role of Brandon Teena in Boys Don’t Cry.
To prepare for the role, Swank lived as a man for a month and reduced her body fat to 7%. She earned only $75 per day for her work, culminating in a total of $3,000. Her earnings were so low that she did not even qualify for health insurance.
Upon release, many critics lauded her performance, with Premiere listing it as one of the “100 Greatest Performances of All Time”.
In an 2020 interview, Swank said that she felt a trans actor should have played the role, and had she been offered it today, she would have refused it, stating “Twenty-one years later, not only are trans people having their lives and living, thankfully, although we still have a long way to go in their safety and their inclusivity, but we now have a bunch of trans actors who would obviously be a lot more right for the role and have the opportunity to actually audition for the role.”
Swank again won the Best Actress Oscar for playing a female boxer in Clint Eastwood’s 2004 film Million Dollar Baby, a role for which she underwent extensive training in the ring and weight room, aided by professional trainer Grant L. Roberts, gaining 19 pounds of muscle.
With her second Oscar, she had joined the ranks of Vivien Leigh, Sally Field, and Luise Rainer as the only actresses to have been nominated for Academy Awards for Best Actress twice and won both times.
After winning her second Oscar, she said, “I don’t know what I did in this life to deserve this. I’m just a girl from a trailer park who had a dream.”
In 2006, Swank signed a three-year contract with Guerlain to be the face of the women’s fragrance Insolence.
She received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in the motion picture category on January 8, 2007; it was the 2,325th star presented.
In 2007, Swank starred in Freedom Writers, about a real-life teacher, Erin Gruwell.
Swank next starred in the horror film The Reaping (2007), as a debunker of religious phenomena. Swank convinced the producers to move the setting from New England to the Deep South, and the film was filmed in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, when Hurricane Katrina struck.
The same year, she also appeared in the romantic drama P.S. I Love You with Gerard Butler.
Swank portrayed the pioneering aviator Amelia Earhart in the 2009 biopic Amelia, which she co-executive produced through 2S Films, a production company she established with producer Molly Smith. In preparation for the role, she began a series of flight training lessons in a Cirrus SR22.
In 2012, Swank’s audiobook recording of Caroline Knapp’s Pack of Two: The Intricate Bond Between People and Dogs was released at Audible.com.[34] In 2013, she starred in the television film Mary and Martha alongside Brenda Blethyn.[35] In 2014, Swank played the lead role of Kate Parker, a woman whose life is shattered when she develops the degenerative disease ALS, in You’re Not You. The film co-starred Emmy Rossum and Josh Duhamel. In 2015, she was listed as one of BBC’s 100 Women.[36]
In 2017, she appeared in Soderbergh’s heist comedy Logan Lucky, as Special Agent Sarah Grayson, alongside Channing Tatum and Daniel Craig.
She portrayed lawyer Colette Hughes in Bille August’s drama 55 Steps.
In 2018, Swank starred in and executive produced the Alzheimer’s disease drama film What They Had, directed by Elizabeth Chomko.
Also in 2018, she portrayed Gail Getty in the first season of FX’s anthology series Trust.
Swank was reported to star as Laura Murphy in Alejandro González Iñárritu’s drama series The One Percent.
In July 2019, Swank was cast in the thriller The Hunt, opposite Betty Gilpin. The film’s plot, about deadly violence between political liberals and conservatives caused controversy, after which its release was delayed by Universal. Swank commented: “No one’s seen the film. You can’t really have a conversation about it without understanding what it’s about.” The film was released in 2020, and received mixed reviews.
In September 2020, Swank portrayed Emma, an astronaut, in the Netflix science drama series Away, which was canceled after one season.[43] For both The Hunt and Away, Swank earned a total of three nominations at the 2021 Critics’ Choice Super Awards.
On October 18, 2016, Swank announced that she was launching a luxury clothing line, Mission Statement.mThe collection includes jackets, tops, dresses, bottoms, sports bras and sweaters that are made of eco-friendly technical fabrics, priced from $125 to $1,150.[47][50] Swank aimed to create clothing that is eco-conscious and devoid of large logos, saying in an interview with DuJour that “we believe in promoting the women wearing the clothes and not the brand itself, which is why there is no external branding.”[51] The brand works with suppliers that follow strict environmental policies and sustainable production practices.
In July 2007, hair product brand Pantene, in partnership with the Entertainment Industry Foundation’s Women’s Cancer Research Fund, signed Swank to represent Pantene Beautiful Lengths charity campaign in 2008.[52][53] The campaign encouraged people to donate their healthy hair to create free wigs for women who have lost their hair due to cancer treatment.[54] Swank participated in Pantene’s Million Inch Chain program by cutting her hair and donating it.[55]
Swank hosted and co-produced a two-hour TV special, Fox’s Cause for Paws: An All-Star Dog Special, which aired on Thanksgiving night in 2014.[56] The show celebrated the human-dog connection and rescue dogs.[57][58] In 2014, The Petco Foundation honored Swank for her animal advocacy work and, in 2015, she received the Compassion Award by ASPCA.
In 2015, Swank founded a nonprofit organization, the Hilaroo Foundation, which aims to bring at-risk teenagers and rescue dogs together in the hope that the two can heal each other. She was inspired to create the foundation after rescuing a dog called Karoo in South Africa.
On February 24, 2024, Hilary Swank supported Ukraine by appearing in video with 29 other world stars to support Ukraine against Russia. In May of that year, she joined UNITED24 ambassadors and will raise funds for Ukraine.
In a January 2009 episode of The Office, “Prince Family Paper”, the subplot of the episode is the office coworkers debating whether or not Hilary Swank is “hot”. Swank referred to such discussions emphasizing the looks of women in Hollywood as doing a “disservice.”
In October 2011, Swank attracted controversy for attending event in Chechnya’s capital Grozny on the 35th birthday of Chechen president Ramzan Kadyrov on October 5. After wishing him “Happy birthday, Mr. President”, she reportedly claimed knowledge about Kadyrov saying, “I read. I do my research.”
Following criticism from human rights groups, that reported having informed her about the human rights abuses in Chechnya prior to the event, Swank said she was unaware that Kadyrov had been accused of human rights violations and that she “deeply regrets” taking part in the lavish concert. She donated her personal appearance fees “to various charitable organizations.”
Swank revealed that she took a three-year break from acting in 2014 to help her father recover from a lung transplant.
She has been good friends with actress Mariska Hargitay since the two met on the set of television series ER. Hargitay was a maid of honor at Swank’s wedding to Philip Schneider in 2018.
While filming Quiet Days in Hollywood, Swank met actor Chad Lowe, and they married on September 28, 1997. They announced their intention to divorce on January 9, 2006, which was finalized on November 1, 2007.
In 2007 Swank began dating her agent John Campisi, a relationship they ended in May 2012.
On March 22, 2016, Swank announced her engagement to Rubén Torres, a financial advisor with UBS and former professional tennis player. The two had been dating since May 2015. In June 2016, Torres and she had ended their engagement.
On August 18, 2018, she married entrepreneur Philip Schneider after two years of dating. On October 5, 2022, she announced that she and her husband were expecting twins. On April 10, 2023, she had welcomed her twins, a son and a daughter, named Aya and Ohm.
Filmography
Year Title Role Notes
1992 Buffy the Vampire Slayer Kimberly Hannah
1994 The Next Karate Kid Julie Pierce
1996 Sometimes They Come Back… Again Michelle Porter
Kounterfeit Colleen
1997 Quiet Days in Hollywood Lolita
1998 Heartwood Sylvia Orsini
1999 Boys Don’t Cry Brandon Teena
2000 The Gift Valerie Barksdale
The Audition — Short film
2001 The Affair of the Necklace Jeanne St. Rémy de Valois
2002 Insomnia Det. Ellie Burr
The Space Between — Short film
2003 Iron Jawed Angels Alice Paul
11:14 Buzzy
The Core Major Rebecca “Beck” Childs
2004 Red Dust Sarah Barcant
Million Dollar Baby Maggie Fitzgerald
2006 The Black Dahlia Madeleine Linscott
2007 The Reaping Katherine Winter
Freedom Writers Erin Gruwell
P. S. I Love You Holly Kennedy
2008 Birds of America Laura
2009 Amelia Amelia Earhart Also co-executive producer
2010 Conviction Betty Anne Waters Also executive producer
2011 The Resident Dr. Juliet Devereau
New Year’s Eve Claire Morgan
2014 The Homesman Mary Bee Cuddy
You’re Not You Kate Parker Also producer
2015 Lauda: The Untold Story Herself Documentary
2016 Spark The Queen (voice)
2017 Logan Lucky Sarah Grayson
55 Steps Colette Hughes
2018 What They Had Bridget Ertz Also executive producer
2019 I Am Mother Woman
2020 The Hunt Athena Stone
Fatale Detective Valerie Quinlan
2023 The Good Mother Marissa Bennings [89]
2024 Ordinary Angels Sharon Stevens
TV
Year Title Role Notes
1991 Evening Shade Aimee Thompson 4 episodes
1991–1992 Growing Pains Sasha Serotsky 2 episodes
1992–1993 Camp Wilder Danielle Main role, 19 episodes
1994 Cries Unheard: The Donna Yaklich Story Patty Yaklich Television film
1996 Terror in the Family Deena Marten
1997 Dying to Belong Lisa Connors
The Sleepwalker Killing Lauren Schall
Leaving L.A. Tiffany Roebuck Main role
1997–1998 Beverly Hills, 90210 Carly Reynolds
2004 Iron Jawed Angels Alice Paul Television film
2013 Mary and Martha Mary Morgan
2018 Trust Gail Getty Main role
2019–2020 BoJack Horseman Joey Pogo (voice) 5 episodes
2020 Away Emma Green Main role; also executive producer
2022–2023 Alaska Daily Eileen Fitzgerald
2025 Yellowjackets Adult Melissa
