Biography
She made the risky transition from precocious TV kid and mainstay in melodramatic movies-of-the-week to land a seven-year run on one of the era's most awarded sitcoms, "Mad About You" (NBC, 1992-99). Then she made the nearly unheard-of turn from sitcom star to dramatic leading lady, with stellar performances in "Twister" (1996) and "As Good as It Gets" (1997). A grounded, intelligent professional who refused to take the "star" route and …
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Career Milestones
2012 | Co-starred with John Hawkes and William H. Macy in Ben Lewin's drama "The Sessions" |
2011 | Co-starred in "Soul Surfer," playing the mother of Bethany Hamilton, who lost her left arm in a shark attack when she was 13 years old |
2007 | Made directorial debut (also starred) with "Then She Found Me," a drama co-adapted by Hunt from Elinor Lipman's novel of the same name; premiered at the Toronto Film Festival; released theatrically in 2008 |
2006 | Joined cast of Emilio Estevez's directorial debut "Bobby" |
2005 | Co-starred with Ed Harris and Philip Seymour Hoffman in HBO miniseries "Empire Falls" |
2001 | Cast in lead role in Woody Allen's "The Curse of the Jade Scorpion" |
2000 | Played Tom Hanks' love interest in the Robert Zemeckis directed "Castaway" |
2000 | Starred opposite Mel Gibson in Nancy Meyers' romantic comedy "What Women Want" |
2000 | Cast opposite Kevin Spacey and Haley Joel Osment in "Pay It Forward" |
2000 | Co-starred in Robert Altman's ensemble feature "Dr. T and the Women" |
1998 | Made TV directorial debut with episodes of "Mad About You" (NBC) |
1997 | Won an Academy Award as Best Actress for her leading role in the comedy-drama "As Good As It Gets" |
1996 | Co-starred with Bill Paxton as storm chasers in Jan De Bont's blockbuster "Twister" |
1992 | Co-starred with Paul Reiser on hit NBC sitcom "Mad About You"; made a producer during the 1996-97 season; received Golden Globe (1993, 1996, 1998) and Emmy (1993, 1994, 1995) nominations for Best Actress |
1992 | Co-starred opposite Billy Crystal in "Mr. Saturday Night" |
1989 | Made Broadway debut in a revival of Thornton Wilder's "Our Town"; replaced Penelope Ann Miller as Emily Webb |
1988 | Cast in small role playing Mark Harmon's sister in "Stealing Home" |
1985 | Co-starred with Sarah Jessica Parker in dance feature "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" |
1984 | Played recurring role of Dr. Jack Morrison's (David Morse) girlfriend on NBC medical series "St. Elsewhere" |
1983 | Played a teenage girl who fights to play on her high school football team in the CBS TV-movie "Quarterback Princess" |
1977 | Cast as the next door neighbor on "The Fitzpatricks" (CBS) |
1977 | Made feature debut in "Rollercoaster" |
1975 | Landed role on adventure series "Swiss Family Robinson" (ABC) |
1974 | TV debut as a series regular, playing the title character's daughter on NBC's "Amy Prentiss" |
1973 | Made TV debut in the ABC movie "Pioneer Woman" |
1966 | Lived in with family in NYC |
Awards
2012 | Sundance Film Festival for U.S. Dramatic Special Jury Prize for Ensemble Acting in The Sessions |
2008 | Palm Springs International Film Festival for Mercedes-Benz Audience Award for Best Narrative Feature in Then She Found Me |
2007 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture in Bobby |
2001 | MTV Movie Award for Best Kiss in Cast Away |
1999 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series in Mad About You |
1998 | MTV Movie Award for Best Female Performance in As Good As It Gets |
1998 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role in As Good As It Gets |
1998 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series in Mad About You |
1998 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series in Mad About You |
1998 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series in Mad About You |
1997 | Academy Award for Actress In a Leading Role in As Good As It Gets |
1997 | Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Comedy Or Musical in As Good As It Gets |
1997 | Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Comedy Or Musical in Mad About You |
1997 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series in Mad About You |
1997 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series in Mad About You |
1997 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series in Mad About You |
1997 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series in Mad About You |
1997 | MTV Movie Award for Best Female Performance in Twister |
1996 | Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Comedy Or Musical in Mad About You |
1996 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress For a Comedy Series in Mad About You |
1996 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series in Mad About You |
1996 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series in Mad About You |
1995 | Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Comedy Or Musical in Mad About You |
1995 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series in Mad About You |
1995 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series in Mad About You |
1995 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series in Mad About You |
1994 | Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Comedy Or Musical in Mad About You |
1994 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series in Mad About You |
1993 | Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Comedy Or Musical in Mad About You |
1993 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series in Mad About You |
1992 | Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Comedy Or Musical in Mad About You |