Biography for
Sheryl Lee More at IMDbPro »

Date of Birth

22 April 1967, Augsburg, Bavaria, Germany

Birth Name

Sheryl Lynn Lee

Nickname

Angel Face

Height

5' 5½" (1.66 m)

Mini Biography

"Dead, wrapped in plastic" is how Sheryl Lee entered onto the scene as Laura Palmer, the doomed homecoming queen on the cult TV series "Twin Peaks" (1990).

Lee was born April 27, 1967 in Germany. She grew up in Boulder, Colorado, spending much of her youth studying dance before knee injuries ended her hope of becoming a dancer. She began acting in school plays, graduated from Fairview High School, and attended the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in Pasadena, California. Lee also spent time at the North Carolina School of Arts, the National Conservatory Theater in Denver, and Colorado University before pursuing stage work in Seattle, Washington.

Here Lee landed the role of Laura Palmer, and she later appeared on "Twin Peaks" (1990) as Laura's cousin Madeleine Ferguson. Madeleine was a brunette and wore glasses, but of course bore a striking resemblance to her late relative. Lee worked with "Twin Peaks" (1990) mastermind David Lynch again on the film Wild at Heart (1990), and resurrected Laura Palmer one last time for Lynch's Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1992).

Lee has gone on to have a long and adventurous career since then. Appearances have included the Stuart Sutcliffe biopic Backbeat (1994), the John Carpenter film Vampires (1998), and the TV series "L.A. Doctors" (1998).

IMDb Mini Biography By: Azure_Girl

Spouse

Jesse Diamond

(28 October 2000 - ?) 1 child

Trivia

Grew up in Boulder, Colorado, USA.

An avid member of PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) and has assertively campaigned against fur and mistreatment of animals.

Hit cult status and will be forever known as the beautiful blonde corpse and resultant object of mystery in the series "Twin Peaks" (1990). People were so fascinated with Sheryl and the Laura Palmer phenomenon, that they brought Sheryl back to life on the TV series in the form of another character, Madeleine Ferguson.

Married to musician Jesse Diamond, son of singer Neil Diamond; they have a son named Elijah.

Was performing on stage and living in Seattle when she met director David Lynch.

Was originally cast as Mary Alice Young for the ABC series "Desperate Housewives" (2004) in its pilot episode, but was replaced by Brenda Strong.

Is friends with Lenny von Dohlen who nicknamed her 'Angel Face'.

Actor Lenny von Dohlen said on her performance in Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1992): "She was so brave. I don't know many actors who could do that."

Director David Lynch was so impressed by Lee in "Twin Peaks" (1990)' pilot episode (especially the picnic scene where Laura dances and laughs with Donna) that he wrote the role of Maddy Ferguson for her, in order to bring her back in the series.

Is friends with actor Christopher McDonald.

Received the Spirit of Sundance Award for her body of work at the 1995 Sundance Film Festival.

Received the Women in Film's "Woman of the Year" Award. [1995]

Her son Elijah, with husband Jesse Diamond, was born. [May 2, 2000]

Her French dubbing voice Dorothée Jemma is also the French dubbing voice of Jennifer Aniston and Melanie Griffith.

Replaced Brooke Smith as Andrea Smithson in "Dirty Sexy Money" (2007) after its pilot episode.

Participated in the 3rd Munchkin's Project Pink annual breast cancer awareness campaign to raise money for breast cancer research. The project consists of the donation of celebrity-decorated and autographed bath ducks, put up for auction. [October 2008]

Starred on Broadway alongside Al Pacino in Oscar Wilde's "Salome" as the title role, in the Circle in the Square Theatre, under the direction of Robert Allan Ackerman. The play costarred Suzanne Bertish, Esai Morales and Arnold Vosloo. [Summer 1992]

According to director Iain Softley, as soon as he met Sheryl Lee, he knew that she would be perfect to portray Astrid Kirchherr in Backbeat (1994).

Her "One Tree Hill" (2003) character Ellie, who battles breast cancer, works with her daughter Peyton (Hilarie Burton) on a compilation CD called "Friends with Benefit" to benefit the National Breast Cancer Foundation. That CD was actually released as a tie-in album, with a portion of its proceeds going directly to the National Breast Cancer Foundation to assist in their efforts to promote early detection awareness among young women.

Her Vampires (1998) character Katrina was chosen by UGO.com as one of the "Top 50 Sexiest Vampires". [2008]

After starring alongside Moira Kelly (in Love, Lies and Murder (1991) (TV) and Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1992)) and Craig Sheffer (in Bliss (1997)), she guest-starred on their TV series "One Tree Hill" (2003), although she didn't have a scene with them on the series.

Her role in Love, Lies and Murder (1991) (TV) was called by People magazine "one of the strongest TV roles of the year".

Attended the 8th Annual Independent Spirit Awards. [March 27, 1993]

She was hired on BioShock 2 (2010) (VG) by accident, due to some mix up with the auditions. She plays one of the Splicers standing around a fire discussing what happened to Jack near the start.

Attended the iMatter March in Denver, Colorado, to raise awareness on global warming and climate change. [May 14, 2011]

Attended the 2010 Fall Hollywood Show in Burbank, California, which held a "Twin Peaks" (1990) reunion. [October 2010]

To honor Sheryl Lee's presence in North Bend for the 2011 Twin Peaks Festival and her performance in Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1992), the Seattle Art Museum hosted a screening of David Lynch's personal 35mm print of the film. [August 5, 2011]

Attended the 2011 Twin Peaks Festival. [August 2011]

In preparation for her role in Texas Killing Fields (2011), she spent time in a rehabilitation center for drug addicts.

While working in "Dirty Sexy Money" (2007) she began getting sick often with difficult time recovering and was diagnosed with neutropenia. Following her recovery she became more involved with environmental causes.

Attended the Sustainable Living Association's 3rd Annual Blue & Green Ball fundraiser and the 12th Annual Sustainable Living Fair in Fort Collins, Colorado, in which a discussion about sustainability was held between her and environmental activist Alec Loorz. [September 16-17, 2011]

Supported environmental activist Tom Weis' 2011 "Ride for Renewables" to promote renewable energy.

Attended the 25th Annual People's Choice Awards. [January 10, 1999]

Attended the premiere of public awareness campaign "Why Are We Here?", to raise awareness for biodiversity protection. [November 15, 2000]

Hosted the fundraiser "Get Your Grape On! for UNICEF", a wine testing evening benefiting UNICEF. [November 7, 2004]

Attended the "UNICEF Goodwill Gala: 50 Years of Celebrity Advocacy", to raise money for the "Audrey Hepburn All Children in School Fund". [December 3, 2003]

Advocated the protection of wolves and supported environmental organization WildEarth Guardians' "Wolves in the American West" campaign. [December 2011]

Personal Quotes

I have had many people, victims of incest, approach me since the film [Twin Peaks - Fire Walk With Me] was released, so glad that it had been made because it helped them to release a lot. And so for me, it doesn't matter what the critics say - if one person walks away having released something, then it's worth seeing. - on playing Laura Palmer in Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1992)

(on playing Laura Palmer in Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1992)) - I felt really great about the decision because I never felt complete with Laura. I never got to be Laura alive, just in flashbacks, so it allowed me to come full circle with the character. Laura always had a tremendous amount of life, because everybody talked about her, yet I didn't get to do those things and be her.

[on working with David Lynch on "Twin Peaks" (1990) and Wild at Heart (1990)] I've been wrapped in plastic on a beach, I've imitated a bird [Waldo], I've come back as my lookalike cousin, and for Wild at Heart (1990) I hung 60 feet above the ground by piano wire to play a good witch who floats down the sky. All I can think is 'What's next?' - (TV Guide, November 10, 1990)

[on playing Katrina in Vampires (1998)] I've always had a fascination with vampires. It's not that I'm exactly fascinated with the dark side. It's the human struggle with it. How we deal with those two aspects of who we are. We all have those elements. It's almost as if we each have a vampire inside us. Controlling that beast, that dark side, is what fascinates me. - (Cinefantastique Magazine, November 1998)