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IMDbPro

Sigourney Weaver(I)

  • Actress
  • Producer
  • Soundtrack
IMDbProStarmeter
Top 50035
Sigourney Weaver
IMDb sits down with stars Zoe Saldana, Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang, Kate Winslet, Bailey Bass, Jamie Flatters, Trinity Jo-Li-Bliss, Jack Champion, director and writer James Cameron, and producer Jon Landau to learn just how long they can hold their breath underwater, what their favorite Na'vi phrases are, and whether we'll see Leonardo DiCaprio join the Avatar franchise.
Play clip4:10
Burning Questions With 'Avatar: The Way of Water'
99+ Videos
99+ Photos
Sigourney Weaver was born Susan Alexandra Weaver, on October 8, 1949, in Leroy Hospital in New York City. Her father, TV producer Sylvester L. Weaver Jr., originally wanted to name her Flavia, because of his passion for Roman history (he had already named her elder brother Trajan). Her mother, Elizabeth Inglis, was a British actress who had sacrificed her career for a family. Sigourney grew up in a virtual bubble of guiltless bliss, being taken care by nannies and maids. By 1959, the Weavers had resided in 30 different households. In 1961, Sigourney began attending the Brearly Girls Academy, but her mother moved her to another New York private school, Chapin. Sigourney was quite a bit taller than most of her other classmates (at the age of 13, she was already 5' 10"), resulting in her constantly being laughed at and picked on; in order to gain their acceptance, she took on the role of class clown.

In 1962, her family moved to San Francisco briefly, an unpleasant experience for her. Later, they moved back east to Connecticut, where she became a student at the Ethel Walker School, facing the same problems as before. In 1963, she changed her name to "Sigourney", after the character "Sigourney Howard" in F. Scott Fitzgerald's "The Great Gatsby" (her own birth name, Susan, was in honor of her mother's best friend, explorer Susan Pretzlik). Sigourney had already starred in a school drama production of "A Midsummer Night's Dream", and, in 1965, she worked during the summer with a stock troupe, performing in "A Streetcar Named Desire" and "You Can't Take It With You" (she didn't star in the latter because she was taller than the lead actor!). After graduating from school in 1967, she spent some months in a kibbutz at Israel. At that time, she became engaged to reporter Aaron Latham, but they soon broke up.

In 1969, Sigourney enrolled in Stanford University, majoring in English Literature. She also participated in school plays, especially Japanese Noh plays. By that time she was living in a treehouse, alongside a male friend, dressed in elf-like clothes! After completing her studies in 1971, she applied for the Yale School of Drama in New York. Despite appearing at the audition reading a Bertolt Brecht speech and wearing a rope-like belt, she was accepted by the school but her professors rejected her, because of her height, and kept typecasting her as prostitutes and old women (whereas classmate Meryl Streep was treated almost reverently). However, in 1973, while making her theatrical debut with "Watergate Classics", she met up with a team of playwrights and actors and began hanging around with them, resulting in long-term friendships with Christopher Durang, Kate McGregor-Stewart and Albert Innaurato.

In 1974 she starred in such plays as Aristophanes' "Frogs" and Durang's "The Nature and Purpose of the Universe" and "Daryl and Carol and Kenny and Jenny", as Jenny. After finishing her studies that year, she began seriously pursuing a stage career, but her height kept being a hindrance. However, she continued working on stage with Durang (in "Titanic" [1975]) and Innaurato (in "Gemini" [1976]). Other 1970s stage works included "Marco Polo Sing a Song", "The Animal Kingdom", "A Flea in Her Ear", "The Constant Husband", "Conjuring an Event" and others. However, the one that really got her noticed was "Das Lusitania Songspiel", a play she co-wrote with Durang and in which she starred for two seasons, from 1979 to 1981. She was also up for a Drama Desk Award for it. During the mid-70s she appeared in several TV spots and even starred as Avis Ryan in the soap opera Somerset (1970).

In 1977 she was cast in the role Shelley Duvall finally played in Annie Hall (1977), after rejecting the part due to prior stage commitments. In the end, however, Woody Allen offered her a part in the film that, while short (she was onscreen for six seconds), made many people sit up and take notice. She later appeared in Madman (1978) and, of course, Alien (1979). The role of the tough, uncompromising Ripley made Sigourney an "overnight" star and brought her a British Award Nomination. She next appeared in Eyewitness (1981) and The Year of Living Dangerously (1982), the latter being a great success in Australia that won an Oscar and brought Sigourney and co-star Mel Gibson to Cannes in 1983. The same year she delivered an honorary Emmy award to her father, a few months before her uncle, actor Doodles Weaver, committed suicide. That year also brought her a romance with Jim Simpson, her first since having broken up two years previously with James M. McClure. She and Simpson were married on 1 October 1984. Sigourney had meanwhile played in the poorly received Deal of the Century (1983) and the mega-hit Ghostbusters (1984). She was also nominated for a Tony Award for her tour-de-force performance in the play "Hurly Burly". Then followed One Woman or Two (1985), Half Moon Street (1986) and Aliens (1986). The latter was a huge success, and Sigourney was nominated for both a Golden Globe and an Oscar.

She then entered her most productive career period and snatched Academy Award nominations, in both Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress categories, for her intense portrayal of Dian Fossey in Gorillas in the Mist (1988) and her delicious performance as a double-crossing, power-hungry corporate executive in Working Girl (1988). She ended up losing in both, but made up for it to a degree by winning both Golden Globes. After appearing in a documentary about fashion photographer Helmut Newton, Helmut Newton: Frames from the Edge (1989), and reprising her role in the sequel Ghostbusters II (1989), she discovered she was pregnant and retired from public life for a while. She gave birth to her daughter Charlotte Simpson on 13 April 1990, and returned to movies as a (now skinhead) Ripley in Alien³ (1992) and a gorgeous Queen Isabella of Spain in 1492: Conquest of Paradise (1992), her second film with director Ridley Scott. She starred in the political comedy Dave (1993) alongside Kevin Kline, and then a Roman Polanski thriller, Death and the Maiden (1994).

In 1995 she was seen in Jeffrey (1995) and Copycat (1995). The next year she "trod the boards" in "Sex and Longing", yet another Durang play. She hadn't performed in the theater in many years before that play, her last stage performances occurring in the 1980s in "As You Like It" (1981), "Beyond Therapy" (1981), "The Marriage of 'Bette and Boo'" (1985) and "The Merchant of Venice" (1986). In 1997 she was the protagonist in Snow White: A Tale of Terror (1997), The Ice Storm (1997) and Alien: Resurrection (1997). Her performance in "The Ice Storm" got her a BAFTA prize and another Golden Globe nod. She also gave excellent performances in A Map of the World (1999) and the sci-fi spoof Galaxy Quest (1999). Her next comedy, Company Man (2000), wasn't quite so warmly welcomed critically and financially, however. She next played a sexy con artist in Heartbreakers (2001) and had a voice role in Big Bad Love (2001). Her father died at the age of 93. Sigourney herself has recently starred in Tadpole (2002) and is planning a cinematic version of The Guys (2002), the enthralling September 11th one-act drama she played on stage on late 2001. At age 60, she played a crucial role in Avatar (2009), which became the top box-office hit of all time. The film reunited her with her "Aliens" director James Cameron. Her beauty, talent, and hard-work keeps the ageless actress going, and she has continued to win respect from her fans and directors.
BornOctober 8, 1949
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BornOctober 8, 1949
IMDbProStarmeter
Top 50035
  • View contact info at IMDbPro
  • Nominated for 3 Oscars

'Avatar: The Way of Water' Cast In and Out of Character

'Avatar: The Way of Water' Cast In and Out of Character

Zoe Saldana, Sam Worthington, and more of the cast of Avatar: The Way of Water in and out of character.
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Photos

Photos785

James Cameron, Sigourney Weaver, Kate Winslet, Stephen Lang, Zoe Saldana, and Sam Worthington in Burning Questions With 'Avatar: The Way of Water' (2022)
Sigourney Weaver in Avatar: The Way of Water (2022)
Sigourney Weaver in Avatar: The Way of Water (2022)
Sigourney Weaver in Avatar: The Way of Water (2022)
Sigourney Weaver, Zoe Saldana, Sam Worthington, Britain Dalton, Jamie Flatters, and Trinity Jo-Li Bliss in Avatar: The Way of Water (2022)
Sigourney Weaver and Charles Dance in Alien³ (1992)
Sigourney Weaver and Jack Champion in Avatar: The Way of Water (2022)
Sigourney Weaver and Britain Dalton in Avatar: The Way of Water (2022)
Sigourney Weaver, Ian Holm, and Yaphet Kotto in Alien (1979)
Sigourney Weaver in The Movies That Made Us (2019)
Sigourney Weaver and Sebastian Stan in Political Animals (2012)
Sigourney Weaver in Gorillas in the Mist (1988)

Known for

Alien (1979)
Alien
8.5
  • Ripley
  • 1979
Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang, Michelle Rodriguez, Zoe Saldana, and Sam Worthington in Avatar (2009)
Avatar
7.9
  • Dr. Grace Augustine
  • 2009
Alien: Resurrection (1997)
Alien: Resurrection
6.2
  • Ripley
  • 1997
Sigourney Weaver in Gorillas in the Mist (1988)
Gorillas in the Mist
7.0
  • Dian Fossey
  • 1988

Credits

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IMDbPro

Actress

  • The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart
    • Post-production
  • Avatar 3
    • Post-production
  • Avatar 4
    • In Production
  • Avatar 5
    • In Production
  • Zoe Saldana, Sam Worthington, Bailey Bass, and Britain Dalton in Avatar: The Way of Water (2022)
    Avatar: The Way of Water
  • Master Gardener (2022)
    Master Gardener
  • Sigourney Weaver and Elizabeth Banks in Call Jane (2022)
    Call Jane
  • Paul Rudd, Logan Kim, Mckenna Grace, Finn Wolfhard, and Celeste O'Connor in Ghostbusters: Afterlife (2021)
    Ghostbusters: Afterlife
  • The Good House (2021)
    The Good House
  • Secrets of the Whales (2021)
    Secrets of the Whales
  • Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike (2021)
    Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike
  • Isabelle Candelier, Thibault de Montalembert, Liliane Rovère, Assaad Bouab, Fanny Sidney, Camille Cottin, Nicolas Maury, François Civil, Ophélia Kolb, Laure Calamy, Grégory Montel, and Stéfi Celma in Call My Agent! (2015)
    Call My Agent!
  • Sigourney Weaver and Margaret Qualley in My Salinger Year (2020)
    My Salinger Year
  • The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance (2019)
    The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance
    • (voice)
  • Samantha Bee in Full Frontal with Samantha Bee (2016)
    Full Frontal with Samantha Bee
  • Dian Fossey: Secrets in the Mist (2017)
    Dian Fossey: Secrets in the Mist
    • (voice)
  • Caroline Catz and Martin Clunes in Doc Martin (2004)
    Doc Martin
  • Charlie Cox, Krysten Ritter, Mike Colter, and Finn Jones in The Defenders (2017)
    The Defenders
  • Penn Zero: Part-Time Hero (2014)
    Penn Zero: Part-Time Hero
    • (voice)

Producer

  • The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart
    • Post-production
  • Alien: Resurrection (1997)
    Alien: Resurrection
  • Alien³ (1992)
    Alien³

Soundtrack

  • Sigourney Weaver, Alessandro Nivola, Keri Russell, and Kate Bosworth in The Girl in the Park (2007)
    The Girl in the Park
  • Snow Cake (2006)
    Snow Cake
  • Sigourney Weaver, Gene Hackman, and Jennifer Love Hewitt in Heartbreakers (2001)
    Heartbreakers
  • Kevin Kline and Sigourney Weaver in Dave (1993)
    Dave
  • Saturday Night Live (1975)
    Saturday Night Live
  • Alien (1979)
    Alien
    • (uncredited)

Videos225

Burning Questions With 'Avatar: The Way of Water'
Clip 4:10
Burning Questions With 'Avatar: The Way of Water'
'Avatar: The Way of Water' Stars on First Impressions and Swear Jar Infractions
Clip 2:55
'Avatar: The Way of Water' Stars on First Impressions and Swear Jar Infractions
The 'Avatar: The Way of Water' Cast Reveal Their Most Challenging Moments on Set
Clip 2:45
The 'Avatar: The Way of Water' Cast Reveal Their Most Challenging Moments on Set
Sigourney Weaver | Career Retrospective
Clip 1:33
Sigourney Weaver | Career Retrospective
What We Know About 'Avatar 2' ... So Far
Clip 2:53
What We Know About 'Avatar 2' ... So Far
Sigourney Weaver: Movie & TV Moments
Clip 1:28
Sigourney Weaver: Movie & TV Moments
Don't Touch Anything
Clip 1:07
Don't Touch Anything
"Stoke the Fire" from Paul
Clip 1:11
"Stoke the Fire" from Paul
"Do You Guys Partake?" from Paul
Clip 1:04
"Do You Guys Partake?" from Paul
"First Encounter" from Paul
Clip 1:21
"First Encounter" from Paul
"Little Ale Inn" from Paul
Clip 0:52
"Little Ale Inn" from Paul
"Bagels and Coffee" from Paul
Clip 0:48
"Bagels and Coffee" from Paul

Personal details

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    • October 8, 1949
    • Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA
    • Jim SimpsonOctober 1, 1984 - present (1 child)
    • Charlotte Simpson
    • Sylvester L. Weaver Jr.
    • (Sibling)
  • Other works
    Off-Broadway revue: "Das Lustania Songspiel" in which she co-wrote and co-starred with Christopher Durang - Direct Thatre/ Van Dam Theatre, NYC (1976)/ Chelsea Theatre Center, New York (1979).
  • Publicity listings
    • 24 Interviews
    • 17 Articles
    • 21 Pictorials
    • 79 Magazine Cover Photos

Did you know

Edit
  • Trivia
    In Alien: Resurrection (1997), Sigourney actually managed to sink the basketball into the hoop backwards on the first take, even though she was not supposed to or intended to. The shot was almost ruined because Ron Perlman broke character because he was so amazed.
  • Quotes
    I'd rather have a small part in a movie I love than a bigger part in one I don't care about.
    • Often plays women of enormous strength and stature
    • The Village
      (2004)
      $2,000,000

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