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IMDbPro

Ellen Burstyn

  • Actress
  • Producer
  • Director
IMDbProStarmeterTop 5,0001046
Ellen Burstyn at an event for Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood (2002)
50 years after the original, 'The Exorcist' is revived with this direct sequel to the first film. Ellen Burstyn is confirmed to return as Chris MacNeil, mother of the possessed Regan and keep your head on a swivel for a potential surprise cameo from Linda Blair. Filmmaker David Gordon Green is planning a trilogy that ignores the existing sequels and series that followed 'The Exorcist' (1973), much like Green did with his 'Halloween' legacy sequels that brought Jamie Lee Curtis back to that franchise. Green, who broke out with raunchy comedies and stirring indie dramas, sees 'The Exorcist' as a brand new challenge. "To me, it's as different as making 'Stronger' and 'Pineapple Express.' ['Halloween' and 'The Exorcist'] are just so unbelievably different. One is very primal and the other is very academic," says Green. Leslie Odom Jr. ('Glass Onion,' 'Hamilton') stars as the father of a possessed child, who seeks out Burstyn's character for support since she's been there, done that. Lidya Jewett ('Vivo,' "Good Girls") plays the bedeviled young daughter, and Ann Dowd ("The Handmaid's Tale," 'Hereditary') plays her nurse. 'The Exorcist: Believer' haunts your local theater in October 2023.
Play clip1:38
All About The Exorcist: Believer
81 Videos
99+ Photos
Ellen Burstyn was born in Detroit, Michigan, to Correine Marie (Hamel) and John Austin Gillooly. She is of Irish, French/French-Canadian, Pennsylvania Dutch (German), and Native American ancestry.. She worked a number of jobs before she became an actress. At 14, she was a short-order cook at a lunch counter. After graduating from Detroit's Cass Technical High School, she went to Texas to model and then to New York as a showgirl on The Jackie Gleason Show (1952). From there, it was to Montreal as a nightclub dancer and then Broadway with her debut in "Fair Game (1957)". By 1963, she appeared on the TV series The Doctors (1963), but she gained notice for her role in Goodbye Charlie (1964). Ellen then took time off to study acting with Lee Strasberg at the Actors Studio.

Her big break came when she was cast as the female lead in The Last Picture Show (1971). For this role, she received nominations for the Golden Globe and Academy Award. Next, she co-starred with Jack Nicholson in The King of Marvin Gardens (1972), giving a chilling performance. Then came The Exorcist (1973). She was again nominated for the Golden Globe and Academy Award. In 1974, she starred in Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974), for which performance she won the Oscar and BAFTA awards as Best Actress. For the Golden Globe, she was nominated but lost to Marsha Mason. The same year, she made history by winning a Tony Award for the Broadway play "Same Time, Next Year". She won praise and award nominations for her performances in the film versions of Same Time, Next Year (1978) and Resurrection (1980).

In "Resurrection", she played a woman with the power to heal. A succession of TV movies resulting in two Emmy nominations kept her going as did the series The Ellen Burstyn Show (1986). The TV movies continued through the 1990s. Also in the 1990s, she was cast in the supporting role in such movies as The Cemetery Club (1993), How to Make an American Quilt (1995), The Baby-Sitters Club (1995) and The Spitfire Grill (1996). In addition to her acting, She was the first woman president of Actor's Equity (1982-85).
BornDecember 7, 1932
  • More at IMDbPro
    • Contact info
    • Agent info
    • Resume
BornDecember 7, 1932
IMDbProStarmeterTop 5,0001046
  • View contact info at IMDbPro
  • Won 1 Oscar
    • 43 wins & 80 nominations total

Photos281

Ellen Burstyn and Heather Graham in Flowers in the Attic (2014)
Ellen Burstyn and Andrew Kavadas in Flowers in the Attic (2014)
Ellen Burstyn and Heather Graham in Flowers in the Attic (2014)
Ellen Burstyn and Rip Torn in Tropic of Cancer (1970)
Ellen Burstyn and Vanessa Kirby in Pieces of a Woman (2020)
Ellen Burstyn, Kornél Mundruczó, and Vanessa Kirby in Pieces of a Woman (2020)
Ellen Burstyn and Heather Graham in Flowers in the Attic (2014)
Ellen Burstyn in The King of Marvin Gardens (1972)
Jack Nicholson, Ellen Burstyn, and Bruce Dern in The King of Marvin Gardens (1972)
Ellen Burstyn in The King of Marvin Gardens (1972)
Ellen Burstyn, Jerry Fujikawa, and Conrad Yama in The King of Marvin Gardens (1972)
Ellen Burstyn in The King of Marvin Gardens (1972)

Known for

Jennifer Connelly in Requiem for a Dream (2000)
Requiem for a Dream
8.3
  • Sara Goldfarb
  • 2000
Ellen Burstyn and Kris Kristofferson in Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974)
Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore
7.3
  • Alice Hyatt
  • 1974
The Exorcist (1973)
The Exorcist
8.1
  • Chris MacNeil
  • 1973
Vanessa Kirby in Pieces of a Woman (2020)
Pieces of a Woman
7.0
  • Elizabeth
  • 2020

Credits

Edit
IMDbPro

Actress

  • Mother Couch
  • The Exorcist
    • Chris MacNeil
    • Post-production
    • 2023
  • Fuddy Meers
    • Gertie
    • In Development
  • The Space Within
    • Dr. Denise Fowler
    • Post-production
    • Podcast Series
  • Bathing Flo
    • Pre-production
  • Christopher Meloni in Law & Order: Organized Crime (2021)
    Law & Order: Organized Crime
    • Bernadette Stabler
    • TV Series
    • 2021–2023
  • Gillian Anderson, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Viola Davis in The First Lady (2022)
    The First Lady
    • Sara Delano Roosevelt
    • TV Series
    • 2022
  • Three Months (2022)
    Three Months
    • Valerie
    • 2022
  • Ann-Margret, Ellen Burstyn, James Caan, Jane Curtin, and Loretta Devine in Queen Bees (2021)
    Queen Bees
    • Helen Wilson
    • 2021
  • Vanessa Kirby in Pieces of a Woman (2020)
    Pieces of a Woman
    • Elizabeth
    • 2020
  • Natalie Portman and Mehdi Taleghani in Lucy in the Sky (2019)
    Lucy in the Sky
    • Nana Holbrook
    • 2019
  • Sarah Gadon and Hong Chau in American Woman (2019)
    American Woman
    • Miss Dolly
    • 2019
  • Laura Dern and Isabelle Nélisse in The Tale (2018)
    The Tale
    • Nettie
    • 2018
  • Jon Hamm in Nostalgia (2018)
    Nostalgia
    • Helen
    • 2018
  • Sharon Stone, Famke Janssen, Ellen Burstyn, Tony Goldwyn, and Gilles Marini in All I Wish (2017)
    All I Wish
    • Celia
    • 2017
  • Ellen Burstyn, Nick Offerman, Alex Wolff, Asa Butterfield, and Maude Apatow in The House of Tomorrow (2017)
    The House of Tomorrow
    • Josephine Prendergast
    • 2017
  • Viola Davis, Hayden Panettiere, and Catalina Sandino Moreno in Custody (2016)
    Custody
    • Beatrice Fisher
    • 2016
  • Kevin Spacey in House of Cards (2013)
    House of Cards
    • Elizabeth Hale
    • TV Series
    • 2016
  • Wiener-Dog (2016)
    Wiener-Dog
    • Nana
    • 2016
  • Allison Janney and Anna Faris in Mom (2013)
    Mom
    • Shirley
    • TV Series
    • 2015

Producer

  • Bathing Flo
    • executive producer
    • Pre-production
  • James Lipton in Inside the Actors Studio (1994)
    Inside the Actors Studio
    • executive producer
    • TV Series
    • 2019–2022
  • The Actors Studio Mastering the Art Form (2019)
    The Actors Studio Mastering the Art Form
    • executive producer
    • TV Movie
    • 2019
  • Ellen Burstyn, Nick Offerman, Alex Wolff, Asa Butterfield, and Maude Apatow in The House of Tomorrow (2017)
    The House of Tomorrow
    • executive producer
    • 2017
  • Within These Walls (2001)
    Within These Walls
    • executive producer
    • TV Movie
    • 2001

Director

  • Bathing Flo
    • Director
    • Pre-production

Videos83

All About The Exorcist: Believer
Clip 1:38
All About The Exorcist: Believer
Ellen Burstyn | Career Retrospective
Clip 1:34
Ellen Burstyn | Career Retrospective
Requiem for a Dream | Anniversary Mashup
Clip 1:18
Requiem for a Dream | Anniversary Mashup
The Calling
Clip 1:46
The Calling
The Calling
Clip 2:00
The Calling
The Elephant King
Clip 1:08
The Elephant King
The Elephant King
Clip 2:19
The Elephant King
The Elephant King
Clip 1:36
The Elephant King
The Elephant King
Clip 1:53
The Elephant King
The Fountain
Clip 0:50
The Fountain
The Fountain
Clip 0:41
The Fountain
The Fountain
Clip 0:55
The Fountain

Personal details

Edit
  • Official site
    • Official Facebook
  • Alternative names
    • Ellen McRae
  • Height
    • 5′ 7″ (1.70 m)
  • Born
    • December 7, 1932
    • Detroit, Michigan, USA
  • Spouses
      Neil BurstynNovember 12, 1964 - April 1972 (divorced)
  • Parents
      Correine Marie Hamel
  • Other works
    (2/03) Stage: Appeared (as "Lucy Marsden") in "Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All" by Martin Tahse, adapted from the novel by 'Allan Gurganus' (Old Globe Theater, San Diego, CA).
  • Publicity listings
    • 1 Print Biography
    • 2 Interviews
    • 5 Articles
    • 5 Pictorials
    • 4 Magazine Cover Photos

Did you know

Edit
  • Trivia
    Suffered a permanent spinal injury while filming The Exorcist (1973). In the sequence where she is thrown away from her possessed daughter, a harness jerked her hard away from the bed. She fell on her coccyx and screamed in pain, which was kept in the final version of the released film.
  • Quotes
    Acting feels like a congenital condition to me - it's in my genes.
  • Trademarks
      Her smile
  • Salary
    • Thursday's Game
      (1974)
      $10,000

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