Mary McDonnell

Mary McDonnell is a two-time Oscar(r)-nominated actress she is well-known for her character roles in both modern and historical screen roles, as well as the long list of stage and film roles. Mary Eileen McDonnell is a Pennsylvania-born actress. She was the child of Eileen (Mundy) who was an American computer consultant from Ireland, and John McDonnell. She was born in Ithaca and attended Fredonia State University of New York. After that, she went to drama school and was admitted to the Long Wharf Theatre Company in East Coast. She was just 22 when she got her first movie part in Dances with Wolves (1990), where she played "Stands with a Fist", a Sioux Indian woman, who is white. The first time she received an Academy Award nomination was for the role. McDonnell has appeared in the Lawrence Kasdan films Grand Canyon (1991), and Mumford (1999) in the role of experienced actors as Robert Redford and Sidney Poitier. She also appeared in Roland Emmerich's Independence Day (1996), which starred Will Smith. Margin Call (2011) which was against Kevin Spacey, earned McDonnell the Robert Altman award at the 2012 Independent Spirit Awards. McDonnell was a star in the Syfy Network's award-winning show Battlestar Galactica (2004), which was highly praised for her portrayal of the President Laura Roslin. She earned an Emmy nomination for her regular guest spot on the popular television show ER (1994). She plays Captain Sharon Raydor on the TNT's successful drama series Major Crimes (2012), the sequel to The Closer (2005), where McDonnell originated the role and earned a Primetime Emmy(r) nomination. She was awarded a Best Actress Academy Award(r) nomination and an Golden Globe nomination for her performance as the paraplegic soap-opera star in John Sayles's critically-acclaimed film, Passion Fish (1992).