Mary Steenburgen
Known for Acting · 151 credits
- Born
- 1953-02-08 (age 73)
- Place of birth
- Newport, Arkansas, USA
- Also known as
- Mary Nell Steenburgen
Biography
Mary Nell Steenburgen (born February 8, 1953) is an American actress, comedian, singer, and songwriter. After studying at New York's Neighborhood Playhouse in the 1970s, she made her professional acting debut in the Western comedy film Goin' South (1978). Steenburgen went on to earn critical acclaim for her role in Time After Time (1979) and Jonathan Demme's comedy-drama film Melvin and Howard (1980), for which she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.
Known For
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
1999
as Grace Rinato
Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen
2009
as Self - Guest
The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon
2014
as Self - Guest
Late Night with Seth Meyers
2014
as Self - Guest
American Dad!
2005
as (voice) / Dr. Fay Petit (voice)
Frasier
1993
as Marjorie (voice)
TV Shows (51)
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
1999
as Grace Rinato
Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen
2009
as Self - Guest
The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon
2014
as Self - Guest
Late Night with Seth Meyers
2014
as Self - Guest
American Dad!
2005
as (voice) / Dr. Fay Petit (voice)
Frasier
1993
as Marjorie (voice)
The Kelly Clarkson Show
2019
as Self - Guest
The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson
2005
as Self
The Jennifer Hudson Show
2022
as Self - Guest
Curb Your Enthusiasm
2000
as Mary Steenburgen
The View
1997
as Self
LIVE with Kelly and Mark
1988
as Self - Guest
Orange Is the New Black
2013
as Delia Powell
Justified
2010
as Katherine Hale
30 Rock
2006
as Diana Jessup
Good Day Live
2001
as Self
The Talk
2010
as Self
The Good Place
2016
as Teacher
Grace and Frankie
2015
as Miriam
Ellen
1994
as Self (uncredited)
The Oscars
1953
as Self
The Conners
2018
as Marcy Bellinger
Becker
1998
as Patient (uncredited)
A Man on the Inside
2024
as Mona Margadoff
Joan of Arcadia
2003
as Helen Girardi
Stars in the House
2020
as Self
The Last Man on Earth
2015
as Gail Klosterman
The Tony Danza Show
2004
as Self - Guest
Finding Your Roots
2012
as Self
Faerie Tale Theatre
1982
as Mary / Little Red Riding Hood
Mr. Mayor
2021
as Adriana
Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist
2020
as Maggie Clarke
Wilfred
2011
as Catherine Newman
Togetherness
2015
as Linda
Bored to Death
2009
as Josephine
Reunited Apart
2020
as Self
On Becoming a God in Central Florida
2019
as Ellen Joy Bonar
Bless the Harts
2019
as Crystalynn (voice)
E!'s 101
2003
as Self
Gulliver's Travels
1996
as Mary Gulliver
Shelley Duvall's Bedtime Stories
1992
as Narrator (voice)
Back to the Future
1991
as Clara Clayton (voice)
Ink
1996
as Kate Montgomery
Tender Is the Night
1985
as Nicole Diver (née Warren)
Noah's Ark
1999
as Naamah
Dinner for Five
2001
In the Kitchen with Harry Hamlin
2024
as Self
Southern Discomfort
as Mary Lou Dobson
Living with the Dead
2002
as Detective Karen Condrin
Happiness Isn't Everything
as Audrey Veill
BULLDOZER
2025
as Kathy
Movies (100)
The Proposal
2009
as Grace Paxton
The Help
2011
as Elaine Stein
Back to the Future Part III
1990
as Clara Clayton
Elf
2003
as Emily
What's Eating Gilbert Grape
1993
as Betty Carver
Step Brothers
2008
as Nancy Huff
Nightmare Alley
2021
as Mrs. Kimball
Last Vegas
2013
as Diana Boyle
Philadelphia
1993
as Belinda Conine
I Am Sam
2001
as Dr. Blake
Powder
1995
as Jessie Caldwell
The Discovery
2017
as Interviewer
The Dink
2026
as Candace
The Brave One
2007
as Carol
Book Club
2018
as Carol
A Walk in the Woods
2015
as Jeannie
Happiest Season
2020
as Tipper
Inland Empire
2006
as Visitor #2
Four Christmases
2008
as Marilyn
Book Club: The Next Chapter
2023
as Carol
Dirty Girl
2010
as Peggy
The One I Love
2014
as Mom (voice)
Last Train to Fortune
2025
as Miss Maybelle
In the Electric Mist
2009
as Bootsie Robicheaux
Parenthood
1989
as Karen Buckman
7 Days in Hell
2015
as Louisa Poole
Life as a House
2001
as Colleen Beck
The Trumpet of the Swan
2001
as Mother (voice)
The Dead Girl
2006
as Leah's Mother
The Long Walk Home
1990
as Narrator (voice)
My Family
1995
as Gloria
Hope Springs
2003
as Joanie Fisher
Numb
2007
as Dr. Blaine
Time After Time
1979
as Amy Robbins
Zoey's Extraordinary Christmas
2021
as Maggie Clarke
Outlaw Country
2012
as Anastasia Lee
Nixon
1995
as Hannah Nixon
Did You Hear About the Morgans?
2009
as Emma Wheeler
One Magic Christmas
1985
as Ginny Grainger
Flannery
2019
as Flannery O'Connor (voice)
Fight for Your Right Revisited
2011
as Café Patron
Tales from the Future
2010
as Self
Katie Says Goodbye
2018
as Maybelle
Cross Creek
1983
as Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings
The Butcher's Wife
1991
as Stella Keefover
The Book of Love
2017
as Julia Mureaux
Ragtime
1981
as Mother
Song One
2014
as Karen Ellis
Marilyn Hotchkiss' Ballroom Dancing & Charm School
2006
as Marienne Hotchkiss
30 Rock: A One-Time Special
2020
as Mary Steenburgen
A Midsummer Night's Sex Comedy
1982
as Adrian
Living with the Dead
2002
as Detective Karen Condrin
Earth and the American Dream
1992
as Reader (voice)
Goin' South
1978
as Julia Tate
Clifford
1994
as Sarah Davis
Elvis & Anabelle
2007
as Geneva Leigh
I Do... Until I Don't
2017
as Cybil Burger
Honeydripper
2007
as Amanda Winship
Romantic Comedy
1983
as Phoebe Craddock
Wish You Were Dead
2002
as Sally Rider
The Grass Harp
1996
as Sister Ida
The Whales of August
1987
as Young Sarah
Miss Firecracker
1989
as Elaine Rutledge
Elf: That's a Wrap
2004
as Self
The Open Road
2009
as Katherine
Dead of Winter
1987
as Julie Rose / Katie McGovern / Evelyn
Dick Van Dyke: 98 Years of Magic
2023
as Self
Nobel Son
2007
as Sarah Michaelson
A Dog’s Perfect Christmas
as Claire
It Runs in the Family
1994
as Mrs. Parker (Mother)
Remembering Ragtime
2004
as Mother (archive footage)
Character Building: Inside 'Life As a House'
2002
as Self
End of the Line
1987
as Rose Pickett
Let's Have Kids!
as Sue
Clarkworld
2009
as Self
Mrs. Pilgrim Goes to Hollywood
2003
as Mary
Sunshine State
2002
as Francine Pinkney
Little Red Riding Hood
1983
as Little Red Riding Hood a.k.a. Mary
Weird: The Al Yankovic Story
2010
as Mrs. Yankovic
Noah's Ark
1999
as Naamah
Melvin and Howard
1980
as Lynda Dummar
Sanford Meisner: The American Theatre's Best Kept Secret
1990
as Self
The Secrets of the 'Back to the Future' Trilogy
1990
as Self
O Lucky Malcolm!
2006
as Self
Easy's Waltz
2025
Pontiac Moon
1994
as Katherine Bellamy
Dean
2016
as Carol
Nobody's Baby
2001
as Estelle
Jim Henson's Turkey Hollow
2015
as Aunt Cly
It Must Be Love
2004
as Clem Gazelle
The Tulsa Lynching of 1921: A Hidden Story
2000
About Sarah
1998
as Sarah Elizabeth McCaffrey
Broadway's Dreamers: The Legacy of the Group Theatre
1989
as Self (voice)
Celebrating Betty White: America's Golden Girl
2022
as Self
Picnic
2000
as Rosemary Sydney
Back to the Future: Dickens of a Christmas
1991
as Clara Clayton Brown (voice)
Casa de los Babys
2003
as Gayle
Antiquities
2019
as Dr. Margot
The Attic: The Hiding of Anne Frank
1988
as Miep Gies
Brahmin Bulls
2013
as Helen West
About Mary Steenburgen
Mary Nell Steenburgen (born February 8, 1953) is an American actress, comedian, singer, and songwriter. After studying at New York's Neighborhood Playhouse in the 1970s, she made her professional acting debut in the Western comedy film Goin' South (1978). Steenburgen went on to earn critical acclaim for her role in Time After Time (1979) and Jonathan Demme's comedy-drama film Melvin and Howard (1980), for which she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. With 151 credits spanning from 1953 to 2026, Mary Steenburgen has appeared in 100 films and 51 TV shows.
Fans searching for Mary Steenburgen movies, Mary Steenburgen filmography, or the latest projects starring Mary Steenburgen can stream many of these titles on Bowood.TV, free and in HD, with no subscription required.
Most Popular Mary Steenburgen Movies
- The Proposal (2009) — as Grace Paxton
- The Help (2011) — as Elaine Stein
- Back to the Future Part III (1990) — as Clara Clayton
- Elf (2003) — as Emily
- What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993) — as Betty Carver
Where to Watch Mary Steenburgen Films
Most Mary Steenburgen movies and series are available to stream on Bowood.TV in full HD, completely free and without signup. Browse the complete filmography above to jump directly to any title. For more films and the latest web series featuring Mary Steenburgen, check our movies catalogue and browse page.