Kathy Bates
Biography
Kathleen Doyle Bates (born June 28, 1948) is an American actress and director. She has been the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, two Primetime Emmy Awards, and two Golden Globe Awards. Born in Memphis, Tennessee, she studied theatre at the Southern Methodist University before moving to New York City to pursue an acting career. She landed minor stage roles before being cast in her first on screen role in Taking Off (1971). Her first Off-Broadway stage performance was in the 1976 production of Vanities. Throughout the 1970s and early 1980s, she continued to perform on screen and on stage, and garnered a Tony Award nomination for Best Lead Actress in a Play in 1983 for her performance in 'night, Mother, and won an Obie Award in 1988 for her performance in Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune. Bates' performance as Annie Wilkes in the tense psychological thriller Misery (1990) marked her Hollywood breakthrough, winning her the Academy Award for Best Actress. Further acclaim came for her starring role in Dolores Claiborne (1995), The Waterboy (1998), and supporting roles in Fried Green Tomatoes (1991) and Titanic (1997). Bates received subsequent Oscar nods in the Best Supporting Actress category for her work in Primary Colors (1998), About Schmidt (2002), and Richard Jewell (2019). Bates' television work has resulted in 14 Emmy Award nominations, including two for her leading role on the NBC series Harry's Law (2011–12). She won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series for her appearance on the ninth season of Two and a Half Men (2012) and the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or Movie for her portrayal of Delphine LaLaurie on the third season of American Horror Story (2013). She also received accolades for her portrayal of Miss Hannigan in the 1999 television adaptation of Annie. Her directing credits include several episodes of the HBO television series Six Feet Under (2001–03) and the television film Ambulance Girl (2005).
Known For
Evelyn Couch
Fried Green Tomatoes
Regina Jackson
The Day the Earth Stood Still
Queen Victoria
Around the World in 80 Days
Annie Wilkes
Misery
Mrs. Belmont
Dragonfly
Miss Swaffer
Swept from the Sea
Leah Blier
Prelude to a Kiss
Mama Boucher
The Waterboy
Roberta Hertzel
About Schmidt
Mrs. Helen Givings
Revolutionary Road
Det. Shirley Vogel
Diabolique
Mother Claus
Fred Claus
Christine Chapman
My Sister's Keeper
Helen Kushnick
The Late Shift
Janet Benson (voice)
Bee Movie
Miss Sue
The Blind Side
Patricia
P.S. I Love You
Madame Peloux
Chéri
Sue
Failure to Launch
Selma Darin
Straight Time
Alaskan Mom
North
Dolores Claiborne
Dolores Claiborne
Self
Misery Loves Company
Libby Holden
Primary Colors
Miss Dowdy (voice)
Christmas Is Here Again
Ginny Moon
Summer Camp
Meg Bethune
Angus
Susan Milton
Valentine's Day
Mrs. Canby
Arthur 2: On the Rocks
Miss Agatha Hannigan
Annie
Bitsy the Cow (voice)
Charlotte's Web
Ma James
American Outlaws
Rosemary
White Palace
Bankruptcy Judge (uncredited)
A Civil Action
Furniture Man's Wife
Two of a Kind
Gloria
Personal Effects
Kippie Kann
Little Black Book
Agnes Menure
Relative Strangers
Mary Ann Bankhead
Love Liza
Charlotte Cartwright
Tyler Perry's The Family That Preys
Grace Beasley
Unconditional Love
Beverly Corbett
A Little Bit of Heaven
Narrator (voice)
The Cutting Edge: The Magic of Movie Editing
The Marquesa
The Bridge of San Luis Rey
Margene Cunningham
Bonneville
The Judge
Guilty Hearts
Stella Mae
Come Back to the 5 & Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean
Hazel Quarrier
At Play in the Fields of the Lord
Bryan's Mother
You May Not Kiss the Bride
Lunar Mom
Living and Working in Space: The Countdown Has Begun
Lisa Coleman
Men Don't Leave
Babs
The Smack
Frances Lacey
A Home of Our Own
Gertrude Stein
Midnight in Paris
Mother Superior
Bruno
Maurine Collier
The War at Home
Ruth
Summer Heat
Thelma
Thelma
Ella Tate
Curse of the Starving Class
Bonnie Cooper
No Place Like Home
Self (archive footage)
Hannibal Hopkins et Sir Anthony
Lenore
Tammy
Jill
High Stakes
Helen Blake
My Best Friend Is a Vampire
Leila Ford
A Family Affair
Prostitute
Shadows and Fog
Jane Stern
Ambulance Girl
Self / Molly Brown (archive footage)
Titanic: Stories from the Heart
Bibby Berman
Used People
Headmistress
Boychoir
Ida Marquette
The Boss
Beth
Cadaver
Jessie
Roe vs. Wade
Bobbi Birk
Murder Ordained
Siren / Sea Hag (voice)
Popeye's Voyage: The Quest for Pappy
Nina
Complete Unknown
Maime Trotter
The Great Gilly Hopkins
Sunny Soke
Bad Santa 2
Edith Wilson
The Great Lillian Hall
Elsa Barlow
The Road to Mecca
Self
Declaration of Independence
Audition Singer
Taking Off
Vera
Krystal
Big Eight (segment "Rodeo")
Talking With
Barbara Haggermaker
The Death & Life of John F. Donovan
Raphaella, the Magic Bunny
The Effects of Magic
Self
Happy Birthday Elizabeth: A Celebration of Life
Mr. Goo
The West Side Waltz
Pancho Barnes (Voice)
The Legend of Pancho Barnes and the Happy Bottom Riding Club
Hester (voice)
The Golden Compass
Frances Marion (voice)
Without Lying Down: Frances Marion and the Power of Women in Hollywood
Peggy Say
Hostages
Dorothy Kenyon
On the Basis of Sex
Mrs. Green
Dick Tracy
Woman on Mateo Street
The Morning After
Self
The Good, The Bad, and the Beautiful
Ma Ferguson
The Highwaymen
Bobi Jewell
Richard Jewell
Aunt Mitsy (uncredited)
Rumor Has It...
Bernadette
Home
Narrator (voice)
Hansel and Gretel
Helena Mahoney
Warm Springs
Herself
Six Feet Under: In Memoriam
Sylvia Simon
Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret.
Narrator
Tupperware!
Katherine Kovacs
Johnny Bull
Mrs. Mellon
Baby Steps
Eileen Dunne
The Miracle Club
Self
Reflections on Titanic
Mary Beth Alder
Signs of Life
Herself
Making Rat Race
Molly Brown
Titanic
Self
Titanic: Breaking New Ground
Self
Moments of Discovery: The Making of Fried Green Tomatoes
The Squirrel Lady (uncredited)
Rat Race
Self
Rob Reiner – Scenes from a Life
Self (archive footage)
Celebrity Naked Ambition
Personal Info
Known For
Acting
Known Credits
117
Gender
Female
Birthday
1948-06-28
Place of Birth
Memphis, Tennessee, USA
Also Known As
Kathleen Doyle "Kathy" Bates