Mary McDonnell

Mary McDonnell is an actress who has been nominated for two Oscars(r). She is popular for her portrayals as characters from both contemporary and period screen roles. Mary Eileen McDonnell is a Pennsylvania-born actress. She was the child of Eileen (Mundy), an Irish-American computer expert, and John McDonnell. She was raised in Ithaca and graduated from Fredonia State University of New York. After that, she went to the drama school and was accepted to the Long Wharf Theatre Company in East Coast. Her film debut came in Dances with Wolves (1990) by Kevin Costner. She played the character "Stands with a Fist" who was a Sioux Indian raised white woman. The role was so well-loved that she was awarded her first Academy Award nomination. McDonnell's film credits also include Lawrence Kasdan's Grand Canyon (1991) & Mumford (1999) as well as opposite veteran actors like Robert Redford, Sidney Poitier and Ben Kingsley; Roland Emmerich’s Independence Day (1996) (starring Will Smith); the highly acclaimed art house hit Donnie Darko (192001) as well as Margin Call (2011). This won her the Robert Altman Awards at the 2012 Independent Spirit Awards. McDonnell was the president Laura Roslin in the critically well-reviewed show Battlestar Galactica (2004) on Syfy. McDonnell was a star for four seasons. She was honored with an Emmy nomination for her frequent guest role on the television show ER (1994). TNT's acclaimed drama series Major Crimes (2012) features McDonnell as Captain Sharon Raydor. This is the sequel to The Closer (2005) in which McDonnell created the role. She was nominated to win an Emmy(r) from Primetime. Emmy(r). Her performance as an actress with paraplegia in soap opera in John Sayles' critically acclaimed film Passion Fish (1992) earned her an Best Actress Academy Award (r) nomination and a Golden Globe nod.