Mary McDonnell

Mary McDonnell is a two-time Oscar(r)-nominated actress, recognized for her character roles in both period and present-day screen roles, and many stage and film 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 born in Ithaca, New York and graduated from Fredonia State University of New York. She attended drama school after which she was accepted into Long Wharf Theatre Company (East Coast). She was 22 years old when she scored her first film part in Dances with Wolves (1990), where she played "Stands with a Fist" Sioux Indian woman, who is white. She earned her first Academy Award nomination for the role. McDonnell's film credits include the Lawrence Kasdan films Grand Canyon (1991) and Mumford (1999) (opposite the likes of seasoned performers as Robert Redford, Sidney Poitier as well as Ben Kingsley); Roland Emmerich's Independence Day (1996) (starring Will Smith); acclaimed art house cult hit Donnie Darko (2001); and Margin Call (2011) (opposite Kevin Spacey), which won her the Robert Altman Award at the 2012 Independent Spirit Awards. On the smaller screen, McDonnell starred in four seasons of the Syfy Network's award-winning series Battlestar Galactica (2004) in her highly acclaimed role as President Laura Roslin. McDonnell received an Emmy for her recurring guest role on the TV series ER (1994). TNT's acclaimed drama series Major Crimes (2012) stars her as Captain Sharon Raydor. It is McDonnell's second show and she was nominated for a primetime Emmy(r). She was awarded an Best Actress Academy Award(r) nomination as well as an Golden Globe nomination for her performance as the paraplegic soap-opera star in John Sayles' critically acclaimed film, Passion Fish (1992).