Sarah Jessica Parker
About
Biography
Filmography
Family & Companions
Biography
American actress Sarah Jessica Parker rose from child stardom on Broadway to become a fashion and feminist icon with her portrayal of Carrie Bradshaw on "Sex and the City" (HBO, 1998-2004). A native of Nelsonville, Ohio, she trained in both acting and ballet dancing as a child. At 11 years-old, she was cast in Howard Pinter's Broadway production of "The Innocents," but the show lasted just 12 performances. However, she then moved on to appear in the hit Broadway musical "Annie," eventually taking over the lead. She made her television debut on the educational program "3-2-1 Contact" (PBS, 1980-92), before being cast as one of the leads in the cult classic "Square Pegs" (CBS, 1982-83). After the show ended, she notched supporting film roles in the teen-themed "Footloose" (1984) and "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" (1985). She continued alternating between films and television for the next several years, including appearing as a regular on the TV dramas "A Year in the Life" (NBC, 1986-88) and "Equal Justice" (ABC, 1990-91). She graduated to more adult roles when she appeared as Steve Martin's energetic young girlfriend in "LA Story" (1991). That kicked off a run of high-profile film roles in comedies such as "Honeymoon in Vegas" (1992), "Hocus Pocus" (1993), and "Ed Wood" (1994). She would continue racking up film roles until a return to television provided her with her signature role. Based on Candace Bushnell's writings as a columnist for the New York Observer, "Sex and the City" became a cultural sensation. As writer Bradshaw, Parker joined with Cynthia Nixon, Kristin Davis, and Kim Cattrall to form one of the best-loved casts in television history. Besides the television run, the series spawned a pair of big screen follow-ups, "Sex and the City" (2008) and "Sex and the City" (2010). After the show ended, the actress went back to working more in film, with roles in studio fare like "Failure to Launch" (2006), with Matthew McConaughey, and "Did You Hear About the Morgans?" (2009), opposite Hugh Grant. She returned to television with a story arc on "Glee" (Fox, 2009-15) playing a Vogue executive that Chris Colfer's Kurt worked under. Parker then struck a deal with HBO to executive produce and star in "Divorce" (HBO, 2016-). She played Frances, the estranged suburbanite wife of Thomas Haden Church as the pair try to work through the after-effects of their failed marriage. She later starred with Renee Zellweger in Fabien Constant's drama "Here and Now" (2018).
Filmography
Cast (Feature Film)
Producer (Feature Film)
Music (Feature Film)
Misc. Crew (Feature Film)
Cast (Special)
Music (Special)
Cast (TV Mini-Series)
Life Events
1973
Made TV debut in "The Little Match Girl" (NBC)
1976
Landed Broadway debut in "The Innocents;" also featured brother Timothy Britten Parker
1978
Joined Broadway musical "Annie" as one of the orphans; later cast in title role
1979
Made film debut in "Rich Kids"
1982
Appeared in TV movie "My Body, My Child" (ABC)
1982
Stared in cult classic sitcom "Square Pegs" opposite Amy Linker
1984
Landed first leading role in a feature, "Somewhere Tomorrow"
1984
Cast in memorable role of Ariel's friend Rusty in "Footloose"
1985
Played lead in teen comedy "Girls Just Want to Have Fun," co-starring Helen Hunt
1985
Co-starred in CBS movie "Going For the Gold: The Bill Johnson Story"
1986
Played free-spirited Kay in NBC miniseries and subsequent spin-off series "A Year in the Life"
1986
Acted in last feature film for five years, "Flight of the Navigator"
1989
Acted off-Broadway in Wendy Wasserstein's play "The Heidi Chronicles"
1991
Played ditzy-blonde SanDeE* opposite Steve Martin in "L.A. Story"; also written by Martin
1991
Returned off-Broadway in Jon Robin Baitz's play "The Substance of Fire"
1992
Starred in comedy "Honeymoon in Vegas" opposite Nicolas Cage and James Caan
1993
Co-starred as a young witch in supernatural comedy "Hocus Pocus"
1994
Appeared opposite Johnny Depp in "Ed Wood," Tim Burton's affectionate biopic of the outlandish director
1995
Portrayed title role of a dog in A.R. Gurney's off-Broadway play "Sylvia"
1995
Starred in romantic comedy "Miami Rhapsody"
1996
Returned to Broadway to co-star with future husband Matthew Broderick in revival of "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying"
1996
Landed memorable role as Shelly, a dim-witted but manipulative fiancée in "The First Wives Club"
1997
Acted in CBS adaptation of Neil Simon's "The Sunshine Boys"
1997
Appeared in Broadway revival of "Once Upon a Mattress"
1998
Portrayed NYC sex and relationships columnist Carrie Bradshaw on acclaimed HBO series "Sex and the City"; became producer as of 1999; garnered Emmy (1999, 2002, 2003), Golden Globe (2002, 2004) and SAG (2005) nominations for Best Actress
2000
Appeared in David Mamet ensemble "State and Main"
2004
Represented the Gap in a marketing campaign; featured in a series of TV spots and print ads
2005
Played Dermot Mulroney's uptight girlfriend in "The Family Stone"; earned a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress
2005
Signed two-year deal with HBO to develop and produce series and other programming for the premium cable channel through her production company Pretty Matches Productions
2006
Starred in romantic comedy "Failure to Launch" with Matthew McConaughey
2008
Joined Dennis Quaid, Thomas Haden Church, and Ellen Page in indie feature "Smart People"
2008
Reprised beloved character of Carrie Bradshaw in "Sex and the City: The Movie"
2009
Co-starred with Hugh Grant in comedy "Did You Hear About the Morgans?"
2010
Reprised role of Carrie Bradshaw for "Sex and the City 2"
2011
Starred as a working mother in comedy "I Don't Know How She Does It"
2011
Cast in ensemble romantic comedy "New Year's Eve," directed by Garry Marshall
2012
Guest starred as a <i>Vogue</i> magazine editor on "Glee" (Fox)
2013
Voiced character of Kira Supernova in computer animated feature "Escape from Planet Earth"
2015
Played Maggie on "All Roads Lead to Rome"
2016
Produced and starred in the HBO show "Divorce"
2018
Starred in the drama "Here and Now"
Family
Companions
