Paula Malcomson
About
Biography
Biography
With her experience playing emotionally vulnerable yet resilient characters, Paula Malcomson made a name for herself on several critically acclaimed television series before finally landing a key supporting role in the much-buzzed about blockbuster, "The Hunger Games" (2012). After years of guest starring on shows like "Six Feet Under" (HBO, 2001-05) and "NYPD Blue" (ABC, 1993-2005) and bit parts in features like "The Green Mile" (1999) and "A.I.: Artificial Intelligence" (2001), Malcomson had her first breakout role as the reformed prostitute Trixie on David Milch's acclaimed revisionist Western, "Deadwood" (HBO, 2004-06). She had more prominent guest starring roles on "Lost" (ABC, 2004-2010), "Criminal Minds" (CBS, 2005- ) and "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" (CBS, 2000-15), and secured recurring parts on "John From Cincinnati" (HBO, 2007) and "ER" (NBC, 1994-2009). Malcomson joined the cast of "Sons of Anarchy" (FX, 2008-14) for the biker series' third season as a secret-keeping old lady from the gang's Belfast chapter, and delivered an emotionally nuanced performance on the sci-fi series "Caprica" (Syfy, 2009-2010), as a mother attempting to reconnect with her daughter who died in a bombing attack. She finally landed a major feature role as the mother of Katniss Everdeen in "The Hunger Games," proving that she was more than capable of taking on more high-profile roles.
Born in 1970 in Belfast, Northern Ireland, Malcomson began her acting career shortly after moving to New York's East Village at age 19, making her acting debut in Michael Almereyda's award-winning experimental film, "Another Girl Another Planet" (1992) before landing minor parts like the drug-addled Allie Earp opposite Kurt Russell in "Tombstone" (1993). After reuniting with Almereyda for two films, "The Rocking Horse Winner" (1997) starring Eric Stoltz and "Trance" (1998), she began building her résumé with a number of guest starring roles on popular series like "Arli$$" (HBO, 1996-2002), Profiler" (NBC, 1996-2000), "The Practice" (ABC, 1997-2004), and "Six Feet Under" (HBO, 2001-05). Following small roles in the acclaimed features "The Green Mile" (1999), "Hamlet" (2000) and "A.I.: Artificial Intelligence" (2001), Malcomson landed her first regular series role with "Deadwood" (HBO, 2004-06), where she played Trixie, a prostitute at the Gem Saloon who breaks the hold of owner Al Swearengen (Ian McShane) in order to forge ahead with more a legitimate line of work. Though the series only lasted three years, its acclaim helped raise the profiles of all involved and spurred Malcomson on to more prominent parts.
Following her stint on "Deadwood," Malcomson moved on to guest starring roles on "Lost" (ABC, 2004-2010) and "ER" (1994-2009), while securing more stable work with a recurring part on the short-lived David Milch drama, "John from Cincinnati" (HBO, 2007). She developed a huge fan base among the sci-fi community with a lead role on "Caprica," a spin-off prequel of the miniseries "Battlestar Galactica," where she played Amanda Graystone, a well-known plastic surgeon and the wife of technology tycoon Daniel Graystone (Eric Stoltz). On the series, Malcomson's character evolved from being a hardworking career woman to a mother trying to reconnect with a daughter who died too soon. She followed up with a multi-episode arc on the third season of "Sons of Anarchy," playing Maureen Ashby, a conservative Irish woman who fiercely protected secrets behind the origins of the SAMCRO biker gang, only to be forced by circumstance to reveal the club's dark past. She went back to episodic television with appearances on "Lie to Me" (Fox, 2009-2011) and "Fringe" (Fox, 2008-13), before she landed her first major film role in "The Hunger Games" (2012), the highly anticipated feature adaptation of Suzanne Collins' novel about a dystopian future where adolescents are forced by an autocratic government to participate in televised battles to the death. Malcomson played the grieving mother of Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence), an iron-willed 16-year-old who volunteers to participate in the bloody competition in place of her younger sister (Willow Shields).
By Shawn Dwyer
Filmography
Cast (Feature Film)
Life Events
1991
Moved to New York's East Village
1992
Acting debut in Michael Almereyda's award-winning experimental film, "Another Girl Another Planet"
1993
Cast as Allie Earp in Kevin Jarre's western "Tombstone," opposite Val Kilmer, Kurt Russell and Sam Elliot
1997
Reunited with director Michael Almereyda, to star as 'The Woman' in "The Rocking Horse Winner," also starring Eric Stoltz
1998
Appeared as a bartender in Michael Almereyda's "Trance"
1999
Cast in Frank Darabont's "The Green Mile," starring Tom Hanks and Michael Clarke Duncan and based on the novel by Stephen King
2000
Portrayed Marcella in Michael Almereyda's "Hamlet," opposite Sam Shepard and Ethan Hawke
2001
Had a small but notable performances in Steven Spielberg's "A.I. Artificial Intelligence," opposite Jude Law
2004
Cast as Trixie in HBO's acclaimed drama series "Deadwood"
2006
Joined the cast of "ER" (NBC) as a widow and love interest for John Stamos' character
2007
Cast in the short-lived HBO series, "John from Cincinnati"
2009
Portrayed Amanda Graystone in the "Battlestar Galactica" spin-off series, "Caprica" (Sci Fi Channel)
2009
Cast as grieving mother Amanda Graystone on "Battlestar Galactica" spinoff "Caprica"
2010
Played Maureen Ashby on FX's "Sons of Anarchy"
2012
Cast as Katniss' mother in "The Hunger Games"
2013
Reprised role of Katniss' mother in "The Hunger Games: Catching Fire"
2013
Starred as Abby Donovan on "Ray Donovan"
2014
Returned yet again to the "Hunger Games" series for "The Hunger Games: Mockingjay," parts 1 and 2
2017
Cast as Mrs. Stevens in writer/director Kyle Wilamowski's feature debut, "All Summers End"
2018
Played Charys-El on "Krypton"
2019
Reprised role of Trixie in HBO's long-awaited "Deadwood" revival film
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