Ellen Rona Barkin (b.1954) is an American actress and producer known for her intense performances and unconventional beauty.
Born in The Bronx, New York, Barkin studied history and drama at Hunter College, initially considering a career in ancient history before pursuing acting. She trained at the Actors Studio, refining her craft for nearly a decade before landing her breakthrough role in Diner (1982.)
Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, she starred in Tender Mercies (1983,) The Big Easy (1986,) Sea of Love (1989,) and This Boy’s Life (1993.) She won a Primetime Emmy for Before Women Had Wings (1997) and a Tony for The Normal Heart (2011.)
Barkin also co-produced Letters to Juliet (2010) and Another Happy Day (2011.) She starred in TNT’s Animal Kingdom (2016–19) as Janine “Smurf” Cody.
Notable publications about her include David Thomson’s Ellen Barkin: A Life in Film (2015,) exploring her career, and Sarah Weinman’s The Uncompromising Vision of Ellen Barkin (2020,) examining her acting philosophy.
More: Wikipedia • READ: Works by Ellen Barkin
People tend to remember my performances, not me.
—Ellen Barkin
Topics: Memory
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