Heather Joan Graham (born January 29, 1970) is an American actress.[1][2] After appearing in television commercials, her first starring role in a feature film came with the teen comedy License to Drive (1988), followed by the critically acclaimed film Drugstore Cowboy (1989).[3][4] She then played supporting roles on the television series Twin Peaks (1991), and in films such as Six Degrees of Separation (1993) and Swingers (1996). She gained critical praise for her role as "Rollergirl" in the film Boogie Nights (1997).[5] This led to major roles in the comedy films Bowfinger and Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (both 1999).
Graham was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.[8] The elder of two children, her younger sister Aimee Graham is also an actress and writer. Her mother Joan (née Bransfield) is a teacher and author of children's books,[9] and her father James Graham is a retired FBI agent.[10] Her family relocated repeatedly before moving to Agoura Hills, California, when she was nine.[11] She was introduced to acting during a school production of The Wizard of Oz.
After high school, Graham enrolled in extension classes at the University of California, Los Angeles, where she studied English for two years.[12] Against her parents' wishes, Graham withdrew from UCLA to pursue acting full time.[13]
Career
Early work (1984–1988)
Graham's first film appearance was an uncredited cameo in Mrs. Soffel (1984).[14] Her first credited film appearance was in the television film Student Exchange. In 1986, she appeared on a special "Teen Week" episode of the NBC game show Scrabble. Then she appeared in numerous television commercials, and an episode of the sitcom Growing Pains in 1987. Her first high-profile starring role came in the Corey Haim/Corey Feldman vehicle License to Drive (1988), as a popular girl named Mercedes Lane, who serves as the love interest of Haim's character. Her efforts won her a Young Artist Award nomination in the Best Young Actress in a Motion Picture Comedy or Fantasy category. Her strict parents forbade her to accept a role in the black comedyHeathers (1988), which had an expletive-rich script.[11] The same year, she had an uncredited appearance as Danny DeVito and Arnold Schwarzenegger's mother in flashbacks in their film, Twins.[citation needed]
From Drugstore Cowboy to Swingers (1989–1996)
In 1989, Graham was featured in Gus Van Sant's Drugstore Cowboy as Nadine, a young, drug-addicted accomplice of the two main characters (played by Matt Dillon and Kelly Lynch). Her performance gave her career an initial boost and earned her a nomination for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Actress. She rejected a steady role in a soap opera and a three-picture deal with a major studio because she thought it would be too restrictive.[15] After Drugstore Cowboy, she appeared in Lawrence Kasdan's dark comedy I Love You to Death (1990), alongside William Hurt and Keanu Reeves, and the rock-and-roll coming-of-age film Shout (1991), for which she received a nomination for the Young Artist Award for Best Actress Starring in a Motion Picture.
After Graham co-starred with Benicio del Toro in a Calvin Klein commercial directed by David Lynch, the director cast her as Annie Blackburn in Twin Peaks, where she appeared in the final six episodes. Following the show's cancellation, Graham reprised the role of Blackburn in the 1992 prequel film Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me.[10]
The 2000 film Committed was her first starring vehicle. She played Joline, a devoted-beyond-reason young wife looking for the husband who left her. While the film itself received mixed reviews, the Rotten Tomatoes summary of critics felt that "Graham shows she can play a central character", but noted "she's not enough to make Committed successful".[22] The following year, she co-starred as Annie Matthews, an unhappily married woman, in Edward Burns' Sidewalks of New York. In 2002, she starred with Joseph Fiennes in Chen Kaige's English-language debut film Killing Me Softly, which received overwhelmingly negative response from critics and a 0% at Rotten Tomatoes, with the consensus being: "Respected director Chen Kaige's first English-language film is a spectacularly misguided erotic thriller, with ludicrous plot twists and cringe-worthy dialogue".[23] In 2009, the site also rated it No. 12 on the countdown of the worst films over the last ten years.
Graham also spoke about developing a comedy film titled The Accidental Virgin, which would have focused on "female sexual confusion", telling the story of a woman who has not had sex in a year. The film has not been made. She also stated she would be interested in directing in the future if it is "something that, its burning in my mind that I need to do".[10]
On television, Graham played herself in an episode of the TV series Sex and the City. She was given special guest-star status on nine episodes of Scrubs during its fourth season (2004–2005), and also appeared as George Michael Bluth's ethics teacher in an episode of Arrested Development in 2004. She played Emily Sanders in Emily's Reasons Why Not, but the sitcom was cancelled after airing only one episode.
She played Meredith Crown in At Any Price, which stars Dennis Quaid and Zac Efron, and was selected to compete for the Golden Lion at the 69th Venice International Film Festival, and later screened as an official selection at the Telluride and Toronto Film Festivals.[36] Other roles include mob lawyer Annette Stratton-Osborne in Behaving Badly and short story writer Mary Bellanova in My Dead Boyfriend (both 2014). She wrote a comedy screenplay called Half Magic, which in 2013 she stated she wanted to direct. She said the story focuses on "these female friends and sexuality and about people having a sense of shame about sexuality and learning how to have a healthier attitude about it [...] It also deals with male/female relationships and sexism".[37] The film was released in 2018.
In 2014, she starred in the second adaptation of the V. C. Andrews novel Flowers in the Attic on the Lifetime network. She played the character of Corrine Dollanganger, an evil mother who locks her four children in an attic to receive an inheritance from her dying father.[39] Graham also appeared in two TV films sequels based on the V.C. Andrews' series: Petals on the Wind and If There Be Thorns, continuing to play the role of Corrine Dollanganger.[40] She appeared in the final season of Californication as the mother of David Duchovny's long-lost son.[41]
In 2018, she co-starred in the David Cross dark comedy series Bliss, which was released by the BritBox streaming service. It starred Stephen Mangan as Andrew, a fraudulent travel writer, who struggles to maintain long-term relationships with two partners, Kim (Graham) and Denise (Jo Hartley), who are not aware of one another.[42][43]
Graham wrote, directed, and starred in Chosen Family, which is set to be released in 2024.[48][49]
Activism
Besides her acting work, Graham is also an activist who serves as a public advocate for the nongovernmental organization (NGO) Children International.[6] She stated that what she likes about Children International is that "you are helping a child have a better life. It's great for that child to know that someone who lives in another country cares about them". Graham works with the Cambodian Children's Fund, also an NGO, which provides supplies and education, and campaigns to stop slavery. "There's a lot of human trafficking in Cambodia," Graham has said. "Women are dying because they don't have $15 to give birth in a hospital. The [Children's Fund] provides free education, clean water and healthcare for communities... We're creating future leaders who will be able to help themselves."[6][50]
Graham is considered a sex symbol. She was ranked at number 40 in FHM's 100 Sexiest Women in the World list in 2000, number 95 in 2001 list, number 97 in the 2002 list, number 74 in the 2005 list and at number 98 in 2006 list. In 2001, she was named one of the 50 Most Beautiful People by People. In 2003, she posed for a photoshoot by photographer Sam Jones during which she was levitated several feet into the air by a magician who later also sawed her in half.[52] Also in 2003, Graham appeared on the cover of Time for an article titled "The Science of Meditation".[53][54] To promote Emily's Reasons Why Not, she posed for a LIFE cover story, printed weeks in advance of the assumed series schedule, referring to her as "TV's sexiest star", which appeared in the January 27, 2006, issue.[55][56]
Graham is often cast in sexual roles, including those of Felicity Shagwell (Austin Powers: The Spy who Shagged Me), porn stars Rollergirl (Boogie Nights) and Sharonna (The Guru), prostitute Mary Kelly (From Hell), porn director Margaret (About Cherry), and stripper Jade (The Hangover and The Hangover, Part III). She stated she finds these types of roles and the issue of sexuality fascinating, and believes that "our culture sends out mixed messages to women about sex. Are women supposed to be sexually alive people, or are we supposed to be 'good' mothers who would never do those things?" and that she likes "the fact some of my roles maybe help people open their minds about the way they think about sex".[57][58][59]
In 2005, Graham became the spokeswoman for the Garnier brand of hair care products.[60]
In 2017, Graham recounted a time in the early 2000s when Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein indirectly implied that he would give her a role of her choice if she slept with him. Later, Graham indicated she canceled a planned meeting with Weinstein at a hotel when a friend was unable to accompany her. Graham did not have further contact with Weinstein and she was never cast in any of the movies he produced.[61]
Personal life
Graham has been estranged from her parents in the past. Regarding the media's perception of her relationship with her parents, she stated: "I don't really like to talk about my parents because I just feel that it gets misinterpreted in the press."[62][63]
Graham has been practising transcendental meditation since 1991[59] after being introduced to it by David Lynch. She has also expressed her dislike of reality television, stating in a 2007 interview: "I think some of it, it seems strange – why do we all want to watch people be so miserable? Other people's pain and misery – it seems kind of sad."[64]
In 1992, Graham dated James Woods, her co-star in the film Diggstown.[65] She later dated British rock star Adam Ant.[66]
From 2008 to 2011, she was in a relationship with Israeli screenwriter Yaniv Raz.[67] She also dated Heath Ledger.[68]
She has been dating John de Neufville since 2022.[69]
^Vincent, Mal (June 17, 1999). "'Powers' Star Has Skated Well Past 'Boogie Nights' Role". The Green Bay Press-Gazette. p. D-10. Heather Graham...was born in Milwaukee.
