Acting
Kathy Bates
Biography
Kathleen Doyle Bates (born June 28, 1948) is an American actress and director. She has been the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, two Primetime Emmy Awards, and two Golden Globe Awards. Born in Memphis, Tennessee, she studied theatre at the Southern Methodist University before moving to New York City to pursue an acting career. She landed minor stage roles before being cast in her first on screen role in Taking Off (1971). Her first Off-Broadway stage performance was in the 1976 production of Vanities. Throughout the 1970s and early 1980s, she continued to perform on screen and on stage, and garnered a Tony Award nomination for Best Lead Actress in a Play in 1983 for her performance in 'night, Mother, and won an Obie Award in 1988 for her performance in Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune. Bates' performance as Annie Wilkes in the tense psychological thriller Misery (1990) marked her Hollywood breakthrough, winning her the Academy Award for Best Actress. Further acclaim came for her starring role in Dolores Claiborne (1995), The Waterboy (1998), and supporting roles in Fried Green Tomatoes (1991) and Titanic (1997). Bates received subsequent Oscar nods in the Best Supporting Actress category for her work in Primary Colors (1998), About Schmidt (2002), and Richard Jewell (2019). Bates' television work has resulted in 14 Emmy Award nominations, including two for her leading role on the NBC series Harry's Law (2011–12). She won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series for her appearance on the ninth season of Two and a Half Men (2012) and the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or Movie for her portrayal of Delphine LaLaurie on the third season of American Horror Story (2013). She also received accolades for her portrayal of Miss Hannigan in the 1999 television adaptation of Annie. Her directing credits include several episodes of the HBO television series Six Feet Under (2001–03) and the television film Ambulance Girl (2005).
Movies with Kathy Bates
Titanic
1997
Bee Movie
2007
The Day the Earth Stood Still
2008
The Blind Side
2009
Misery
1990
The Golden Compass
2007
Around the World in 80 Days
2004
Midnight in Paris
2011
Charlotte's Web
2006
Dick Tracy
1990
Dragonfly
2002
A Family Affair
2024
Rat Race
2001
Revolutionary Road
2008
Failure to Launch
2006
Fried Green Tomatoes
1991
The Waterboy
1998
Rumor Has It...
2005
Valentine's Day
2010
Dolores Claiborne
1995
P.S. I Love You
2007
Richard Jewell
2019
Fred Claus
2007
The Highwaymen
2019
Celebrity Naked Ambition
2003
White Palace
1990
Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret.
2023
On the Basis of Sex
2018
North
1994
Annie
1999
Straight Time
1978
The Boss
2016
Chéri
2009
A Civil Action
1998
Personal Effects
2009
Bad Santa 2
2016
Primary Colors
1998
American Outlaws
2001
Tyler Perry's The Family That Preys
2008
A Home of Our Own
1993
Summer Camp
2024
About Schmidt
2002
Little Black Book
2004
Tammy
2014
Home
2021
Warm Springs
2005
Krystal
2018
Used People
1992
The Late Shift
1996
Complete Unknown
2016
The Miracle Club
2023
A Little Bit of Heaven
2011
Two of a Kind
1983
The Death & Life of John F. Donovan
2019
Shadows and Fog
1991
The Great Gilly Hopkins
2015
Diabolique
1996
Prelude to a Kiss
1992
Relative Strangers
2006
Unconditional Love
2002
Guilty Hearts
2007
Bonneville
2006
Roe vs. Wade
1989
Men Don't Leave
1990
Arthur 2: On the Rocks
1988
You May Not Kiss the Bride
2011
My Sister's Keeper
2002
Rob Reiner – Scenes from a Life
2025
Boychoir
2015
The Morning After
1986
Popeye's Voyage: The Quest for Pappy
2004
My Best Friend Is a Vampire
1987
Cadaver
2012
Summer Heat
1987
The War at Home
1996
Signs of Life
1989
The Cutting Edge: The Magic of Movie Editing
2004
The Great Lillian Hall
2024
Swept from the Sea
1998
Hannibal Hopkins & Sir Anthony
2021
Taking Off
1971
Angus
1995
Love Liza
2002
Murder Ordained
1987
The Smack
At Play in the Fields of the Lord
1991
Baby Steps
1999
Declaration of Independence
2003
Bruno
2000
Talking With
1995
The Bridge of San Luis Rey
2004
Misery Loves Company
2003
High Stakes
1989
Ambulance Girl
2005
The Good, The Bad, and the Beautiful
1996
Making Rat Race
2002
Titanic: Stories from the Heart
2023
Happy Birthday Elizabeth: A Celebration of Life
1997
Christmas Is Here Again
2007
No Place Like Home
1989
Come Back to the 5 & Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean
1982
Hostages
1992
Reflections on Titanic
2012
Johnny Bull
1986
The West Side Waltz
1995
Six Feet Under: In Memoriam
2005
Hansel and Gretel
2005
The Effects of Magic
1998
Moments of Discovery: The Making of Fried Green Tomatoes
1998
Tupperware!
2004
Curse of the Starving Class
1994
Without Lying Down: Frances Marion and the Power of Women in Hollywood
2000
Return to the 5 & Dime: An Interview with Ed Graczyk
2014
The Road to Mecca
1991
Living and Working in Space: The Countdown Has Begun
1993
Titanic: Breaking New Ground
1998
The Legend of Pancho Barnes and the Happy Bottom Riding Club
2009
TV Shows with Kathy Bates
American Dad!
2005
Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen
2009
The Office
2005
The Daily Show
1996
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
2015
Two and a Half Men
2003
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
1962
The Kelly Clarkson Show
2019
American Horror Story
2011
King of the Hill
1997
The Love Boat
1977
The Jennifer Hudson Show
2022
The Big Bang Theory
2007
The View
1997
Golden Globe Awards
1944
American Experience
1988
Jimmy Kimmel Live!
2003
Six Feet Under
2001
Great Performances
1971
Matlock
2024
L.A. Law
1986
3rd Rock from the Sun
1996
Cagney & Lacey
1982
St. Elsewhere
1982
The Ellen DeGeneres Show
2003
Mike & Molly
2010
Variety Studio: Actors on Actors
2014
Chelsea
2016
Chelsea Lately
2007
The Oscars
1953
Lip Sync Battle
2015
FEUD
2017
Harry's Law
2011
The Stand
1994
China Beach
1988
Off Script with The Hollywood Reporter
2023
Disjointed
2017
Alice
2009
The Emmy Awards
1949
Hallmark Hall of Fame
1951
Shelley Duvall's Bedtime Stories
1992
Murder Ordained
1987
MADtv
1995
Stand Up to Cancer
2008
Inside the Actors Studio
1994