Sarah Paulson
Acting • Born 1974-12-17
Biography
Sarah Catharine Paulson (born December 17, 1974) is an American actress. She began her acting career in New York City stage productions before starring in the short-lived television series American Gothic (1995–1996) and Jack & Jill (1999–2001). She later appeared in comedy films such as What Women Want (2000) and Down with Love (2003), and drama films such as Path to War (2002) and The Notorious Bettie Page (2005). From 2006 to 2007, she starred as Harriet Hayes in the NBC comedy-drama series Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, for which she received her first Golden Globe Award nomination. In 2008, she starred as Ellen Dolan in the superhero noir film The Spirit. Paulson has appeared on Broadway in the plays The Glass Menagerie in 2005 and Collected Stories in 2010. She also starred in a number of independent films and had a leading role in the ABC comedy series Cupid (2009). She later starred in the independent drama film Martha Marcy May Marlene (2011) and received Primetime Emmy Award and Golden Globe Award nominations for her portrayal of Nicolle Wallace in the HBO film Game Change (2012). She was featured as Mary Epps in the 2013 historical drama film 12 Years a Slave, as Abby Gerhard in the 2015 romantic drama film Carol, and as Toni Bradlee in the 2017 political drama film The Post, all of which were nominated for multiple Academy Awards. Her other films include Serenity (2005), New Year's Eve (2011), Mud (2012), Blue Jay (2016), Ocean's 8 (2018), Bird Box (2018), Glass (2019), and Run (2020). In 2011, Paulson began starring in the FX anthology series American Horror Story, playing different characters in many of the show's 10 seasons. For her performances in the series, she received five Primetime Emmy Award nominations and won two Critics' Choice Television Awards. In 2016, she portrayed real-life prosecutor Marcia Clark in the first season of the anthology series American Crime Story, subtitled The People v. O. J. Simpson, for which she garnered critical acclaim and numerous accolades, including the Primetime Emmy Award and the Golden Globe Award. In 2020, Paulson appeared in the FX limited series Mrs. America, and began starring as Nurse Mildred Ratched in the Netflix psychological thriller series Ratched. In 2021, she returned to American Crime Story to portray Linda Tripp in the third season of the show, subtitled Impeachment.
Filmography
110 credits
Down with Love
Movie • 2003
Vikki Hiller
What Women Want
Movie • 2000
Annie
The Spirit
Movie • 2008
Ellen Dolan
Bug
Movie • 2002
Eileen
Adele One Night Only
Movie • 2021
Self
A Christmas Wedding
Movie • 2006
Emily
The Notorious Bettie Page
Movie • 2006
Bunny Yeager
Madame X Presents: Madame Xtra Q&A
Movie • 2021
Self
Shaughnessy: The Iron Marshal
Movie • 1996
Serenity
Movie • 2005
Dr. Caron
Diggers
Movie • 2007
Julie
The Other Sister
Movie • 1999
Heather Tate
Martha Marcy May Marlene
Movie • 2011
Lucy
Held Up
Movie • 1999
Mary
November Christmas
Movie • 2011
Beth Marks
I Am Sybil
Movie
Connie Wilbur
12 Years a Slave
Movie • 2013
Mary Epps
Mud
Movie • 2013
Mary Lee
Fairhaven
Movie • 2013
Kate
The Long Way Home
Movie • 1998
Leanne Bossert
Stars in Shorts
Movie • 2012
Woman
Clybourne Park
Movie
Levitation
Movie • 1997
Acey
Stand Out: An LGBTQ+ Celebration
Movie • 2022
After-School Special
Movie • 2011
Woman
Carol
Movie • 2015
Abby Gerhard
The Runner
Movie • 2015
Kate Haber
Hold Your Breath
Movie • 2024
Margaret Bellum
Talley's Folly
Movie
Sally Talley
Reimagining The Met Gala
Movie • 2018
Self
Ocean's Team 3.0
Movie • 2018
Self
Griffin & Phoenix
Movie • 2006
Peri
Ethel
Movie
#twitterkills
Movie • 2014
Sarah Pendersen
Game Change
Movie • 2012
Nicolle Wallace
Rebel in the Rye
Movie • 2017
Dorothy Olding
Blue Jay
Movie • 2016
Amanda
Path to War
Movie • 2003
Luci Baines Johnson
Whose Dog Is It Anyway?
Movie • 2009
Emma
Ocean's Eight
Movie • 2018
Tammy
Swimmers
Movie • 2005
Merrill
New Year's Eve
Movie • 2011
Grace Schwab
Friends at Last
Movie • 1995
Diana - Age 21
The Post
Movie • 2017
Tony Bradlee
Glass
Movie • 2019
Dr. Ellie Staple
Bird Box
Movie • 2018
Jessica
The Goldfinch
Movie • 2019
Xandra
Abominable
Movie • 2019
Dr. Zara (voice)
Run
Movie • 2020
Mother / Diane
Coastal Elites
Movie • 2020
Clarissa Montgomery
The Time Being
Movie • 2012
Sarah
Garden State - The 20th Anniversary Concert
Movie • 2025
Self - Presenter
Untitled Cody Fern Film
Movie
Sandra Vale
Escape Room
Movie • 2025
The People v. O. J. Simpson: American Crime Story
Movie • 2016
Marcia Clark
Deadwood
TV • 2004
Alice Isringhausen
American Gothic
TV • 1995
Merlyn Temple
American Horror Story
TV • 2011
Lana Winters
Jack & Jill
TV • 1999
Elisa Cronkite
Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip
TV • 2006
Harriet Hayes
Nip/Tuck
TV • 2003
Agatha Ripp
Cupid
TV • 2009
Dr. Claire McCrae
Leap of Faith
TV • 2002
Faith Wardwell
The D.A.
TV • 2004
Lisa Patterson
American Horror Story
TV • 2011
Cordelia Goode / Wilhemina Venable / Billie Dean Howard
American Horror Story
TV • 2011
Billie Dean Howard
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
TV • 2015
Self - Guest
American Horror Story
TV • 2011
Bette Tattler / Dot Tattler
LIVE with Kelly and Mark
TV • 1988
American Horror Story
TV • 2011
Sally McKenna / Billie Dean Howard
The Ellen DeGeneres Show
TV • 2003
Self
American Crime Story
TV • 2016
Marcia Clark
Late Night with Seth Meyers
TV • 2014
Self - Guest
The Bear
TV • 2022
Cousin Michelle
The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson
TV • 2005
Self
Close Up with The Hollywood Reporter
TV • 2015
Self
Chelsea
TV • 2016
Self
American Horror Story
TV • 2011
Audrey Tindall / Lana Winters
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
TV • 1999
Anne Gillette
American Horror Story
TV • 2011
Ally Mayfair-Richards / Susan Atkins
Blue
TV • 2012
Lavinia
Pretty/Handsome
TV
Corky Fromme
Law & Order
TV • 1990
Maggie Conner
The Graham Norton Show
TV • 2007
Self
Ratched
TV • 2020
Mildred Ratched
Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen
TV • 2009
Self - Guest
FEUD
TV • 2017
Geraldine Page
Mr. & Mrs. Smith
TV • 2024
Therapist
Mrs. America
TV • 2020
Alice
The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon
TV • 2014
Self
Entertainment Tonight
TV • 1981
Self
American Crime Story
TV • 2016
Linda Tripp
Saturday Night Live
TV • 1975
Self - Cameo (uncredited)
American Horror Story
TV • 2011
Tuberculosis Karen / Mamie Eisenhower
Family Guy
TV • 1999
Sarah Paulson / Marcia Clark / Costumed Woman (voice)
Grey's Anatomy
TV • 2005
Young Ellis Grey
Off Camera with Sam Jones
TV • 2014
Self
Touched by an Angel
TV • 1994
Zoe
All's Fair
TV • 2025
Carrington Lane
Desperate Housewives
TV • 2004
Lydia Lindquist
Jimmy Kimmel Live!
TV • 2003
Self - Guest
Variety Studio: Actors on Actors
TV • 2014
Self
The Kelly Clarkson Show
TV • 2019
Self
Golden Globe Awards
TV • 1944
Self - Presenter
The Emmy Awards
TV • 1949
Self
Insider
TV • 2025
Sig selv
LIVE with Kelly and Mark
TV • 1988
Self - Guest
The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon
TV • 2014
Self - Guest
Jimmy Kimmel Live!
TV • 2003
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
The Actor Awards Presented by SAG-AFTRA
TV • 1995
Self