Jamie Lee Curtis is an American actress, producer, and children's author. Known for her performances in film and television, she is one of the most prolific actors of the horror and slasher genres and is regarded as a scream queen. Curtis has received multiple accolades, including an Academy Award, a BAFTA, two Golden Globes, and two Screen Actors Guild Awards, as well as nominations for an Emmy and a Grammy. She received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1997.
Curtis came to prominence with her portrayal of Lt. Barbara Duran on the ABC sitcom Operation Petticoat (1977–1978). She made her feature film debut playing Laurie Strode in John Carpenter's slasher film Halloween (1978), the first film in the Halloween franchise, which established her as a scream queen and led to a string of parts in horror films such as The Fog (1980), Prom Night (1980), Terror Train (1980), and Roadgames (1981). She reprised the role of Laurie in the Halloween sequels Halloween II (1981), Halloween H20: 20 Years Later (1998), Halloween: Resurrection (2002), Halloween (2018), Halloween Kills (2021), and Halloween Ends (2022).
Curtis's film work spans many genres outside of horror, including the cult comedies Trading Places (1983), for which she won a BAFTA for Best Supporting Actress, and A Fish Called Wanda (1988), for which she received a BAFTA nomination for Best Actress. Her role in the film Perfect (1985) earned her a reputation as a sex symbol. She won a Golden Globe Award for her portrayal of Helen Tasker in James Cameron's True Lies (1994). Her other notable film roles include Blue Steel (1990), My Girl (1991), Forever Young (1992), Mother's Boys (1993), Fierce Creatures (1997), Virus (1999), Drowning Mona (2000), The Tailor of Panama (2001), Freaky Friday (2003), Christmas with the Kranks (2004), You Again (2010), and Knives Out (2019). Her performance in Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022) earned her the first Academy Award nomination—and win—of her career, for Best Supporting Actress. To date, her films have grossed over $2.3 billion at the box office.
Curtis received a Golden Globe and a People's Choice Award for her portrayal of Hannah Miller on ABC's Anything But Love (1989–1992), and earned a Primetime Emmy nomination for Nicholas' Gift (1998). She also starred as Cathy Munsch on the Fox series Scream Queens (2015–16), for which she received her seventh Golden Globe nomination. Curtis has written numerous children's books, including Today I Feel Silly, and Other Moods That Make My Day (1998), which made The New York Times's best-seller list. Curtis is a daughter of actors Janet Leigh and Tony Curtis. She is married to British-American filmmaker Christopher Guest, with whom she has two adopted children. Her marriage to Guest, who holds the British title of 5th Baron Haden-Guest, makes her a baroness who is entitled to use the name "The Right Honourable The Lady Haden-Guest", though she opts not to use it.
