Laura Dern

1980–1999: Career beginnings and breakthrough[edit]

Dern got her first credited role, Debbie, appearing alongside Jodie Foster in the 1980 coming-of-age film Foxes. At the age of 11, she had originally auditioned for a different role after telling casting directors that she was 14.^[15][13][16] In 1985, she was cast two weeks before production began as protagonist Connie Wyatt, a carefree 15-year-old girl who grabs the attention of a predatory stranger, in the film Smooth Talk. The film won the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival in the Dramatic category in 1986^[17] and received largely favorable reviews. It is seen as the film that launched Dern's career.^[18]


Between 1985 and 1990, Dern gained critical acclaim for her performances in Mask, Blue Velvet and Wild at Heart–the latter two of which were directed by David Lynch–which began a longstanding collaboration between Dern and Lynch.^[19] In the biographical drama film Mask she played the role of Diana Adams, a blind girl who becomes Rocky Dennis' love interest, starring alongside Eric Stoltz and Cher. At the age of 16 Dern was cast as Sandy Williams, one of the starring roles alongside Kyle MacLachlan and Isabella Rossellini in the critically successful mystery thriller film Blue Velvet. It is widely regarded as Dern's breakthrough performance.^[20][21]


In 1990, Dern once again collaborated with Lynch, starring as Lula Fortune alongside Nicolas Cage in the black comedy crime film Wild At Heart, where she portrays a vastly different character from her previous role in Blue Velvet. Dern called the role an opportunity 'to play not only a very sexual person, but also someone who was, in her own way, incredibly comfortable with herself'.^[22] The film, which had won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival, was met with generally positive reviews from critics but polarized some audiences at the time.^[16] Lynch cast Dern's mother, Diane Ladd, to play Lula's overbearing mother in the film.^[23]


Dern auditioned for the role of Clarice Starling in The Silence of the Lambs (1991), but lost the role due to studio's skepticism about her level of fame at the time.^[24][25] In 1992, Dern and her mother, Diane Ladd, became the first mother and daughter to be nominated for Academy Awards for acting in the same film for their performances in Rambling Rose–Ladd received a Best Supporting Actress nomination, while Dern received one for Best Actress.^[26] The following year, she won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Miniseries or Television Film and received her first Primetime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series or Television Movie for her performance in the 1992 television film Afterburn.^[27][28]


Dern starred as Dr. Ellie Sattler in Steven Spielberg's 1993 film Jurassic Park, achieving international recognition with the role.^[29] Dern, who had been more focused on independent films prior to the film, was Spielberg's first choice for the role of Ellie Sattler after having been impressed with her work in Smooth Talk and Rambling Rose.^[30] She was influenced by Wild At Heart costar Nicolas Cage to take the role^[31] and called the decision an "easy yes," recalling how Spielberg and producer Kathleen Kennedy made sure the character was a "no-nonsense feminist who had her own independent spirit and was brilliant in her craft" and wasn't an "oversexualized action heroine" while describing filming to be similar to an independent film.^[30][32]


That same year, Clint Eastwood contacted the actress for his film A Perfect World. After the release of Jurassic Park, Dern was offered many roles in blockbuster films but to avoid typecasting ultimately chose to star in Alexander Payne's directorial debut black comedy film Citizen Ruth as the character Ruth Stoops, a pregnant drug addict who unexpectedly attracts national attention from those involved in the abortion debate. The film debuted at Sundance Film Festival to critical acclaim for the film and for Dern's performance but only received a limited release from Miramax, likely due to its controversial topic.^[33][34][35] Ladd made a cameo appearance, playing Dern's character's mother for the third time following Rambling Rose and Wild At Heart, with Dern's character screaming a torrent of abuse at her.


In 1997, Dern was asked by Ellen DeGeneres to guest star as Susan Richmond, a lesbian who helps Degeneres' character, Ellen Morgan, come out of the closet in "The Puppy Episode" of the sitcom Ellen, while DeGeneres herself came out at the same time offscreen. Despite protests from people around her, she shrugged off concerns and immediately accepted the role^[36] where she received her third Primetime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Guest Actress In A Comedy Series.^[37] The decision significantly impacted her career in the following years with Dern revealing in an April 2007 airing of The Ellen DeGeneres Show that she did not work for more than a year and that she needed a "full security detail" following her appearance in the historic episode due to the resulting backlash at the time, but nevertheless called it an "extraordinary experience and opportunity" and "an incredible honor."^[29][38] The following year, Dern co-starred in the television film The Baby Dance, for which she received a Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Actress – Miniseries or Television Film. While dating Billy Bob Thornton in 1999, she was cast as his love interest in his film Daddy and Them, which also includes Diane Ladd. Dern appeared in Joe Johnston's biographical drama film October Sky alongside Jake Gyllenhaal portraying his character's teacher Miss Riley.