Biography and filmography

Sarah Paulson

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.

Photos

Movies (56)

Closing Night

2026 · Sandra Vale

Baby Doe

2026 · Executive Producer

Escape Room

2025

Garden State - The 20th Anniversary Concert

2025 · Self - Presenter

Aguanta la respiración

2024 · Margaret Bellum, Executive Producer

Stand Out: An LGBTQ+ Celebration

2022

Madame X Presents: Madame Xtra Q&A

2021 · Self

Corre.

2020 · Mother / Diane

Las élites de la costa

2020 · Clarissa Montgomery

Un amigo abominable

2019 · Dr. Zara (voice)

El jilguero

2019 · Xandra

Glass

2019 · Dr. Ellie Staple

Bird Box: A Ciegas

2018 · Jessica

Reimagining The Met Gala

2018 · Self

Ocean's Team 3.0

2018 · Self

Ocean's 8: Las estafadoras

2018 · Tammy

The Post: Los Oscuros Secretos del Pentágono

2017 · Tony Bradlee

El rebelde oculto

2017 · Dorothy Olding

Blue Jay

2016 · Amanda

Carol

2015 · Abby Gerhard

The Runner

2015 · Kate Haber

#twitterkills

2014 · Sarah Pendersen

12 Años de Esclavitud

2013 · Mary Epps

El Niño y el Fugitivo

2013 · Mary Lee

Fairhaven

2013 · Kate

Stars in Shorts

2012 · Woman

The Time Being

2012 · Sarah

Cambio de Juego

2012 · Nicolle Wallace

Año Nuevo

2011 · Grace Schwab

Martha Marcy May Marlene

2011 · Lucy

After-School Special

2011 · Woman

November Christmas

2010 · Beth Marks

Whose Dog Is It Anyway?

2009 · Emma

El espiritu

2008 · Ellen Dolan

Pretty/Handsome

2008 · Corky Fromme

Diggers

2007 · Julie

A Christmas Wedding

2006 · Emily

Griffin & Phoenix

2006 · Peri

La infame Bettie Page

2006 · Bunny Yeager

Serenity

2005 · Dr. Caron

Swimmers

2005 · Merrill

Camino A La Guerra

2003 · Luci Baines Johnson

Abajo el amor

2003 · Vikki Hiller

Bug

2002 · Eileen

Lo que Ellas Quieren

2000 · Annie

Held Up

1999 · Mary

The Other Sister

1999 · Heather Tate

The Long Way Home

1998 · Leanne Bossert

Levitation

1997 · Acey

Shaughnessy: The Iron Marshal

1996

Friends at Last

1995 · Diana - Age 21

I Am Sybil

· Connie Wilbur

Clybourne Park

Talley's Folly

· Sally Talley

Ethel

Ratched

· Nurse Mildred Ratched

TV shows (50)

American Horror Story Official Podcast

2026 · Self

Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story

2026 · Aileen Wuornos

All's Fair

2025 · Carrington Lane, Executive Producer

Insider

2025 · Sig selv

Mr. & Mrs. Smith

2024 · Therapist

El Oso

2022 · Cousin Michelle

La Caída: Dios, Codicia y el Culto de Gwen Shamblin

2021 · Executive Producer

Ratched

2020 · Mildred Ratched, Executive Producer

Mrs. America

2020 · Alice

I'm a LA… Get Me Out of Here!

2019 · Self - Contestant

The Kelly Clarkson Show

2019 · Self

FEUD

2017 · Geraldine Page

Chelsea

2016 · Self

American Crime Story

2016 · Marcia Clark, Linda Tripp, Executive Producer

The Late Show with Stephen Colbert

2015 · Self - Guest

Close Up with The Hollywood Reporter

2015 · Self

Variety Studio: Actors on Actors

2014 · Self

Late Night with Seth Meyers

2014 · Self - Guest

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon

2014 · Self - Guest

Off Camera with Sam Jones

2014 · Self

Blue

2012 · Lavinia

American Horror Story

2011 · Lana Winters, Cordelia Goode / Wilhemina Venable / Billie Dean Howard, Billie Dean Howard, Bette Tattler / Dot Tattler, Sally McKenna / Billie Dean Howard, Audrey Tindall / Lana Winters, Ally Mayfair-Richards / Susan Atkins, Tuberculosis Karen / Mamie Eisenhower, Cordelia Goode / Sally McKenna / Ms. Wilhemina Venable / Tuberculosis Karen / Mamie Eisenhower, Director, Executive Producer