Jessica Phyllis Lange was born on April 20, 1949, inCloquet, Minnesota. Her father, Albert John Lange, was a teacher and traveling salesman, and her mother, Dorothy Florence (née Sahlman), was a housewife. She has two older sisters, Jane and Ann, and a younger brother, George.[13] Her paternal ancestry is German and Dutch, her maternal ancestry Finnish.[14][15] Due to the nature of her father's professions, her family moved more than a dozen times to various towns and cities in Minnesota before settling down in her hometown, where she graduated fromCloquet High School.[16][17]
In 1967, she received a scholarship to study art and photography at theUniversity of Minnesota, where she met and began dating Spanish photographer Paco Grande.[10] After the two married in 1970, Lange dropped out of college to pursue a more bohemian lifestyle, traveling through the United States and Mexico in amicrobus with Grande.[10][16] The pair then moved to Paris, where they drifted apart. While in Paris, Lange studiedmime theater under the supervision ofÉtienne Decroux and joined theOpéra-Comique as a dancer.[10] She later studied acting withMira Rostova[18] and atHB Studio[19] in New York City.
While living in Paris, Lange was discovered by fashion illustratorAntonio Lopez[20] and became a model for theWilhelmina modelling agency. In 1973, she returned to the U.S. and began work in New York City as a waitress at the Lion's Head Tavern inGreenwich Village.[10] While modeling, Lange was discovered by Hollywood producerDino De Laurentiis, who was looking to cast aningenue for his remake ofKing Kong. Lange made her film debut in the 1976King Kong, beating actressesMeryl Streep andGoldie Hawn for the role ofdamsel-in-distress.[citation needed] Despite the film's success – it was the fifth-highest-grossing film of 1976 and received an Academy Award for Best Visual Effects – it and Lange's performance were widely panned.[21] But film criticPauline Kael wrote, "The movie is sparked by Jessica Lange's fast yet dreamy comic style. [She] has the high, wide forehead and clear-eyed transparency ofCarole Lombard inMy Man Godfrey, [and] one liners so dumb that the audience laughs and moans at the same time, yet they're in character, and when Lange says them she holds the eye and you like her, the way people liked Lombard."[22] Lange won the 1976Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year. She remained a favorite of Kael, who later wrote, "She has a facial structure that the camera yearns for, and she has talent, too."[23]
At the close of the decade,Bob Fosse, whom Lange had befriended and with whom she had carried on a casual romantic affair, cast Lange as Angelique, the Angel of Death, a part he had written for her in his semi-autobiographical filmAll That Jazz (1979). She was also considered for the role of Wendy Torrance inStanley Kubrick's horror filmThe Shining (1980) before it went toShelley Duvall.[24][25]
Lange began the new decade in the light rompHow to Beat the High Cost of Living (1980), co-starringJane Curtin andSusan Saint James, which received mostly negative reviews and quickly disappeared from theaters. A year later, directorBob Rafelson contacted her about a project he was working on withJack Nicholson, who had recently auditioned Lange forGoin' South (1978). Rafelson paid Lange a visit in upstate New York, where she was doingsummer stock theater and has recounted how he watched her conversing on the telephone for half an hour before their meeting when he decided he had found the lead for his film. After meeting Lange, he wrote her name down on a piece of paper, placed it in an envelope, and sealed it. After several meetings and auditions with other actresses (though Rafelson had already made his decision, he feared he had done so too quickly and wanted to make sure his choice was right), the final choice was between Lange and Meryl Streep. In the end, Rafelson offered Lange the lead role opposite Nicholson in his remake of the classicfilm noirThe Postman Always Rings Twice (1981).[26] Upon offering her the part, he gave her the sealed envelope. The film received mixed reviews, but Lange was highly praised for her performance.
While editingThe Postman Always Rings Twice,Graeme Clifford realized he had found the leading lady for his next film, his first as a director: a biographical film of actressFrances Farmer, whose disillusionment with Hollywood and chaotic family background led her down a tragic path.[27] FilmingFrances (1982), which co-starredKim Stanley andSam Shepard, was a grueling experience for Lange, who pored over the screenplay scene by scene, making deep and often taxing connections between her life and Farmer's to tap into the well of emotions the role required.[27] By the end of the shoot, she was physically and mentally spent,[27] and decided to take Stanley's advice to do "something light," which led her to accept a supporting role oppositeDustin Hoffman inSydney Pollack'sTootsie (1982).
Lange next produced and starred, again opposite Shepard, in 1984'sCountry, atopical film depicting a family during thefarm crisis. Her performance earned her Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations for Best Actress. That same year, she made her television debut as Maggie the Cat, starring oppositeTommy Lee Jones in aCBSPlayhouse production ofTennessee Williams'sCat on a Hot Tin Roof. The following year, she testified before theUnited States Congress on behalf of the Democratic House Task Force on Agriculture, alongsideJane Fonda andSissy Spacek, whom she later befriended.[29]
At the close of 1985, she portrayed legendarycountry singerPatsy Cline inKarel Reisz's biopicSweet Dreams, oppositeEd Harris,Ann Wedgeworth,Gary Basaraba, andJohn Goodman. She was nominated a fourth time for an Oscar and came in second for both theNational Board of Review Award for Best Actress and theNational Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actress.[30][31] In several interviews, Meryl Streep has said she "begged" Reisz, who directed her in 1981'sThe French Lieutenant's Woman, for the role of Cline, but his first choice had always been Lange. Streep has been quite vocal and adamant in her praise for Lange's performance,[32][33][34][35][36][37] calling her "beyond wonderful" in the film and saying, "I couldn't imagine doing it as well or even coming close to what Jessica did because she was so amazing in it."[33] In 2012, on an episode ofWatch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen, Streep once again praised Lange's work in the film, saying, "Nobody could do that better than [Lange]. I mean, it was divine."[34] In 2018, she further commented, "Jessica did it better than any human being could possibly have done it."[32] Streep has also said, "Every job I've ever taken, about three weeks before I begin, I call up my agent and say, 'I don't think I can do this. I don't think I'm right for it. They should call up Jessica Lange.' "[38]
Lange's films in the mid- to late 1980s, which includedCrimes of the Heart (1986),Far North (1988), andEverybody's All-American (1989), were mostly low-profile and underperformed at the box office, though she was often singled out and praised for her work.[citation needed] In 1989, she starred inCosta-Gavras'sMusic Box as a Hungarian lawyer defending her father ofNaziwar crimes. Her performance earned her a fifth Academy Award nomination and a sixth Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress.
In 1996, Lange made her London stage debut in another performance as Blanche DuBois, which received rave reviews. The next year, she starred oppositeMichelle Pfeiffer in a film adaptation ofJane Smiley'sPulitzer Prize-winning novelA Thousand Acres. Lange received her ninth Golden Globe Award nomination and won theVenice Film Festival's Schermi d'Amore award for her performance in the film. In 1998, she starred oppositeElisabeth Shue in a film adaptation ofBalzac'sCousin Bette, for which she received strong reviews. The same year, Lange starred oppositeGwyneth Paltrow inHush, which generally received negative reviews, thoughRoger Ebert praised Lange's performance, writing, "The film's most intriguing element is the performance by Jessica Lange, who by not going over the top provides Martha with a little pathos to leaven the psychopathology."[43]
Lange received strong reviews for her performance inTitus,Julie Taymor's 1999 adaptation ofWilliam Shakespeare'sTitus Andronicus, co-starringAnthony Hopkins andAlan Cumming.Entertainment Weekly criticLisa Schwarzbaum included Lange in a "for your consideration" article directed at theAcademy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, writing, "Jessica Lange already has two Oscars and six nominations to her credit, so her appearance near the words 'Academy Awards' should never be a surprise. But everything about her daring performance inTitus as Tamora, the Queen of the Goths, is an astonishment. Donning breastplates, vowing vengeance, tearing into Shakespeare for the first time as if nothing could be more fun, Lange steals the show – and when the star of the show is Anthony Hopkins, that's grand theft."[44]
In 2009, Lange co-starred asBig Edie, oppositeDrew Barrymore, inHBO'sGrey Gardens, directed byMichael Sucsy and based on the 1975 documentary of the same name. The film was a tremendous success, garnering 17 Primetime Emmy Award nominations and winning five. Lange won her firstPrimetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie after two previous nominations in the same category. She also received her 11th Golden Globe Award nomination and second Screen Actors Guild Award nomination for her performance, losing both awards to Barrymore.
In 2011, Lange joined the cast ofFX's horroranthology seriesAmerican Horror Story. Series co-creatorsRyan Murphy andBrad Falchuk originally wrote her part as a supporting character, but after Lange acquired the role, they expanded it. Murphy, a long-time admirer of Lange, said he chose her because he wanted to expose her work to a new generation of viewers.[46] He also singled out her performance as Blanche DuBois on Broadway in 1992, which he saw twice, as his favorite performance, citing it as another motivating factor in hiring Lange.[47] The show was a huge success not only for the network and creators but also for Lange, who experienced a resurgence in her popularity, receiving rave reviews and several awards for her controversial role. She was chosen byTV Guide,Entertainment Weekly, andMTV for giving one of the "best performances of 2011".[48][49][50] In addition, she won a secondPrimetime Emmy Award, a fifthGolden Globe Award, and her firstScreen Actors Guild Award, after two previous nominations. She was also awarded a Special AchievementSatellite Award for Outstanding Performance in a Television Series by theInternational Press Academy and theDorian Award for Best TV Performance of the Year by theGay and Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association (GALECA). She was further nominated for theTCA Award for Individual Achievement in Drama,Critics' Choice Television Award, andSaturn Award.
Lange in 2012
In 2012, she had a supporting role in herGrey Gardens director Michael Suscy's box-office hitThe Vow, oppositeChanning Tatum andRachel McAdams, but also returned to star as the lead in the second season ofAmerican Horror Story, titledAmerican Horror Story: Asylum. Once again, she was chosen byTV Guide andEntertainment Weekly for giving one of the "best performances of 2012".[51][52] She won a second Dorian Award for Best TV Performance of the Year by the GALECA, and received a fifth Emmy nomination, a thirteenth Golden Globe Award nomination, a fourth Screen Actors Guild Award nomination, a second Saturn Award nomination, and a second Critics' Choice Television Award nomination.
Later in the year,Marc Jacobs chose Lange to be the new face of Marc Jacobs Beauty. In addition, Lange was featured in the brand's summer and fall print ad campaign photographed by David Sims, and starred in a short campaign film directed by Jacobs.[62] Previously, Jacobs dressed and interviewed Lange forLove magazine's fifth-anniversary issue, and had her provide a spoken-word version of "Happy Days Are Here Again" as the soundtrack for his autumn/winter 2014 show.[62][63] She next starred oppositeMark Wahlberg in the remake of the 1970s action-thriller,The Gambler, receiving rave reviews for her work. She also led the fourth season ofAmerican Horror Story, titledAmerican Horror Story: Freak Show. The series, once again, topped its and the network's highest ratings, breaking all ratings records for both.[64] Though self-admittedly not a singer, Lange's covers ofDavid Bowie's "Life on Mars" andLana Del Rey's "Gods and Monsters" for the show were both hugely popular, receiving heavy circulation on YouTube and charting in the top 50 on theiTunes music charts.[65] For her work on the show, Lange received her seventh Primetime Emmy Award nomination, her fifteenth Golden Globe nomination, and her fourth Critics' Choice Television Award nomination. In 2015, Lange announced that she would not return for the series' fifth season.[66] She followed her final season onAmerican Horror Story with a role oppositeShirley MacLaine andDemi Moore in the road-trip comedy,Wild Oats, which wrapped production at the end of 2014. It premiered onLifetime on August 22, 2016, before receiving a limited theatrical release on September 16, 2016.[67]
Lange returned to Broadway to originate the lead role in aSecond Stage Theater presentation ofPaula Vogel's new play,Mother Play, which premiered at theHayes Theater in April 2024.[6] The production was directed byTina Landau and co-starredJim Parsons andCelia Keenan-Bolger.[6] The story takes place in 1962 and centers on Phyllis (Lange), as she oversees her son (Parsons) and daughter's (Keenan-Bolger) relocation to a new apartment, prompting all three to face and reflect on their shared and individual lives and relationships with one another.[6] Alexis Soloski ofThe New York Times described the role as a "showcase for Lange" adding, "Another actress as Phyllis might have done more to communicate the small ravages of time, but Lange concentrates instead on her ageless ferocity and charm."[82] Lange received aTony Award for Best Actress in a Play nomination for the role.[83]
Also in 2024, she starred inThe Great Lillian Hall, a film directed byMichael Cristofer, written by Elisabeth Seldes Annacone, and co-starringKathy Bates,Pierce Brosnon, andLily Rabe.[84] The film, which premiered onHBO on May 31, 2024,[85] centers on Lillian Hall (Lange), a renowned Broadway actress who, while rehearsing for her next Broadway production, "is forced to reckon with the past and the price she has paid for the choices she made in her life and her art."[86] The film was initially set to starMeryl Streep, who backed out of the project for unspecified reasons.[86] The project is loosely based on the acclaimed stage actressMarian Seldes who battled dementia in her later years.[87] Lange earned her sixthCritics' Choice Television Award nomination.[88]
Lange will star in directorJonathan Kent's film adaptation ofEugene O'Neill'sLong Day's Journey into Night, edited for the screen byDavid Lindsay-Abaire and co-starringEd Harris,Ben Foster, andColin Morgan.[90][91][92][93][94][95] In an interview published on November 2, 2022, Lange spoke of her "bouts with depression" and "overwhelming sense of loneliness" and referred to the aforementioned project, noting, "I could be feeling that even more acutely right now because I'm starting to play [drug-addicted matriarch] Mary Tyrone again."[95] Kent previously directed the 2016 Broadway stage production of O'Neill's play, for which Lange garnered aTony Award, among other accolades. Additionally, Kenwright produced the 2000 London stage production of O'Neill's play, which earned Lange anOlivier Award nomination, and also produced London stage productions ofTennessee Williams'A Streetcar Named Desire andThe Glass Menagerie, both starring Lange.
Additionally, Lange has three other filmed projects in development: aMarlene Dietrich biopic produced byRyan Murphy forNetflix centered on Dietrich's late-career period inLas Vegas,Gia Coppola's adaptation of Jean Nathan's memoirThe Search for Dare Wright: The Secret Life of the Lonely Doll co-starringNaomi Watts which chronicles the life ofDare Wright and her tempestuous relationship with her mother Edith Stevenson Wright,[96][97] and a film adaptation ofThe Year of Magical Thinking to be filmed in 2025 where she would portrayJoan Didion alongsideGary Oldman.[98] Lange will reprise her role in the West End production ofPaula Vogel's play,Mother Play in 2026. Lange has also been confirmed to return for the 13th Season of American Horror Story.
Lange is often included in the milieu of America's most respected actresses.[99][100][101][102][103]In a career spanning nearly five decades, Lange has come to be associated with playing intelligent women who often have a troubled internal life.[104] She has been credited for her ability to deliver emotional intensity without resorting to excessive melodrama. Critics have frequently pointed out her tendency to play women on the edge of a nervous breakdown, a notion that Lange herself has also acknowledged.[105][106][107] Nicholas Bell ofIoncinema writes that her Oscar-winning role of Carly inBlue Sky is reminiscent of her signature performances, as "Lange excels [here] at the small tics hinting at the madness always lurking below the surface".[108]
Referring to her acting style, Lange has said that she performs on "pure emotion" rather than relying on a specific technique.[109][110] DirectorGlenn Jordan, who has directed her inO Pioneers!, noted that "Jessica reminds me of what someone once said ofJack Lemmon. Whatever emotion or whatever small nuance you want, she is like a supermarket. Her shelves are stocked full and it's all accessible to her".[111] This sentiment was echoed by actressSarah Paulson who, after working with Lange on the 2005 stage production ofThe Glass Menagerie as well as five seasons ofAmerican Horror Story, described the actress as being "like a cat on a wire" and added that "she is very instinctual, she doesn't come up with an entire plan on how to play a scene".[112] As a result, Lange's performance style has positively been referred to as unpredictable, since she acts out the trajectory of her characters' emotional journey with unexpected turns.[113][104][114][115]
Lange was married to photographer Francisco "Paco" Grande from 1970 to 1982.[116][117] Though they separated not long after moving to Europe during the mid-1970s, they did not divorce until the early 1980s, after which Lange paid him an undisclosed sum inalimony.[118][13] According to biographer Anthony Uzarowski, the former couple "remain close friends."[119]
In 1982, she met and entered a relationship with playwrightSam Shepard. They had two children: daughter Hannah Jane Shepard (born 1986) and son Samuel Walker Shepard (born 1987). They lived together in Virginia, New Mexico, Minnesota, and eventually New York City, before separating in 2009.[121]
Lange often returns toDuluth, Minnesota, and has said of the city, "It's the one place that has remained constant in my life... After living all over [the world] and traveling everywhere I've wanted to go, I keep coming back here."[122]
Though she does not adhere to a formal religion, she periodically practicesBuddhism, describing it as "a discipline that makes sense more than anything because it's like a science".[123][124][125] She is also avegetarian.[126] In September 2013, Lange joined the opposition to Minnesota's wolf hunt and wrote a letter to GovernorMark Dayton.[127]
Lange has also revealed that she suffers from severe bouts of depression,[16][128] once admitting, "I have never been a believer in psychoanalysis or therapy or anything like that. I've never done that."[128] She confessed, "Though my dark side is dormant right now, it continues to play a big role in whatever capacity I have to be creative. That's the well I'm able to tap into, where all the anguish, rage and sadness are stored."[16] In 2022, Lange shed more light on her dark moods, admitting, "I've suffered bouts of depression my whole life. They ebb and flow. I have a hard time separating the sadness, [and] the depression, from my overwhelming sense of loneliness."[95]
In 2008, Lange published a collection of herblack-and-white photographs,50 Photographs (powerHouse Books), with an introduction byPatti Smith.[129] In 2009, an exhibition of her work, along with a series of her films, was presented at theGeorge Eastman House, the oldest international museum of photography and film, which honors distinguished contributions to film with theGeorge Eastman Award. Lange received the first George Eastman Honors Award, an award given to an artist whose life work embodies the traditions and values championed by George Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film.[130] In 2010, she published a second collection of photographs,In Mexico.[131][132][133][134] In 2013, she released a children's book of photography,It's About a Little Bird. In 2014, she exhibited at Moscow'sMultimedia Art Museum.[135] In 2019, she published her fourth book of photography,Highway 61, composed of photographs ofU.S. Route 61.[7]
^Uzarowski 2023, p. 2: Paternal ancestry “somewhat unclear,” her grandfather fromŻagań, Poland, formerly part ofPrussia. And p. 2-3: Lang’s mother from “proud Finnish stock,” her father George Sahlman immigrating fromKuopio, Finland
^Uzarowski 2023, p. 136: "...reviews [for the production] were mixed. Most critics were less than kind to Jessica…the Boston Globe summed up the response."
^Uzarowski 2023, p. 143: Lange's performance in Blue Sky "received some of the most glowing reviews of her career…"
^Uzarowski 2023, p. 143: "...never became a box office hit…" And p. 145: Grossed $3 million, compared to that year'sForrest Gump (1994), at $300 million.
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