Bio
Multiple award-winning actress Barbara Hershey has showcased her talent in some of Hollywood's most memorable films, television movies, miniseries and series.
Winner of an Emmy Award and a Golden Globe Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or Special for A Killing in a Small Town, Hershey also garnered unprecedented back-to-back Best Actress Awards at the Cannes Film Festival for her performances in Shy People and A World Apart.
Hershey made her professional debut on television with a recurring role in Gidget and a series regular role on The Monroes. The Hollywood native's feature film debut was With Six You Get Eggroll, which she followed up with roles in The Baby Maker and Boxcar Bertha.
The 1980s catapulted Hershey to star status. She starred in The Stunt Man, opposite Peter O'Toole; The Right Stuff, with Ed Harris, Sam Shepard and Scott Glenn; The Natural, with Robert Redford and Robert Duvall; Hannah and Her Sisters, with Woody Allen, Mia Farrow, Dianne Wiest and Michael Caine; Hoosiers, with Gene Hackman and Dennis Hopper; Tin Men, with Richard Dreyfuss and Danny DeVito; Shy People, with Jill Clayburgh; The Last Temptation of Christ, with Willem Dafoe and Harvey Keitel; Beaches, with Bette Midler and John Heard; and A World Apart, with Tim Roth.
Hershey triumphantly returned to television in 1990 with her award-winning performance as Candy Morrison in A Killing in a Small Town, with Brian Dennehy and Hal Holbrook.
She continued her string of television successes with her portrayal of Clara Allen in the miniseries Return to Lonesome Dove, with Jon Voight and Louis Gossett Jr., and also with her role as Dr. Francesca Alberghetti in David E. Kelley's Chicago Hope.
During the same period, Hershey remained active in feature films. She was nominated for an Oscar and a Golden Globe for her performance in The Portrait of a Lady, with Nicole Kidman and John Malkovich.
She also starred in Merchant Ivory's A Soldier's Daughter Never Cries and the award-winning Lantana, from Australian director Ray Lawrence.