Early life

McDonnell was born in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, and was raised in Ithaca, New York. She is the daughter of Eileen (née Mundy; 1921-1990) and John "Jack" McDonnell (1923-1973), a computer consultant. Her siblings are Jane (1950-2005), Sally, Judith, Jackie, and John. She is of Irish descent. After graduating from the State University of New York at Fredonia, she attended drama school and joined the East Coast's prestigious Long Wharf Theatre Company, with which she worked for over 20 years.

Career

McDonnell won an Obie Award for Best Actress in 1981 for her work in the play Still Life. On Broadway, she has performed in productions of Execution of Justice, The Heidi Chronicles, and Summer and Smoke.

After more than 21 years of theater and television work, McDonnell made her film breakthrough in 1990 as Stands With A Fist, the daughter of American settlers raised by Sioux Indians, in Kevin Costner's Dances with Wolves. Portraying the adopted daughter of Graham Greene's character Kicking Bird, McDonnell, then 37, was only ten months younger than Greene and less than two years younger than Tantoo Cardinal, who played Black Shawl, her adoptive mother. She was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for the role.

McDonnell's role in Passion Fish (1992) brought her another Academy Award nomination, this time for Best Actress in a Leading Role. Her other notable films include Grand Canyon (1991), Sneakers (1992), Independence Day (1996), and Donnie Darko (2001). McDonnell also starred with Patrick Swayze in the 1988 movie, Tiger Warsaw. In 1997 she played the judge in the film 12 Angry Men. The film also featured future Battlestar Galactica castmate Edward James Olmos.

On television, McDonnell had her first regular part in 1980 on the soap opera As the World Turns. She starred in 1984 on the short-lived medical comedy E/R, alongside Elliott Gould and George Clooney. Coincidentally, she guest-starred in 2001 on the NBC medical series of the same name, ER, which also featured Clooney. She was nominated for an Emmy Award for her role on the show as Eleanor Carter, the mother of Dr. John Carter played by Noah Wyle, who also had a role in Donnie Darko. She played Dr. Virginia Dixon, a surgeon with Asperger syndrome for three episodes of Grey's Anatomy in 2008 and 2009.

In 2003, McDonnell starred in the mini-series Battlestar Galactica as Laura Roslin. The mini-series led to the subsequent weekly series, with McDonnell reprising her Laura Roslin role. The series ended in March 2009. McDonnell received worldwide recognition for her performance in the show, part of which was shown when she was invited to the United Nations for a retrospective and discussion with Edward James Olmos (Admiral Adama).

McDonnell took part in a special session entitled Battlestar Galactica at the 2009 World Science Festival. The session also included Michael Hogan, as well as scientists Nick Bostrom and Kevin Warwick. In 2011, she appeared in the role of Kate Roberts, the mother of Emma Roberts's character in Scream 4.

From 2009 to 2012, McDonnell had a recurring role in The Closer as Capt. Sharon Raydor, a police captain in the Force Investigation Division, who often butts heads with Kyra Sedgwick's Golden Globe and Emmy award-winning character. McDonnell received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series in 2011 for the role.

McDonnell's character is the lead in the spin-off, Major Crimes, which debuted August 13, 2012, after The Closer wrapped up its final season in the summer of 2012.

Personal life

McDonnell is married to actor Randle Mell, and currently resides in Pacific Palisades, California. McDonnell and Mell have two children together, Michael Mell and Olivia Mell.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1984	Garbo Talks	Lady Capulet
1987	Matewan	Elma Radnor
1988	Tiger Warsaw	Paula Warsaw
1990	Dances with Wolves	Stands With A Fist	Nominated—Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated—Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress - Motion Picture
1991	Grand Canyon	Claire
1992	Passion Fish	May-Alice Culhane	Nominated—Academy Award for Best Actress Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Drama
1992	Sneakers	Liz
1994	Blue Chips	Jenny Bell
1996	Independence Day	First Lady Marilyn Whitmore
1996	Mariette in Ecstasy	Prioress
1997	Woman Undone	Terri Hansen
1998	You Can Thank Me Later	Diane
1999	Mumford	Althea Brockett
2001	Donnie Darko	Rose Darko
2003	Nola	Margaret Langworthy
2004	Crazy Like a Fox	Amy Banks
2011	Scream 4	Kate Roberts
2011	Margin Call	Mary Rogers	Nominated—Gotham Award for Best Ensemble Cast Nominated—Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Cast

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1980	As the World Turns	Claudia Colfax	Unknown episodes
1984-85	E/R	Dr. Eve Sheridan	20 episodes
1995-96	High Society	Dorothy "Dott" Emerson	13 episodes
1997	12 Angry Men	Judge	Television film
1998	Evidence of Blood	Dora Overton	Television film
1999	Replacing Dad	Linda Marsh	Television film
1999	Ryan Caulfield: Year One	Rachel Caulfield	2 episodes
2000	A Father's Choice	Susan Shaw	Television film
2000	For All Time	Laura Brown	Television film
2001-02	ER	Eleanor Carter	5 episodes Nominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series
2002	Touched by an Angel	Sister Theodore	Episode: "Minute by Minute"
2002	Locket, TheThe Locket	Helen Staples	Television film
2003	Battlestar Galactica	President Laura Roslin	2 episodes
2004-09	Battlestar Galactica	President Laura Roslin	71 episodes Saturn Award for Best Actress on Television
2005	Mrs. Harris	Vivian Schulte	Television film
2008-09	Grey's Anatomy	Dr. Virginia Dixon	3 episodes
2009	Killer Hair	Rose	Television film
2009	Hostile Makeover	Rose Smithsonian	Television film
2009-12	Closer, TheThe Closer	Sharon Raydor	23 episodes Nominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series
2012-present	Major Crimes	Captain Sharon Raydor	66 episodes

Awards and nominations

Year	Association	Category	Nominated work	Result
1991	Academy Awards	Best Supporting Actress	Dances with Wolves	Nominated
	Chicago Film Critics Association Awards	Best Supporting Actress		Nominated
	Golden Globe Awards	Best Supporting Actress - Motion Picture		Nominated
1993	Academy Awards	Best Actress	Passion Fish	Nominated
	Golden Globe Awards	Best Actress - Motion Picture Drama		Nominated
2002	Primetime Emmy Awards	Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series	ER	Nominated
2009	Saturn Awards	Best Actress on Television	Battlestar Galactica	Won
2011	Gotham Awards	Best Ensemble Cast	Margin Call	Nominated
	Phoenix Film Critics Society Awards	Best Cast		Nominated
	Primetime Emmy Awards	Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series	The Closer	Nominated

[ Source: Wikipedia ]