Parker Posey

Parker Christian Posey is an American actress born on November 8, 1968, in Baltimore, Maryland. She was raised Catholic alongside her twin brother, Christopher. Her family lived in Monroe, Louisiana, before moving to Laurel, Mississippi, where her father operated a car dealership and her mother worked as a chef and culinary instructor. Posey studied ballet in her youth and later attended the State University of New York at Purchase to study drama. While in college, a talent agent discovered her, leading to her television debut on the daytime soap opera As the World Turns.

Posey made her initial film appearances in 1993, including a role in the coming-of-age comedy Dazed and Confused. Her breakthrough arrived with the 1995 arthouse success Party Girl. Throughout the 1990s, she established a prominent presence in independent cinema, earning the title "Queen of the Indies" from Time magazine in 1997. Her notable 1990s film credits include Kicking and Screaming, The Daytrippers, The House of Yes—for which she received a Special Recognition for Acting Award at the Sundance Film Festival—Henry Fool, and her major studio film You've Got Mail.

During the late 1990s and 2000s, Posey began a long-running collaboration with director Christopher Guest, starring in his improvised mockumentary films Waiting for Guffman, Best in Show, A Mighty Wind, For Your Consideration, and Mascots. Her work expanded into mainstream studio projects, including the horror sequel Scream 3, the musical comedy Josie and the Pussycats, Blade: Trinity, and the superhero film Superman Returns, which earned her a Saturn Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress. She also starred in independent dramas such as Fay Grim and Broken English, receiving an Independent Spirit Award nomination for her performance in the latter.

Beyond film, Posey made her Broadway debut in the 2001 production Taller Than a Dwarf and performed off-Broadway in Hurlyburly. Her television work spans guest appearances on shows such as Louie, Parks and Recreation, and The Good Wife, alongside starring roles in the series The Return of Jezebel James, the science fiction show Lost in Space, the miniseries The Staircase, and the third season of The White Lotus. Over her career, she has received nominations for two Primetime Emmy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, and two Independent Spirit Awards, including a Golden Globe nomination for the television film Hell on Heels: The Battle of Mary Kay.

Posey's later film credits include Irrational Man, Café Society, Columbus, and Beau Is Afraid. In 2018, she authored the book You're on an Airplane: A Self-Mythologizing Memoir.