Age, Biography, and Wiki
Patricia Clarkson, born December 29, 1959, in New Orleans, is the daughter of a politician mother and a school administrator father. She rose to prominence through her early film appearances and has since become a staple in both independent and mainstream cinema. Clarkson's most notable roles include High Art, The Green Mile, Pieces of April, and her recurring guest role on Six Feet Under.
| Occupation | Environmentalist |
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| Date of Birth | 29 December 1959 |
| Age | 65 Years |
| Birth Place | New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. |
| Horoscope | Capricorn |
| Country | U.S |
Height, Weight & Measurements
While specific measurements are not widely available, Patricia Clarkson is known for her striking presence on screen, often standing at around 5 feet 9 inches tall. Her height adds to her commanding stage presence, which has been a hallmark of her successful acting career.
| Height | 5 feet 9 inches |
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Dating & Relationship Status
There is limited information available about Patricia Clarkson's current relationship status. She is known to keep her personal life private, focusing more on her professional endeavors.
Born and raised in New Orleans to a politician mother and school administrator father, Clarkson earned a degree in drama from Fordham University before attending the Yale School of Drama, where she graduated with a Master of Fine Arts degree. She made her feature film debut in Brian De Palma's mob drama The Untouchables (1987), followed by a supporting role in Buddy Van Horn's The Dead Pool (1988). After appearing in minor roles in the early and mid-1990s, she garnered critical attention for her portrayal of a drug-addicted actress in the independent drama High Art (1998). She appeared in numerous supporting roles in such films as The Green Mile (1999), The Pledge (2001), Far from Heaven (2002), and Dogville (2003).
After graduating from the Yale School of Drama, Clarkson was cast in a 1986 Broadway production of The House of Blue Leaves as a replacement in the role of Corrinna Stroller. The following year, she made her feature film debut in Brian De Palma's The Untouchables (1987), portraying Catherine Ness, the wife of US Treasury Prohibition agent Eliot Ness (Kevin Costner). Clarkson stated she was struggling financially at the time, paying student loans, and De Palma expanded her role in the film; she originally had only several days of shooting. The next year, she played opposite Clint Eastwood in The Dead Pool (1988), the fifth installment in the Dirty Harry film series.
In 1998, Clarkson had a small role in the critically acclaimed independent romantic comedy Playing By Heart, playing a woman at a bar who listens to a false story told by a man (Dennis Quaid) as part of his improv class. In 1999, Clarkson appeared in a supporting role as an ailing wife of a prison warden in The Green Mile, which was nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award for Best Ensemble Cast. The same year, she had a supporting part in the romantic comedy Simply Irresistible (1999), followed by a supporting part in Stanley Tucci's biopic Joe Gould's Secret (2000). Next, she portrayed a single mother in the drama The Safety of Objects (2001), and had a supporting role opposite Jack Nicholson in the Sean Penn-directed thriller The Pledge (2001), playing the mother of a murder victim. She also had a leading role in the independent horror film Wendigo (2001), directed by Larry Fessenden, and in the comedy Welcome to Collinwood (2002). Roger Ebert praised the performances in the former, noting: "The actors [in Wendigo] have an unforced, natural quality that looks easy but is hard to do." In 2001 she had a recurring role on Frasier as Claire French, who dated Frasier Crane played by Kelsey Grammer.
Clarkson appeared in multiple independent films in 2003, including The Baroness and the Pig; Lars von Trier's experimental drama Dogville, the critically acclaimed indie film The Station Agent, playing an artist who befriends a diminutive man (Peter Dinklage) who suddenly appears as a town resident living in a local train depot; Pieces of April, in which she portrayed a mother dying of cancer who travels to visit her estranged daughter (Katie Holmes) for Thanksgiving; and the David Gordon Green-directed drama All the Real Girls, as the mother of a young womanizer in a small southern town. Four of the films—The Baroness and the Pig, Pieces of April, The Station Agent, and All the Real Girls—premiered at the 2003 Sundance Film Festival. Clarkson received numerous accolades for her performances: For The Station Agent, she won the Special Jury Prize at Sundance, and was nominated for a Screen Actors Guild award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role, among others. Her performance in Pieces of April earned her a Sundance Special Jury Prize, as well as nominations for the Screen Actors Guild award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role, a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress, and an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.
Following these critical successes, Clarkson had a lead role opposite Kurt Russell in the sports docudrama Miracle (2004), about the U.S. hockey team defeating the heavily favored Soviets in the 1980 Olympics, and played the wife of a news correspondent (Robert Downey Jr.) in George Clooney's historical drama Good Night, and Good Luck (2005), about the conflict between journalist Edward R. Murrow and Joseph McCarthy. She then starred as the wife of a Hollywood studio executive in the independent drama The Dying Gaul (2005). 2006 saw the release of The Woods, a supernatural horror film shot in 2003 in which she portrayed the headmistress of a girls' boarding school. The same year, she portrayed Sadie Burke in All the King's Men, set in her native New Orleans.
Clarkson subsequently had roles in two independent films: Legendary and Main Street (both 2010), before appearing in two mainstream comedies directed by Will Gluck: Easy A (2010), as the mother of a troubled high school student (Emma Stone), and as the mother of an executive recruiter (Mila Kunis) in Friends with Benefits (2011). She also appeared in the romantic drama One Day (2011) as the mother of a college student in Scotland (portrayed by Jim Sturgess), and guest-starred on two episodes of the comedy series Parks and Recreation. In 2013, she had a supporting role in the thriller The East (2013) as the leader of a private intelligence firm.
She subsequently starred in the science fiction film Jonathan, involving two brothers who alternately share a single body, and the psychological horror film Delirium, which was released directly-to-DVD. Clarkson starred opposite Amy Adams in the psychological drama miniseries Sharp Objects (2018), portraying the wealthy mother of an alcoholic reporter (Adams) investigating a murder in their Missouri town. For her performance in the series, Clarkson won a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Series, Miniseries or Television Film.
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Net Worth and Salary
As of 2025, Patricia Clarkson's net worth is estimated to be around $6 million, primarily earned through her extensive film and television career. Her salary varies based on the projects she undertakes, often reflecting her high demand and critical acclaim.
Career, Business, and Investments
Clarkson's career began with her feature film debut in The Untouchables (1987). She gained critical acclaim for roles in High Art (1998), The Green Mile (1999), and The Station Agent, Pieces of April, and The Party (2017). Her performances have been recognized with numerous awards, including three Primetime Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe Award. Besides acting, there is no prominent information about her business or investment ventures.
Clarkson returned to Broadway in 1989 in Eastern Standard, portraying a Wall Street investment counselor whose brother (played by Kevin Conroy) is diagnosed with AIDS; the play ran from January to March of that year.
Clarkson has stated that in the early 1990s, she went through a turbulent period in her career and was unable to find significant work. She had a small role in Jumanji (1995) before being cast in the independent drama High Art (1998), portraying a drug-addicted German actress in New York City. Her performance earned her an Independent Spirit Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress.
Social Network
Patricia Clarkson is not very active on social media platforms. Her focus remains on her acting career, with occasional appearances at film festivals and award events.
In 2007, she had a supporting role in the romantic comedy No Reservations, as well as in the comedy-drama Lars and the Real Girl, in which she portrayed a psychiatrist treating a man in love with a sex doll. She subsequently co-starred with Ben Kingsley in the drama Elegy (2008), and had supporting roles in two Woody Allen films: 2008's Vicky Cristina Barcelona, portraying an unhappy housewife, and 2009's Whatever Works. In 2008, producer Gerald Peary approached Clarkson to do the voice-over for the documentary film For the Love of Movies: The Story of American Film Criticism. Says Peary, "She agreed to do the narration... And she was so nice, and so cooperative, and so prepared, and so intelligent. And one of the key reasons she wanted to do the movie was that she regularly reads criticism, and has a genuine respect for film criticism. Clarkson returned to New Orleans on January 17, 2009 for the reopening of the Mahalia Jackson Theatre for the Performing Arts. She served as master of ceremonies for a gala featuring Plácido Domingo in concert with the New Orleans Opera, conducted by Robert Lyall. She also made a cameo appearance in the Saturday Night Live Digital Short "Motherlover" on May 9, 2009. The video featured Andy Samberg, Justin Timberlake, and Susan Sarandon. She reprised the role on May 21, 2011, in the digital short "3-Way (The Golden Rule)".
In response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, Clarkson published a post for Natural Resources Defense Council's magazine OnEarth. She also released a public service announcement talking about her experiences growing up in New Orleans. Both pieces were released on July 26, 2010.
Education
Clarkson earned a degree in drama from Fordham University and later attended the Yale School of Drama, where she graduated with a Master of Fine Arts degree. This educational background has significantly contributed to her skill and versatility as an actress.
She is one of five sisters, all of whom attended O. Perry Walker High School, where she graduated in 1977. She was raised in Algiers, a suburb of New Orleans on the West Bank of the Mississippi River.
From 1977 to 1979, Clarkson studied speech pathology at Louisiana State University before deciding she wanted to pursue a drama degree. In 1980, she transferred to Fordham University in New York City to enroll in their undergraduate acting program, from which she graduated summa cum laude in 1982. She then earned her Master of Fine Arts at the Yale School of Drama in 1985.
