Jennifer Coolidge

Jennifer Audrey Coolidge (born August 28, 1961) is an American actress. Primarily noted as a character actor for her roles in comedic film and television, she may be best known for her roles as Jeanine "Stifler's Mom" Stifler in the American Pie film series (1999–2012) and as Paulette Bonafonté Parcelle in the Legally Blonde film series (2001–2003). She is a regular actor in Christopher Guest's mockumentary films, such as Best in Show (2000), A Mighty Wind (2003), For Your Consideration (2006), and Mascots (2016). Coolidge is an alumna of The Groundlings, an improv and sketch comedy troupe based in Los Angeles.

Coolidge also appeared in the films A Cinderella Story (2004), Robots (2005), Click (2006), Date Movie (2006), American Dreamz (2006), Epic Movie (2007), Igor (2008), Soul Men (2008), Gentlemen Broncos (2009), Austenland (2013), Like a Boss (2020), Promising Young Woman (2020), and Single All the Way (2021). On television, she is known for her roles as Roberta "Bobbie" Morganstern in the NBC sitcom Joey (2004–2006), Betty in the ABC Family teen drama series The Secret Life of the American Teenager (2008–2012), Zofia "Sophie" Kaczyński in the CBS sitcom 2 Broke Girls (2011–2017), and Tanya McQuoid in the HBO anthology series The White Lotus (2021-2022), the latter of which earned her critical acclaim, winning a Primetime Emmy Award and a Critics' Choice Television Award, and receiving nominations for two Golden Globe Awards, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and another Critics' Choice Television Award. Most recently, she appeared in The Watcher on Netflix.

Early life

Coolidge was born in Boston, Massachusetts, to Gretchen (née Knauff) and Paul Constant Coolidge, a plastics manufacturer. She was raised in Norwell, Massachusetts. She is one of four children, with a brother, Andrew, and two sisters, Elizabeth and Susannah.

Coolidge played the clarinet and went to orchestra camp for three summers as a child. She attended Norwell High School, the Cambridge School of Weston, and pursued university studies at Emerson College in Boston and the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City. During college, Coolidge wanted to become a dramatic actress like Meryl Streep, but instead became a comedic character actress.

While in New York, Coolidge worked as a waitress in a restaurant alongside another aspiring actress, Sandra Bullock.

Career

1993–1999: Early career

Coolidge played supporting roles in several comedy movies and guest roles on television. She made her first appearance on television in the Seinfeld episode "The Masseuse". Before gaining recognition, she received small roles appearing in such films as A Bucket of Blood, Plump Fiction, and A Night at the Roxbury. She also voiced Luanne's beauty school teacher, Miss Kremzer, in a recurring role on King of the Hill.

1999–2006: Breakthrough

In 1999, Coolidge got her big break playing Jeanine Stifler, or "Stifler's mom" in American Pie. The film was a box-office hit and took in a gross worldwide revenue of $235,483,004. In 2001, she reprised her role in American Pie 2. Later in that same year, she had a supporting role in Legally Blonde as Paulette Bonafonté Parcelle the manicurist. Legally Blonde was a box-office hit, grossing US$96 million domestically. The film's box-office success led to her reprising the role in its 2003 sequel, Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde, but the movie was not as financially successful as the first film and generated mostly negative reviews. In 2003, she again played Jeanine Stifler in American Wedding.

In 2003, she played the protagonist's agent Luise in Testosterone filmed in Argentina starring David Sutcliffe as Dean Seagrave and Antonio Sabato, Jr. as Pablo.

In 2004, she had a supporting role in the romantic comedy A Cinderella Story playing Hilary Duff's character's vain, self-absorbed stepmother. The film went on to become a moderate box office hit despite negative critical reviews.

Coolidge nearly received the role of Lynette Scavo on Desperate Housewives, but it eventually went to Felicity Huffman. From 2004 to 2006, Coolidge had a role in the NBC comedy series Joey as Joey Tribbiani’s oversexed agent Roberta "Bobbie" Morganstern. During its second season, she went from a recurring character to a more prominent role, appearing in 37 out of 46 episodes in the series. NBC officially canceled the series in May 2006, citing low ratings. She originally starred in an episode of Friends in its final season as Amanda, an obnoxious acquaintance whom Phoebe Buffay and Monica Geller try to shake off. Prior to her Friends appearance she was a regular on She TV, a short-lived sketch comedy that also featured Nick Bakay, Elon Gold, Simbi Khali, and Linda Kash. She also has appeared on According to Jim, playing Roxanne, Jim's sister and in an episode of Sex and the City, and on Frasier as Frederica, Martin Crane's new physical therapist. Coolidge also appeared in the children's comedy Slappy and the Stinkers, and as the voice of Aunt Fanny in the animated feature Robots. The film was accompanied by an original short animated film based on Robots, titled Aunt Fanny's Tour of Booty, in which she reprised her role.

In late 2005, Coolidge was invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. In 2006, she guest starred on an episode of Top Chef, and played as Adam Sandler's wife's friend, Janine, in the comedy film Click. From 2000 to 2006 she played comic parts in the improv mockumentaries Best in Show, A Mighty Wind, and For Your Consideration, all directed by Christopher Guest.

2006–2011: Supporting roles in comedies and television work

She appeared in the 2006 film Date Movie as a spoof of Barbra Streisand's Meet the Fockers character. The film received unfavorable critic reviews and Rotten Tomatoes ranked the film 77th in the 100 worst reviewed films of the 2000s, with a rating of 6%. However, Variety did praise Coolidge for providing a few bright moments with a spot-on spoof of Barbra Streisand, albeit otherwise unimpressed describing the film as "padded and repetitious".

Epic Movie, released in 2007 and made by the same people behind Date Movie, was the first movie in which she received a starring role. In the film she played the "White Bitch" (the White Witch) of Gnarnia (Narnia), a lampoon of the Disney and Walden Media film The Chronicles of Narnia: the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. A. O. Scott of The New York Times called the film "irreverent and also appreciative, dragging its satiric prey down to the lowest pop-cultural denominator" and added, "The humor is coarse and occasionally funny. The archly bombastic score ... is the only thing you might call witty. But happily, Jennifer Coolidge and Fred Willard show up ... to add some easy, demented class."

During 2007, Coolidge appeared on Thank God You're Here and The Closer, on TNT. In 2008, she guest starred on The Secret Life of the American Teenager as a call girl. In the second season, she was a frequently recurring character, now playing the fiancé of Ben's dad and future stepmother of Ben. She also starred in the 2008 Lifetime Television film Living Proof. Coolidge appeared in the 2008 film Soul Men as Rosalee.

In 2009, Coolidge took a dramatic role in Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans as Genevieve McDonagh. The film premiered on September 9, 2009, at the 66th Venice International Film Festival, and it opened in general release in the United States on November 20, 2009. Also In 2009, she starred alongside Heather Graham and Amber Heard in ExTerminators, a black comedy about a set of women who form their own "silent revolution", wreaking havoc on the abusive men in their lives.

In 2010, Coolidge appeared in another film starring Hilary Duff titled Beauty & the Briefcase, an ABC Family television film produced by Image Entertainment that originally aired on April 18, 2010. It was based on the novel Diary of a Working Girl by Daniella Brodsky. The film was released on DVD and Blu-ray in the US on February 8, 2011.

2011–2019: American Reunion, 2 Broke Girls, and other roles

It was reported in October 2008 that Universal Pictures was planning to produce a third theatrically released sequel to American Pie. In April 2010, the film entered pre-production, and in May 2011, Coolidge signed on to reprise her role of Stifler's Mom. The film opened in North America on April 6, 2012.

In June 2011, Coolidge curated a Blake Nelson Boyd art show in New Orleans. In the same month Coolidge began to do standup comedy. She hosted the “Women in Film” at the Beverly Hills Hotel. It went over so well, that she decided to take an act on the road. Coolidge ended up doing shows all over the country and the world for two years, Scotland included. Coolidge told Australian radio show The Kyle & Jackie O Show that she would be touring Australia as part of her Yours for the Night stand-up tour.

In October 2011, Coolidge began a recurring role in the CBS sitcom 2 Broke Girls as Sophie Kaczyński, a Polish neighbor of the two lead characters. She was later promoted to main cast from season 2 up until the show's cancellation in 2017.

During 2013, additional voice cast members were announced for B.O.O.: Bureau of Otherworldly Operations, including Coolidge as Carol Sue, a transitions-relations officer. Film distributor 20th Century Fox set November 6, 2015, for the film's release date (which was moved a few months later up to September 25), In 2014, Los Angeles Times reported that the film had been delayed again, with no replacement release date set. It was reported the film's concept has gone back to development. Also in 2013, Coolidge and actress Megan Mullally joined the cast of Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day; Coolidge playing Ms. Suggs, the driving instructor. The film was released in North America on October 10, 2014.

The next year, she had a voice role in Hell and Back, and had a cameo in Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip. In 2016 she appeared in Mascots, directed by Christopher Guest. In 2017, Coolidge lent her voice to portray Mary Meh in The Emoji Movie. In 2018, Coolidge made an appearance in Ariana Grande's music video for her song "Thank U, Next".

2020–present: Promising Young Woman, The White Lotus, and critical acclaim

In 2020, she starred in Like a Boss, the first studio comedy film of the 2020s, for Paramount Pictures, co-starring with Tiffany Haddish, Rose Byrne, and Salma Hayek. Coolidge had a supporting role in Emerald Fennell's directorial debut Promising Young Woman as the mother of Carey Mulligan's character, Cassie. The movie received universal acclaim upon release. In October 2020, Coolidge was cast as Tanya, a troubled woman on vacation, in Mike White's comedy-drama series The White Lotus and began filming shortly after in Hawaii. The show premiered in July 2021 and was widely praised, with Coolidge receiving critical acclaim and winning a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie for her performance.

In 2021, she starred in the Netflix Christmas romantic comedy Single All the Way alongside Michael Urie, Philemon Chambers, and Kathy Najimy.

In 2022, Coolidge starred in Netflix's mini-series The Watcher along with Naomi Watts and Bobby Cannavale.

Personal life

Coolidge dated comedian Chris Kattan.

After having visited New Orleans up to ten times a year over ten years, Coolidge purchased two homes in that city in 2005. Interior scenes from The Beguiled (2017) were filmed in one of Coolidge's New Orleans homes.

Her charitable work and activism have included a history of supporting AIDS assistance and animal rights. She is also known for her support of the LGBTQIA2S+ community and is widely considered to be a gay icon.

Coolidge loves animals and has a pet dog named Chuy that was rescued from a meat factory in Korea.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1995	Not of this Earth	Nurse
	A Bucket of Blood	Stupid girl
	Love and Happiness	Jeringir
1997	Plump Fiction	Sister Sister
	Trial and Error	Jacqueline "Jackie" Turreau
1998	Slappy and the Stinkers	Harriet
	A Night at the Roxbury	Hottie police officer
	Brown's Requiem	Helen
1999	Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me	Woman at football game
	American Pie	Jeanine Stifler
2000	The Broken Hearts Club: A Romantic Comedy	Betty
	Best in Show	Sherri Ann Cabot
2001	Down to Earth	Mrs. Belinda Wellington
	Legally Blonde	Paulette Bonafonté
	Pootie Tang	Ireenie
	American Pie 2	Jeanine Stifler	Uncredited Cameo
	Zoolander	American designer
2003	A Mighty Wind	Amber Cole
	As Virgins Fall	Janice Denver
	Carolina	Aunt Marilyn
	Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde	Paulette Bonafonté Parcelle
	American Wedding	Jeanine Stifler
	Testosterone	Louise
2004	A Cinderella Story	Fiona Montgomery
	Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events	White-Faced Woman #1
2005	Robots	Aunt Fanny (voice)
2006	Date Movie	Roz Fockyerdoder
	American Dreamz	Martha Kendoo
	Click	Janine
	For Your Consideration	Whitney Taylor Brown
2007	Epic Movie	The White Bitch of Gnarnia
2008	Dr. Dolittle: Tail to the Chief	Daisy (voice)	Direct-to-DVD
	Foreign Exchange	Principal Lonnatini
	Igor	Jaclyn / Heidi (voice)
	Soul Men	Rosalee
2009	ExTerminators	Stella
	A Good Funeral	Helen
	Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans	Genevieve McDonagh
	Gentlemen Broncos	Judith Purvis
2010	The Jack of Spades	Monica
	Beauty & the Briefcase	Felisa McCollin
2011	Mangus!	Cookie Richardson
2012	American Reunion	Jeanine Stifler
2013	Austenland	Miss Elizabeth Charming
2014	Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day	Ms. Suggs
2015	Hell and Back	Durmessa (voice)
	Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip	Mrs. Price	Cameo
2016	Mascots	Jolene Lumpkin
2017	The Emoji Movie	Mary Meh (voice)
2020	Like a Boss	Sydney
	Promising Young Woman	Susan Thomas
	Bobbleheads: The Movie	Binky (voice)	Direct-to-video
2021	Swan Song	Dee Dee Dale
	Arlo the Alligator Boy	Stucky (voice)
	Single All the Way	Aunt Sandy
2023	Shotgun Wedding	Carol	Post-production
TBA	We Have a Ghost		Post-production
	Legally Blonde 3	Paulette Parcelle	Pre-production
	Pierre the Pigeon-Hawk	Aunty Peggy	Pre-production

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1993	Seinfeld	Jodi	Episode: "The Masseuse"
1994	She TV	Various
1995	The Monroes	Marcia Kelly	Episode: "Educating Billy"
1996	Saturday Night Special	Various
1997–1999	King of the Hill	Miss June Kremzer (voice)	4 episodes
1998	Alright Already	Rhonda	Episode: "Again with the Hockey Player: Part 1"
	Rude Awakening	Sue	2 episodes
	Men in White	—	Television film
1999	Ladies Man	Helen	Episode: "Neutered Jimmy"
2001	The Andy Dick Show	Nancy Bunting	Episode: "Kid Krist"
	Frasier	Frederica	Episode: "Forgotten But Not Gone"
	Sketch Pad	The Groundlings
2002	Do Over	Gwen Brody	Episode: "Cold War"
	Women vs. Men	Shelly	Television film
2003–2004	According to Jim	Roxanne	3 episodes
2003	Sex and the City	Victoria	Episode: "The Perfect Present"
	Friends	Amanda Buffamonteezi	Episode: "The One with Ross's Tan"
2004	Game Over	Ramona (voice)	Episode: "Into the Woods"
	MADtv	Herself / Ivanka	Season 9, episode 23
2004–2006	Joey	Roberta "Bobbie" Morganstern	Main cast; 37 episodes
2004	Father of the Pride	Tracy (voice)	Episode: "And the Revolution Continues"
	As Told by Ginger	Nikki Laporte (voice)	Episode: "The Wedding Frame"
2005	Hopeless Pictures	Traci (voice)	3 episodes
2006	Comic Relief 2006	"Fur"	Stand-up comedy benefit concert in the wake of Hurricane Katrina
2007–2009	Nip/Tuck	Candy Richards / CoCo	3 episodes
2008–2009	Yin Yang Yo!	Coop's mother (voice)	4 episodes
2008	The Closer	Angie Serabian	Episode: "Dial M for Provenza"
2008–2012	The Secret Life of the American Teenager	Betty	35 episodes
2008	Rick & Steve: The Happiest Gay Couple in All the World	Fannie Mae (voice)	Episode: "Mom Fight"
	Living Proof	Tish	Television film
2009	Kath & Kim	Lenore	Episode: "Celebrity"
	Party Down	Bobbie St. Brown	2 episodes
2010 2012	The Life & Times of Tim	Various voices	3 episodes
2010–2013	Hero Factory	Daniella Capricorn (voice)	5 episodes
2011–2014	Fish Hooks	Ms. Lynne Lips (voice)	Recurring
2012	The Game	Marissa	Episode: "Skeletons"
	Napoleon Dynamite	Mrs. Jane Moser (voice)	2 episodes
2012–2017	2 Broke Girls	Sophie Kaczyński	Recurring (season 1); main cast (season 2–6) 122 episodes
2012–2016	Gravity Falls	"Lazy" Susan Wentworth (voice)	Recurring
2015	Glee	Whitney S. Pierce	2 episodes
	Inside Amy Schumer	Cleopatricia Sherman	Episode: "Babies and Bustiers"
	TripTank	Mom (voice)	Episode: "Steve's Family"
2017	American Dad!	Caroline (voice)	Episode: "A Whole Slotta Love"
2018–2022	The Loud House	Myrtle (voice)	5 episodes
2019	The Cool Kids	Bonnie	Episode: "Sid's Ex-Wife"
2020	Royalties	Miriam Hale	3 episodes
2020–2021	The Fungies!	Dr. Nancy (voice)	Regular role
2021	Rick and Morty	Daphne (voice)	Episode: "A Rickconvenient Mort"
	I Heart Arlo	Stucky (voice)	3 episodes
	Ten Year Old Tom	Dakota's Mom (voice)	5 episodes
2021–2022	The White Lotus	Tanya McQuoid	Main cast
2022	The Watcher	Karen Calhoun	7 episodes

Video games

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2005	Robots	Aunt Fanny	Voice

Music videos

Year	Title	Artist	Role	Ref.
2018	"Thank U, Next"	Ariana Grande	Paulette Bonafonte

Theatre

Year	Title	Role	Venue	Notes
2001–2002	The Women	Edith Potter	American Airlines Theatre	77 performances
2010	Elling	Reidun Nordsletten / Gunn / Poet / Johanne	Ethel Barrymore Theatre	9 performances

Awards and nominations

Association	Year	Work	Category	Result	Ref(s)
AACTA International Awards	2021	The White Lotus	Best Actress in a Series	Nominated
Critics' Choice Television Awards	2022	The White Lotus	Best Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or Movie Made for Television	Won
	2023		Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series	Pending
Dorian Awards	2022	The White Lotus	Best Supporting TV Performance	Won
		—	Wilde Artist Award	Nominated
			Wilde Wit Award	Won
Drama Desk Awards	2003	The Women	Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play	Nominated
Florida Film Critics Circle Awards	2004	A Mighty Wind	Best Cast	Won
Golden Globe Awards	2022	The White Lotus	Best Supporting Actress – Series, Miniseries or Television Film	Nominated
	2023	The White Lotus	Best Supporting Actress – Limited or Anthology Series or Television Film	Pending
Gotham Awards	2006	For Your Consideration	Best Ensemble Cast	Nominated
	2021	The White Lotus	Outstanding Performance in a New Series	Nominated
Hollywood Critics Association TV Awards	2022	The White Lotus	Best Supporting Actress in a Broadcast or Cable Limited, Anthology Series, or Movie	Won
Primetime Emmy Awards	2022	The White Lotus	Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie	Won
Provincetown International Film Festival Awards	2015	—	Faith Hubley Memorial Award	Won
Screen Actors Guild Awards	2022	The White Lotus	Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Miniseries or Television Movie	Nominated
Stinkers Bad Movie Awards	2006	Date Movie	Most Annoying Fake Accent – Female	Nominated
Teen Choice Awards	2005	A Cinderella Story	Choice Movie: Sleazebag	Won