Shelley Duvall
- Known for
- Acting
- Born
- July 7, 1949
- Died
- July 11, 2024 (aged 75)
- Birthplace
- Fort Worth, Texas, USA
Biography
Shelley Alexis Duvall (July 7, 1949 – July 11, 2024) was an American actress known for her portrayal of distinctive, often eccentric characters. She was the recipient of several accolades, including a Cannes Film Festival Award and a Peabody Award and nominations for a British Academy Film Award and two Primetime Emmy Awards. Born in Texas, Duvall began acting after being discovered by director Robert Altman, who was impressed with her upbeat presence and cast her in the black comedy film Brewster McCloud (1970). Despite her hesitance towards becoming an actress, she continued to work with Altman, appearing in McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971) and Thieves Like Us (1974). Her breakthrough came with Altman's cult film Nashville (1975), and she earned widespread acclaim with the drama 3 Women (1977), also directed by Altman, for which she won the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actress and earned a nomination for the British Academy Film Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role. That same year, she appeared in a supporting role (as a writer for Rolling Stone) in Woody Allen's satirical romantic comedy Annie Hall (1977) and hosted Saturday Night Live. In the 1980s, Duvall became famous for her leading roles, which include Olive Oyl in Altman's live-action feature version of Popeye (1980) and Wendy Torrance in Stanley Kubrick's horror film The Shining (1980). She appeared in Terry Gilliam's fantasy film Time Bandits (1981), the short comedy horror film Frankenweenie (1984), and the comedy Roxanne (1987). She ventured into producing television programming aimed at children and youth in the latter half of the 1980s, notably creating and hosting the programs Faerie Tale Theatre (1982–1987), Tall Tales & Legends (1985–1987) (which earned her a Primetime Emmy Award nomination in 1988), and Nightmare Classics (1989). Duvall sporadically worked in acting throughout the 1990s, notably playing supporting roles in Steven Soderbergh's thriller The Underneath (1995) and the Henry James adaptation The Portrait of a Lady (1996), directed by Jane Campion. Her last performance was in Manna from Heaven (2002), after which she retired from acting. Duvall for many years kept out of the public media, keeping her personal life generally private; however, her health issues earned significant media coverage. After a 21-year hiatus from acting, Duvall returned to acting in the horror film The Forest Hills. She died due to complications from diabetes at her home in Blanco, southwest of Austin, Texas.
Known For
Photos
Filmography
Hello, I'm Shelley Duvall
Movie · as Self
Howl: Inside the Forest Hills
Movie · as Self
Shine On: The Forgotten Shining Location
Movie · as Self (archive footage)
Kubrick by Kubrick
Movie · as Self (archive footage)
Saturday Night Live: The Best of Dan Aykroyd
Movie · as Bad Ballet Dancer (archive footage)
100 Greatest Scary Moments
TV · 2 eps
Manna from Heaven
Movie · as Detective Dubrinski
Stanley Kubrick - Ein Leben für den Film
Movie · as Self
Big Monster on Campus
Movie · as Mrs. Stein
Dreams in the Attic
Movie · as Aunt Nellie
The 4th Floor
Movie · as Martha Stewart
Home Fries
Movie · as Mrs. Jackson
Tale of the Mummy
Movie · as Edith Butros
Casper Meets Wendy
Movie · as Gabby
Maggie Winters
TV · as Muriel · 18 eps
The Hughleys
TV · as Mrs. Crump · 1 ep
Shadow Zone: My Teacher Ate My Homework
Movie · as Mrs. Fink
Changing Habits
Movie · as Sister Agatha
Twilight of the Ice Nymphs
Movie · as Amelia Glahn
Alone
Movie · as Estelle
RocketMan
Movie · as Mrs. Randall (uncredited)
Guy Maddin: Waiting for Twilight
Movie · as Self
The Adventures of Shirley Holmes
TV · as Alice Flitt · 52 eps
The Portrait of a Lady
Movie · as Countess Gemini
Robert Altman: Giggle And Give In
Movie · as Self
The Underneath
Movie · as Nurse
Wishbone
TV · as Renee Lassiter · 50 eps
Aliens for Breakfast
Movie · as Teacher
Shelley Duvall's Bedtime Stories: The Christmas Witch
Movie · as Host
Aaahh!!! Real Monsters
TV · as Ocka (voice) · 102 eps
Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle
TV · as Potsi · 1 ep
Frasier
TV · as Caroline (voice) · 1 ep
Shelley Duvall's Bedtime Stories
TV · as Shelley Duvall · 13 eps
Suburban Commando
Movie · as Jenny Wilcox
Frogs!
Movie · as Annie
The Chipmunks Rockin' Through The Decades
Movie · as Self
Mother Goose Rock 'n' Rhyme
Movie · as Little Bo Peep
Earthquake Survival
Movie · as Self
Roxanne
Movie · as Dixie
Frog
Movie · as Mrs. Anderson
Faerie Tale Theatre: Rip Van Winkle
Movie · as Self - Host (uncredited)
The Little Mermaid
Movie · as Self - Host
The Dancing Princesses
Movie · as Self - Host
Johnny Appleseed
Movie · as Self / Host
Ponce de Leon
Movie · as Self / Host
John Henry
Movie · as Self / Host
Davy Crockett
Movie · as Self / Host
Pecos Bill
Movie · as Self / Host
Annie Oakley
Movie · as The Host
Darlin' Clementine
Movie · as Self / Host / Clementine
Casey at the Bat
Movie · as Host
The Princess Who Had Never Laughed
Movie · as Self - Host
Aladdin and His Wonderful Lamp
Movie · as Self - Host
Mr. Bill's Real Life Adventures
Movie · as Self
Lily
Movie · as Lily Miniver
L.A. Law
TV · as Margo Stanton · 1 ep
The Pied Piper of Hamelin
Movie · as Self - Host
Cinderella
Movie · as Self - Host
The Emperor's New Clothes
Movie · as Self - Host
Puss in Boots
Movie · as Self - Host / Narrator
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow
Movie · as Self / Host
The Snow Queen
Movie · as Host / Narrator (voice)
The Twilight Zone
TV · as Margaret (segment "A Saucer of Loneliness") · 1 ep
The Ray Bradbury Theater
TV · as Leota Bean · 1 ep
Tall Tales & Legends
TV · as Self - Host, Clementine · 9 eps
Frankenweenie
Movie · as Susan Frankenstein
Pinocchio
Movie · as Self - Host (uncredited)
Thumbelina
Movie · as Self - Host (uncredited)
Booker
Movie · as Laura
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
Movie · as Snow White's Mother / Self - Host
The Boy Who Left Home to Find Out About the Shivers
Movie · as Self - Host (uncredited)
The Princess and the Pea
Movie · as Self - Host (uncredited)
Goldilocks and the Three Bears
Movie · as Self - Host (uncredited)
Beauty and the Beast
Movie · as Self - Host (uncredited)
The Secret World of the Very Young
Movie
WonderWorks
TV · as Laura Burroughs · 1 ep
The Fairest of Them All
Movie · as Self
The Nightingale
Movie · as Nightingale (voice) / Narrator (voice) / Self - Host
Jack and the Beanstalk
Movie · as Self - Host (uncredited)
Rapunzel
Movie · as Rapunzel / Marie, Rapunzel's Mother / Self - Host
Sleeping Beauty
Movie · as Self - Host (uncredited)
Little Red Riding Hood
Movie · as Self - Host (uncredited)
Hansel and Gretel
Movie · as Self - Host (uncredited)
Six Kinds of Light - John Alcott
Movie · as Self
Twilight Theatre
Movie
Rumpelstiltskin
Movie · as The Miller's Daughter / Self - Host
The Tale of the Frog Prince
Movie · as Self - Host (uncredited)
Faerie Tale Theatre
TV · as The Miller's Daughter, Marie / Rapunzel, Narrator / Nightingale (voice), Snow White's Mother, Narrator (voice), Self - Host · 1 ep
Time Bandits
Movie · as Dame Pansy / Pansy
The Shining
Movie · as Wendy Torrance
Popeye
Movie · as Olive Oyl
Making 'The Shining'
Movie · as Self
Fridays
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Annie Hall
Movie · as Pam
3 Women
Movie · as Mildred "Millie" Lammoreaux
The Paul Simon Special
Movie · as Joan of Arc
Buffalo Bill and the Indians, or Sitting Bull's History Lesson
Movie · as The First Lady (Mrs. Cleveland)
Bernice Bobs Her Hair
Movie · as Bernice
Nashville
Movie · as L.A. Joan
Saturday Night Live
TV · as Self - Host, Patron (uncredited), Self (uncredited) · 1 ep
Thieves Like Us
Movie · as Keechie
Spécial cinéma
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Brewster McCloud
Movie · as Suzanne
McCabe & Mrs. Miller
Movie · as Ida Coyle
Cannon
TV · as Liz Christie · 1 ep
Film '72
TV · as Self · 1 ep