Sheila McCarthy

Sheila McCarthy (born January 1,Template:Efn 1956)<ref name="The Canadian Encyclopedia"/><ref name="Riggs">Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref><ref name="AllMovie">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> is a Canadian actress and singer. She has worked in film, television, and on stage. McCarthy is one of Canada's most honoured actors, having won two Genie Awards (film), two Gemini Awards (television), an ACTRA Award, and two Dora Awards (theatre), along with multiple nominations.<ref name="little">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Ben Kaplanr">Template:Cite news</ref>

Early life

McCarthy was born in Toronto, Ontario on January 1, 1956.<ref name="Riggs"/> She attended Thornlea Secondary School in Thornhill in her youth. Her first appearance on stage was at Toronto's Elgin Theatre in Peter Pan when she was age six.<ref name="The Canadian Encyclopedia">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> She later attended the University of Victoria and spent a year studying with Uta Hagen at her HB Studio in New York City, and also workshopped with the Second City troupe in Toronto.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Career

After several years of television work under her belt, McCarthy secured a role in the made-for-television movie A Nest of Singing Birds (1987), receiving early recognition for her talent with a Gemini Award nomination for Best Performance by a Lead Actress in a Dramatic Program. That year, she made her first notable impression on the Canadian movie scene as Polly, the quirky, "organizationally impaired girl" in Patricia Rozema's I've Heard the Mermaids Singing. For this role, McCarthy won the Genie Award for Best Actress. The film became wildly popular in Canada, earning many international and domestic awards and critical acclaim.<ref name="The Canadian Encyclopedia"/><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="tiff">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

McCarthy has since become one of Canada's more honoured actors, having won two Genie Awards (film), two Gemini Awards (television), and two Dora Awards (theatre) along with multiple nominations.<ref name="little"/><ref name="Ben Kaplanr"/>

She played Sarah Hamoudi in the Canadian television series Little Mosque on the Prairie (2007–2012), a role for which she was nominated for a Gemini award. One of her more recognized big-screen roles is Samantha, the news reporter in the movie Die Hard 2 with Bruce Willis. Her most recent roles are Connie Hendrix, mother of the clone Alison in series Orphan Black and Agnes Rofa in the series The Umbrella Academy.

She is also an accomplished voice-over actress, having performed characters voices in Free Willy, Mythic Warriors: Guardians of the Legend, The Busy World of Richard Scarry, The Neverending Story, Bad Dog and Marvin the Tap-Dancing Horse.

On stage, McCarthy has appeared in Little Shop of Horrors, Hamlet, Cabaret, Guys and Dolls, Anything Goes, and Love Letters.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Personal life

McCarthy was married to actor Peter Donaldson from 1986 until his death in 2011.<ref name="cbc20110109">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> They have two daughters: Drew<ref name="Riggs"/> and Mackenzie Donaldson, who is also in show business (producer of Whatever, Linda and Orphan Black).<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

McCarthy is a spokesperson for The Quilt Project, a support group for families affected by breast cancer, and Canadian Feed the Children.<ref name="The Canadian Encyclopedia"/>

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1987	Template:Sortname	Anna
	I've Heard the Mermaids Singing	Polly Vandersma	won the Genie Award for Best Actress
1988	Gandahar	Council Spokeswoman (voice)
1989	Friends, Lovers, & Lunatics	Kathy
	George's Island	Miss Birdwood
1990	Beautiful Dreamers	Molly Jessop
	Die Hard 2	Samantha 'Sam' Coleman
	Pacific Heights	Liz Hamilton
	Bright Angel	Nina
1991	White Room	Zelda
	Paradise	Sally Pike
	Stepping Out	Andy
	Montréal vu par...	Ann Stuart	segment: "Desperanto"
1993	Journey to the Planets	Oracle (voice)	short film
	Template:Sortname	Diane Kingswood	won the Genie Award for Best Actress
1994	The Biggest Little Ticket	The Troll
1996	House Arrest	Gwenna Krupp
1997	Shadow Zone: My Teacher Ate My Homework	Mrs. Hackett
2001	Rare Birds	Claire
2002	Duct Tape Forever	Easterbrook (uncredited)
2004	Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen	Mrs. Gerard
	Template:Sortname	Judith
	Being Julia	Grace Dexter
	Geraldine's Fortune	Tina Larose
2005	Bailey's Billion$	Peggy Delaney
	Template:Sortname	Hannah Maynard	short film
2006	Small Avalanches	Nancy's Mother	short film
2007	Breakfast with Scot	Miss Patterson
	Template:Sortname	Doris Shipley
2009	Year of the Carnivore	Mrs. Smalls
2012	Antiviral	Dev Harvey
2014	A Fighting Man	Rose
2016	Considering Love and Other Magic	Veronica Guest
	Milton's Secret
2017	Cardinals	Valerie Walker
2018	Level 16	Mrs. Denison (cameo)
2020	Stroke of Fate	Shirley	short film
	Happy Place	Joyce
	Anything for Jackson	Audrey
2021	Like a House on Fire	Katherine
	The Middle Man	Mrs. Stout
2022	Christmas in Rockwell	Juniper
	Women Talking	Greta Loewen
2024	All the Lost Ones	Dawn
TBA	Love is the Monster	Margaret	Filming

Television

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1982	Hangin' In		episode: "The Princess and the Pea"
1983	Today's Special	Sourpuss Sal	episode: "Smiles"
1984	Template:Sortname	Murielle	episode: "Three Monkeys of Bah Roghar: Part 1" episode: "Three Monkeys of Bah Roghar: Part 2"
1985	Love and Larceny	Mary Bigley	TV movie
	Tucker and the Horse Thief		TV movie
1986	9B	Heather	TV movie
	Template:Sortname	Lynn Reilly	TV movie
	Hot Shots	Jenny	episode: "Cut Off in His Prime"
	The Frantics: Four on the Floor	Various Characters	6 episodes
	Really Weird Tales	Ellie Hutchins	episode: "Cursed with Charisma"
	Check It Out!	Sonja	episode: "Dog Day After Dark"
1987	Much Ado About Nothing	Margaret	TV movie
1988	Mount Royal	Luise Blaikie	episode: "Still Life"
1989	Alfred Hitchcock Presents	Sarah Hollister	episode: "For Art's Sake"
	Trying Times	Jenny Amber	episode: "A Good Life"
1990	Labour of Love		TV movie
	E.N.G.	Carol Barton	episode: "Till Death Us Do Part"
	Back to the Beanstalk	Garbanza	TV movie
	Steel Magnolias	Annelle Dupuy-Desoto	TV pilot (unsold)
	Street Legal	Stephanie Coleman	episode: "The Psychic"
1991	Template:Sortname	(voice)	TV movie
	Rupert	Additional Voices	13 episodes
	The Hidden Room		episode: "Rogue in the Bathroom"
1992	Beethoven Lives Upstairs	Sophie	TV movie
	Template:Sortname	Diane Callaghan	TV movie
	Template:Sortname	Francine	episode: "The Lonely One"
1994	Free Willy	Annie	TV series
	Dan Redican Comedy Hour	Various	TV movie
	Menendez: A Killing in Beverly Hills	Jill Lansing	TV movie
1995	Template:Sortname	Totsie	TV movie
	Template:Sortname	Nancy	TV movie
1995–1996	Picket Fences	Sue Walsh	4 episodes
1996	Road to Avonlea	Betty Blaine	episode: "King of the Great White Way"
	Template:Sortname	Carol Doster	TV movie
1998	Bad Dog	(voice)	TV series
	More Tales of the City	Mildred	TV miniseries
	Dead Husbands	Jane Armitage	TV movie
1998–2000	Emily of New Moon	Laura Murray	46 episodes
1999	You Know My Name	Mrs. Lynn	TV movie
	Too Rich: The Secret Life of Doris Duke	Tammy	TV movie
	Mythic Warriors	Clotho (voice)	episode: "Damon and Pythias"
2000	Virtual Mom	Holly	TV movie, also writer
	Super Rupert	Aunt Rhonda	TV series
	Marvin the Tap-Dancing Horse	Elizabeth the Emotional Pig (voice)
2001	Haven	Eva	TV movie
	Anne of Green Gables: The Animated Series	Mrs. King (voice)	episode: "Oh, Brother!"
	Royal Canadian Air Farce	Anne Robinson/Dr. Joy Thomas	episode: "9.2"
	I Was a Rat	Mrs. Tapscrew	TV movie
	Template:Sortname	Various	TV series
2002	Lathe of Heaven	Penny	TV movie
	Template:Sortname	Miss Paige	TV movie
2003	Custody of the Heart	Alice	TV movie
	Full-Court Miracle	Mrs. Klein	TV movie
2004	The Shields Stories	Hazel	episode: "Hazel"
2005	Puppets Who Kill	Miss Wickham	episode: "Cuddles the Artist"
	Missing	Dr. Eleanor Reese	episode: "Analysis"
2006	Roxana	Amy	TV movie
	Cow Belles	Fran Walker	TV movie
2007–2012	Little Mosque on the Prairie	Sarah Hamoudi	80+ episodes
2009	Template:Sortname		episode: "1.5"
2010	Love Letters	Melissa	TV movie
2013	Murdoch Mysteries	Felicity Dawes	episode: "Lovers in a Murderous Time"
2014	Saving Hope	Violet	episode: "Breathless"
	Dear Viola	Peggy	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
2015	Orphan Black	Connie Hendrix	episode: "Community of Dreadful Fear and Hate"
2016	Ice Girls	Auntie Ginger	TV movie
	Brace for Impact	Faradee Gilchrist	TV movie
2018	The Detail
2019	Star Trek: Discovery	Amesha	episode: "New Eden"
	Anne with an E	Mrs. Blackmore	episode: "The Better Feelings of My Heart"
2019; 2024	The Umbrella Academy	Agnes	Recurring role (season 1); guest role (season 4)
2020	Nurses	Phillis Bruner	episode: "Friday Night Legend"
2021	The Good Doctor	Rose Babcock	episode: "Lim"
2022	Zombies 3	Grandma Angie/Alien Scout	TV movie

Discography

• 2006: "All Good Now" – from the movie Cow Belles

Awards and nominations

This section needs to be expanded to include further awards and nominations.

Year	Nominated Work	Organization	Award	Result
1983	Really Rosie	Dora Mavor Moore Award	Outstanding performance in a revue or musical	Template:Won<ref name="The Canadian Encyclopedia"/><ref name="Riggs"/>
1985	Little Shop of Horrors	Dora Mavor Moore Award	Female performance	Template:Won<ref>Template:Cite press release</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
1988	I've Heard the Mermaids Singing	9th Genie Awards	Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role	Template:WonTemplate:Citation needed
	A Nest of Singing Birds	3rd Gemini Awards	Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Dramatic Program or Mini-Series	Template:NomTemplate:Citation needed
	Mount Royal	3rd Gemini Awards	Best Guest Performance in a Series by an Actor or Actress	Template:NomTemplate:Citation needed
1992	Bright Angel	Independent Spirit Awards	Best Supporting Female	Template:NomTemplate:Citation needed
1993	The Lotus Eaters	14th Genie Awards	Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role	Template:WonTemplate:Citation needed
1998	Emily of New Moon	13th Gemini Awards	Best Performance by an Actress in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role	Template:WonTemplate:Citation needed
1999	Emily of New Moon	14th Gemini Awards	Best Performance by an Actress in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role	Template:NomTemplate:Citation needed
2000	Sesame Park	15th Gemini Awards	Best Performance in a Pre-School Program or Series	Template:WonTemplate:Citation needed
	The City	15th Gemini Awards	Best Performance by an Actress in a Guest Role Dramatic Series	Template:NomTemplate:Citation needed
2018	Cardinals	ACTRA Toronto Award	Outstanding Performance, Female	Template:Won<ref>Template:Cite press release</ref>
2023	Women Talking	Screen Actors Guild Award	Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture	Template:Nom<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>

External links

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