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Debra Winger
Debrawinger1984.jpg
Winger in 1984
Born
Debra Lynn Winger

(1955-05-16) May 16, 1955 (age 70)
Education California State University, Northridge
Occupation Actress
Years active 1976–present
Spouse(s)
(m. 1986; div. 1990)
Arliss Howard
(m. 1996)
Children 2

Debra Lynn Winger (born May 16, 1955) is an American actress. She is famous for her roles in the movies An Officer and a Gentleman (1982), Terms of Endearment (1983), and Shadowlands (1993). For each of these films, she was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress.

Winger's other well-known movies include Urban Cowboy (1980), Legal Eagles (1986), and Rachel Getting Married (2008). In 2012, she performed on Broadway for the first time in a play called The Anarchist. From 2016 to 2020, she starred in the Netflix TV show The Ranch.

Early Life and a Big Challenge

Debra Winger was born in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, to a Jewish family. Her father, Robert, was a meat packer, and her mother, Ruth, was an office manager.

When she was a teenager, she visited a kibbutz (a type of community) in Israel on a youth tour. After she returned to the United States at age 18, she was in a serious car accident. She had a brain injury that left her unable to move or see properly for 10 months. Doctors first told her she might never see again. This difficult time gave her a lot of time to think. She decided that if she recovered, she would move to California to become an actress.

Acting Career

Getting Started

Debra Winger - St Louis Post Dispatch (1978)
Winger in 1978

Winger's first acting role was in 1976. She then played Drusilla, the younger sister of Wonder Woman, in the TV series Wonder Woman. The show's producers wanted her to be in more episodes, but she said no. She worried that playing the same character for too long could affect her future career.

Her first major movie role was in Urban Cowboy in 1980. Her performance earned her nominations for several awards. In 1982, she starred with Richard Gere in An Officer and a Gentleman. This role led to her first nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress.

Becoming a Star

Winger was nominated for an Academy Award two more times. The first was for Terms of Endearment in 1983, where she played the daughter of Shirley MacLaine's character. The second was for Shadowlands in 1993.

Over the years, Winger became known for being passionate about her work and speaking her mind. Some people found her difficult to work with, but others admired her for caring so much about her projects. Famous actress Bette Davis once said, "I see a great deal of myself in Debra Winger... because she cares about the project."

Winger was supposed to star in the movie Peggy Sue Got Married, but she had to drop out after an injury. She was also cast in A League of Their Own but was replaced by Geena Davis. It was later said that Winger left the movie because she did not want to work with the singer Madonna.

Taking a Break and Returning to Acting

In 1995, Winger decided to take a break from acting. She later explained, "I wanted out for years. I got sick of hearing myself say I wanted to quit." After her 1995 movie Forget Paris, she did not appear on screen for six years.

She returned in 2001 in the movie Big Bad Love, which was directed by her husband, Arliss Howard. She also worked as a producer on the film for the first time. Since then, she has appeared in many movies and TV shows. She received good reviews for playing Anne Hathaway's mother in Rachel Getting Married (2008).

Debra Winger at Transilvania International Film Festival
Winger (right) at the Transilvania International Film Festival in 2014

From 2016 to 2020, Winger starred with Sam Elliott and Ashton Kutcher in the Netflix comedy series The Ranch.

Other Work and Interests

During her break from movies, Winger taught at Harvard University for a semester. In 2008, she wrote a book about her life called Undiscovered.

She has also supported schools in Israel that teach Jewish and Arab students together. She is passionate about creating understanding between different groups.

Winger has also worked as a producer on documentary films. She was a producer for Gasland, a film about natural gas drilling that was nominated for an Academy Award.

Personal Life

From 1986 to 1990, Winger was married to actor Timothy Hutton. They have a son named Noah Hutton, who is a documentary filmmaker.

In 1996, Winger married actor and director Arliss Howard. They have a son named Gideon Babe Ruth Howard, who is called Babe. Winger is also a stepmother to Sam Howard, Arliss's son from a previous marriage.

In March 2025, Winger took part in a protest at Trump Tower. She spoke out on issues of Jewish safety and expressed her views on how the ideas of Judaism and Zionism are sometimes mixed together.

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role
1978 Thank God It's Friday Jennifer
1979 French Postcards Melanie
1980 Urban Cowboy Sissy
1982 Cannery Row Suzy DeSoto
1982 E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial Halloween Zombie—Nurse with poodle
1982 An Officer and a Gentleman Paula Pokrifki
1983 Terms of Endearment Emma Horton
1984 Mike's Murder Betty Parrish
1986 Legal Eagles Laura J. Kelly
1987 Black Widow Alexandra 'Alex' Barnes
1987 Made in Heaven Emmett Humbird
1988 Betrayed FBI Agent Cathy Weaver / Katie Philips
1990 Everybody Wins Angela Crispini
1990 The Sheltering Sky Kit Moresby
1992 Leap of Faith Jane Larson
1993 Wilder Napalm Vida Foudroyant
1993 A Dangerous Woman Martha Horgan
1993 Shadowlands Joy Gresham
1995 Forget Paris Ellen Andrews Gordon
2001 Big Bad Love Marilyn
2002 Searching for Debra Winger Herself
2003 Radio Linda
2004 Eulogy Alice Collins
2008 Rachel Getting Married Abby
2012 Lola Versus Robin
2014 Boychoir Ms. Steel
2017 The Lovers Mary
2020 Kajillionaire Theresa Dyne
2021 With/In: Volume 2

Television

Year Title Role Notes
1976–1977 Wonder Woman Drusilla / Wonder Girl 3 episodes
1978 Special Olympics Sherrie Hensley TV movie
1978 Police Woman Phyllis Baxter Episode: "Battered Teachers"
1992 Sesame Street Herself 1 episode
2005 Dawn Anna Dawn Anna TV movie
2005 Sometimes in April Prudence Bushnell TV movie
2010 Law & Order Mrs. Woodside Episode: "Boy on Fire"
2010 In Treatment Frances 7 episodes
2014 The Red Tent Rebecca 2 episodes
2016–2020 The Ranch Maggie Bennett Main role
2017 When We Rise Elena Kagan TV miniseries
2018 Patriot Bernice Tavner Main role (season 2)
2021 Mr. Corman Ruth Corman 4 episodes
2024 Accused Margot Episode: "Margot's Story"

See also

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