Acting · Evanston, Illinois, USA · Born July 18, 1961
Elizabeth McGovern (born July 18, 1961) is an American film, television, and theater actress. In 1980, while studying at Juilliard, McGovern was offered a part in her first film, Ordinary People, in which she played the girlfriend of troubled teenager Timothy Hutton. The following year she completed her education as an actress at the American Conservatory Theatre and at The Juilliard School, and began to appear in plays, first Off-Broadway and later in famous theaters. In 1981, she earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Evelyn Nesbit in the film Ragtime. In 1984, she starred in Sergio Leone's gangster epic Once Upon a Time in America as Robert De Niro's romantic interest, Deborah Gelly. In 1989, she played Mickey Rourke's girlfriend in Johnny Handsome, directed by Walter Hill, and the same year she appeared as a rebellious lesbian in Volker Schlöndorff's thriller The Handmaid's Tale.
TVTalamasca: The Secret Order
2025
as Helen
MovieDownton Abbey: The Grand Finale
2025
as Cora Crawley
MovieDownton Abbey Celebrates the Grand Finale
2025
as Self
MovieAnd Mrs.
2024
as Margaret
MovieDownton Abbey: A New Era
2022
as Cora Crawley
TVWar of the Worlds
2019
as Helen Brown
TVA Little Late with Lilly Singh
2019
as Self
MovieDownton Abbey
2019
as Cora Crawley
TVThe Kelly Clarkson Show
2019
as Self
MovieJFK Jr. and Carolyn's Wedding: The Lost Tapes
2019
as Self (archive footage)
MovieThe Chaperone
2019
as Norma
MovieThe Commuter
2018
as Karen MacCauley
MovieThe Wife
2017
as Elaine Mozell
MovieShowing Roots
2016
as Shirley
MovieThe Queen At 90
2016
as Narrator
MovieUnexpected
2015
as Carolyn
MovieSwung
2015
as Dolly Adams
MovieWoman in Gold
2015
as Judge Florence-Marie Cooper
TVCivil War: The Untold Story
2014
as Narrator (voice)
The Kumars
2014
as Self
MovieScreen Goddesses
2012
as Narrator
MovieCheerful Weather for the Wedding
2012
as Mrs. Thatcham
MovieAngels Crest
2011
as Jane
MovieWallis Simpson: The Secret Letters
2011
as Wallis Simpson (Voice)
TVDownton Abbey
2010
as Cora Crawley
MovieKick-Ass
2010
as Mrs. Lizewski
MovieClash of the Titans
2010
as Marmara
TV10 Minute Tales
2009
as Ex-Wife
TVModern Family
2009
as California Mom (archive footage)
TVWatch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen
2009
as Self - Guest
MovieInconceivable
2008
as Tallulah 'Tutu' Williams
A Room with a View
2008
as Mrs Honeychurch
TVFreezing
2008
MovieA Room with a View
2007
as Mrs Honeychurch
MovieDaphne
2007
as Ellen Doubleday
TVThree Moons Over Milford
2006
MovieThe Truth
2006
as Donna
TVBig Fat Quiz
2004
as Self - Guest
MovieRemembering Ragtime
2004
as Evelyn Nesbit (archive footage)
TVThe Brotherhood of Poland, New Hampshire
2003
MovieThursday the 12th
2003
as Candice Hopper
MovieBuffalo Soldiers
2002
as Mrs. Berman
MovieHawkins
2001
as Susie Hawkins
MovieThe Flamingo Rising
2001
as Edna Lee
MovieThe House of Mirth
2000
as Mrs. Carry Fisher
MovieManila
2000
as Elizabeth
TVLaw & Order: Special Victims Unit
1999
as Faith Sutton
TVLoose Women
1999
as Self
TVThe Scarlet Pimpernel
1999
as Marguerite Blakeney
MovieThe Misadventures of Margaret
1998
as Till Turner
MovieThe Man with Rain in His Shoes
1998
as Diane
MovieClover
1997
as Sara Kate
MovieThe Wings of the Dove
1997
as Susan Stringham
MovieThe Summer of Ben Tyler
1996
as Celia Rayburn
MovieBroken Glass
1996
as Margaret Hyman
If Not for You
1995
as Jessie Kent
MovieBroken Trust
1995
as Janice Dillon
MovieWings of Courage
1995
as Noëlle Guillaumet
MovieThe Favor
1994
as Emily
MovieThe Changeling
1993
as Beatrice-Joanna
MovieMe and Veronica
1993
as Fanny
MovieKing of the Hill
1993
as Lydia
MovieTales from Hollywood
1992
as Helen Schwartz
Ashenden
1991
as Aileen Somerville
TVPerformance
1991
as Helen Schwartz
MovieTune in Tomorrow...
1990
as Elena Quince
MovieWomen and Men: Stories of Seduction
1990
as Vicki
MovieA Shock to the System
1990
as Stella Anderson
MovieThe Handmaid's Tale
1990
as Moira
MovieJohnny Handsome
1989
as Donna McCarty
TVTales from the Crypt
1989
as Laura Kendall
TVAgatha Christie's Poirot
1989
as Dame Celia Westholme
TVLIVE with Kelly and Mark
1988
as Self
MovieShe's Having a Baby
1988
as Kristy Briggs
MovieThe Bedroom Window
1987
as Denise
MovieNative Son
1986
as Mary Dalton
MovieSnow White and the Seven Dwarfs
1984
as Snow White
MovieOnce Upon a Time in America
1984
as Deborah
MovieRacing with the Moon
1984
as Caddie Winger
MovieLovesick
1983
as Chloe Allen
TVFaerie Tale Theatre
1982
as Snow White
TVAmerican Playhouse
1982
as Mary Dalton
MovieRagtime
1981
as Evelyn Nesbit
MovieChytilová Versus Forman
1981
as Self
MovieOrdinary People
1980
as Jeannine Pratt
TVCalifornia Fever
1979
TVOmnibus
1967
as Self
TVHallmark Hall of Fame
1951
as Celia
