Melissa Leo
Melissa Leo (born September 14, 1960) is an American actress. She made her acting debut in 1985, for which she was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Ingenue/Woman in the Drama Series “All My Children”. Her most notable role as was as Det. Sgt. Kay Howard on “Homicide: Life on the Street” for the show's first five seasons from 1993–1997. Following several films, Leo received critical acclaim and national attention in earning several nominations and awards, including an Oscar nomination for Best Actress. Leo earned several awards for her role as Alice Ward in the critically acclaimed film, “The Fighter” (2010). For this role Leo won the Golden Globe, Screen Actors Guild Award and Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Leo currently appears on the television series Treme. Leo currently resides in Stone Ridge, New York and two sons John Matthew Heard (born 1987), and Adam (adopted - born 1984).
Known For
Credits
- 2026 · Passenger as Diana
- 2025 · The Knife as Detective Carlsen
- 2025 · Guns Up as Michael Temple
- 2025 · King Ivory as Ginger Greene
- 2022 · Jane as Principal Rhodes
- 2022 · Alone Together as Deborah
- 2022 · Measure of Revenge as Lillian
- 2018 · Unlovable as Maddie
- 2018 · The Parting Glass as Al
- 2016 · Burn Country as Gloria
- 2015 · The Ever After as Penny
- 2013 · Call Me Crazy: A Five Film as Robin
- 2013 · Bottled Up as Fay
- 2012 · Why Stop Now? as Penny
- 2011 · The Space Between as Montine
- 2011 · Seven Days in Utopia as Lily
- 2010 · The Dry Land as Martha
- 2009 · Dear Lemon Lima as Mrs. Howard
- 2008 · The Alphabet Killer as Kathy Walsh
- 2008 · Santa Mesa as Maggie
- 2007 · Black Irish as Margaret McKay
- 2007 · Stephanie Daley as Miri Daley
- 2007 · Midnight Son as Rita
- 2007 · One Night as Wendy
- 2005 · Confess as Agnes Lessor
- 2004 · From Other Worlds as Miriam
- 1999 · The 24 Hour Woman as Dr. Suzanne Pincus
- 1995 · Last Summer in the Hamptons as Trish Axelrod
- 1995 · In the Line of Duty: Hunt for Justice as Carol Manning
- 1993 · The Ballad of Little Jo as Beatrice Grey
- 1992 · Venice/Venice as Peggy
- 1991 · Carolina Skeletons as Cassie
- 1989 · Nasty Boys as Katie Morrissey
- 1988 · A Time of Destiny as Josie Larraneta
- 1986 · Deadtime Stories as Judith 'MaMa' Baer
- 1985 · Silent Witness as Patti Mullen
- 1985 · Streetwalkin' as Cookie
- Future · Ron Forever as Hilda
- 2024 · AFTER: Poetry Destroys Silence as
- 2024 · Long Gone Heroes as Olivia
- 2024 · The Clean Up Crew as Siobhan
- 2023 · The Equalizer 3 as Susan Plummer
- 2022 · Bonnie as Self
- 2022 · Coast as Olivia
- 2021 · Ida Red as Ida ‘Red’ Walker
- 2021 · Thunder Force as Allie
- 2021 · Body Brokers as Dr. White
- 2020 · I Know This Much Is True as Concettina Ipolita Tempesta 'Ma' Birdsey
- 2019 · Dolly Parton's Heartstrings as Amelia Meegers
- 2018 · The Equalizer 2 as Susan Plummer
- 2018 · Mabel, Mabel Tiger Trainer as Narrator
- 2018 · Furlough as Joan Anderson
- 2018 · The Ashram as Chandra
- 2017 · Novitiate as Reverend Mother
- 2017 · The View from Up Here as Claire
- 2017 · I'm Dying Up Here as Goldie
- 2017 · The Most Hated Woman in America as Madalyn Murray O'Hair
- 2016 · Snowden as Laura Poitras
- 2016 · All the Way as Lady Bird Johnson
- 2016 · London Has Fallen as Secretary of Defense Ruth McMillan
- 2015 · The Big Short as Georgia Hale
- 2015 · Damnation: The Flashback as Noda Marra
- 2015 · After the Spill as Narrator
- 2015 · The Butterfly, The Harp, and The Timepiece as Papillon
- 2015 · Wayward Pines as Nurse Pam
- 2015 · She's The Best Thing in It as Self
- 2014 · The Equalizer as Susan Plummer
- 2014 · BoJack Horseman as Ma Nguyen (voice)
- 2014 · The Angriest Man in Brooklyn as Bette Altmann
- 2014 · Dwegons and Leprechauns as Grandma Fitz / Butterfly McDweg / Mrs. Fitzgerald
- 2014 · Broad City as Lori
- 2013 · Prisoners as Holly Jones
- 2013 · The Arsenio Hall Show as Self
- 2013 · Letters to Jackie: Remembering President Kennedy as Self - Narrator (voice)
- 2013 · Oblivion as Sally
- 2013 · Olympus Has Fallen as Secretary of Defense Ruth McMillan
- 2013 · Charlie Countryman as Kate
- 2012 · Francine as Francine
- 2012 · Flight as Ellen Block
- 2011 · Red State as Sara
- 2011 · The Sea Is All I Know as Sara
- 2011 · Mildred Pierce as Lucy Gessler
- 2010 · The Fighter as Alice Ward
- 2010 · Queen of the Lot as Aunt Bee
- 2010 · Welcome to the Rileys as Lois Riley
- 2010 · Conviction as Nancy Taylor
- 2010 · Treme as Toni Bernette
- 2009 · Everybody's Fine as Colleen
- 2009 · According to Greta as Karen
- 2009 · Veronika Decides to Die as Mari
- 2009 · Don McKay as Marie
- 2009 · True Adolescents as Sharon Mitchell
- 2009 · Stephanie's Image as Stephanie
- 2008 · Righteous Kill as Cheryl
- 2008 · Frozen River as Ray Eddy
- 2008 · Lullaby as Stephanie
- 2007 · Mr. Woodcock as Sally Jansen
- 2007 · Racing Daylight as Sadie / Anna
- 2007 · I Believe in America as Soto
- 2007 · Hollywood Dreams as Aunt Bee
- 2007 · The Cake Eaters as Ceci Kimbrough
- 2007 · Dear Lemon Lima as Mrs. Howard
- 2007 · Bomb as
- 2006 · The House Is Burning as Mrs. Miller
- 2006 · Shark as Elizabeth Rourke
- 2006 · The Limbo Room as KC Collins
- 2005 · The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada as Rachel
- 2005 · Criminal Minds as Sheriff Georgia Davis
- 2005 · American Gun as Louise
- 2005 · Runaway as Lisa Adler
- 2005 · Hide and Seek as Laura
- 2004 · Veronica Mars as Julia Smith
- 2004 · The L Word as Winnie Mann
- 2003 · Cold Case as Tayna Raymes (1994 & 2007)
- 2003 · 21 Grams as Marianne Jordan
- 2001 · Law & Order: Criminal Intent as Maureen Curtis
- 2000 · CSI: Crime Scene Investigation as Sybil Perez
- 2000 · Fear of Fiction as Sigrid Anderssen
- 2000 · Homicide: The Movie as Kay Howard
- 1999 · Code of Ethics as Jo DeAngelo
- 1998 · Legacy as
- 1997 · Who Is Henry Jaglom? as Self
- 1995 · Garden as Elizabeth
- 1994 · Scarlett as Suellen O'Hara Benteen
- 1993 · Homicide: Life on the Street as Kay Howard
- 1992 · By a Thread as Helen
- 1992 · Immaculate Conception as Hannah
- 1990 · The Bride in Black as Mary Margaret
- 1990 · Law & Order as Donna Cheponis
- 1990 · Law & Order as Defense Attorney Alice Sutton
- 1990 · Law & Order as Sherri Quinn
- 1989 · The Young Riders as Emma Shannon
- 1985 · Always … But Not Forever as Peggy
- 1985 · Spenser: For Hire as
- 1985 · The Equalizer as Irina Dzershinsky
- 1984 · Miami Vice as Kathleen Gilfords
- Future · The Rooster Prince as Elaine
- Future · The Mannequin as
- 1984 · I'm Only There... as Maggie