Jennifer Coolidge

Jennifer Coolidge (born August 28, 1961) is an American actress. A character actress with performances across screen and television, primarily in the comedy genre, Coolidge is the recipient of numerous accolades, including a Golden Globe Award, two Critics' Choice Television Awards, two Screen Actors Guild Awards and a Primetime Emmy Award. In 2023, Coolidge was named by Time as one of the 100 most influential people in the world. Coolidge had supporting roles in the American Pie film series (1999–2012) and the Legally Blonde film series (2001–2003). She has regularly collaborated with Christopher Guest on his mockumentary films, such as Best in Show (2000), A Mighty Wind (2003), For Your Consideration (2006), and Mascots (2016). She has also appeared in the films A Cinderella Story (2004), Click (2006), Date Movie (2006), Epic Movie (2007), Promising Young Woman (2020), Single All the Way (2021), and Shotgun Wedding (2022). On television, Coolidge has appeared in the sitcoms Joey (2004–2006), The Secret Life of the American Teenager (2008–2012), and 2 Broke Girls (2011–2017), and the drama series The Watcher (2022). She garnered critical acclaim for her role as Tanya McQuoid, an insecure wealthy woman, in the HBO anthology series The White Lotus (2021–2022), winning a Primetime Emmy Award and a Golden Globe. Early life Coolidge was born in Boston, Massachusetts, to Gretchen (née Knauf) and Paul Constant Coolidge, a plastics manufacturer. She was raised in Norwell, Massachusetts. Coolidge played the clarinet and went to orchestra camp for three summers as a child. She attended Norwell High School, the Cambridge School of Weston, and pursued university studies at Emerson College in Boston and the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City. During college, Coolidge wanted to become a dramatic actress like Meryl Streep, but instead became a comedic character actress.