Julianne Nicholson

Julianne Nicholson
Nicholson at the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival
Born	(1971-07-01) July 1, 1971 (age 50) Medford, Massachusetts, U.S.
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1997–present
Spouse(s)	Jonathan Cake ​ (m. 2004)​
Children	2

Julianne Nicholson (born July 1, 1971) is an American actress. She is best known for her main and supporting roles in multiple indie or drama films and TV series. In 2004, she won the US Comedy Arts Festival Award for Best Actress.

She played NYPD Detective Megan Wheeler on Law & Order: Criminal Intent, and is also known for her roles in Ally McBeal, Boardwalk Empire, The Outsider and Masters of Sex, as well as her portrayal of Ivy in the film adaptation of August: Osage County. For her role in the miniseries Mare of Easttown, Nicholson earned a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or Movie.^[1]

Early life[]

Nicholson was born and raised in Medford, Massachusetts (outside Boston), the daughter of Kate (née Gilday) and James O. Nicholson, Jr. She is the eldest of four children.^[2]

After graduating from Arlington Catholic High School, she modeled in New York for six months, quit for a year, then resumed her modeling career in Paris for another six months. After returning to New York, she attended Hunter College as a general studies major for two years. While in New York, Nicholson supported herself by waitressing and eventually left school to study acting and begin her professional career.^[3]

Career[]

Film[]

In her first feature film role, Nicholson starred opposite Michael Caine and James Spader in the Peter Yates film Curtain Call. Later she won what proved to be both her breakthrough and favorite role as a headstrong young feminist in Peter Chan's The Love Letter. She has worked with other international directors in films such Alain Berliner's Passion of Mind, and Nick Hurran's Little Black Book. Nicholson's domestic drama credits include William Vincent, Staten Island, Brief Interviews with Hideous Men, Tully, Kinsey, and August: Osage County, for which the ensemble cast was nominated for several awards. Her domestic comedy credits include Seeing Other People and Puccini For Beginners.

Television[]

Among Nicholson's television credits are a supporting role in the television miniseries Storm of the Century and guest-starring roles in ER and Law & Order. She was tapped by Steven Spielberg for the lead role in the paranormal drama The Others. In late 2001, Nicholson became one of the main cast members of the hit show Ally McBeal, portraying Jenny Shaw for 13 episodes.^{[citation needed]} She worked on the medical drama Presidio Med and the HBO pilot Marriage. Julianne worked on the short-lived NBC television drama, Conviction and in what is her best known role, as Megan Wheeler, in the sixth season of Law & Order: Criminal Intent.^[4] Nicholson said her favorite Criminal Intent episode was "Weeping Willow".^[5] As of the Criminal Intent episode "Major Case", Nicholson departed the series when she went on maternity leave for the birth of her second child (which was written into the show as the birth of her first child).

In 2011, she guest-starred on Royal Pains as "Jess", one of Dr. Lawson's patients, suffering from panic attacks. She also appeared on Boardwalk Empire as the recurring character of U.S. Assistant Attorney General Esther Randolph (a character based on the real life Mabel Walker Willebrandt) that same year. In 2012, she guest-starred on The Good Wife as Callie Simko, an attorney who has an interest in Will Gardner.

On October 16, 2016, Nicholson played the lead role of Sheriff Helen Torrance in USA Network's 10-episode police drama, Eyewitness.

Theater[]

Nicholson has been in a number of plays in New York. Her work in theater includes the following New York performances:

Personal life[]

In 2004, she married British actor Jonathan Cake in Italy; they met playing a couple on an unaired HBO pilot called Marriage. They have two children, son Ignatius Cake^[6] and daughter Phoebe Margaret Cake.^[7]

Filmography[]

Film[]

Television[]

References[]

External links[]

• Julianne Nicholson at IMDb
• Julianne Nicholson at AllMovie