Melanie Griffith
Encyclopedia
Melanie Richards Griffith (born August 9, 1957) is an American
actress. She is an Academy Award nominee and Golden Globe winner for her performance in the 1988 film Working Girl
. She is the daughter of actress Tippi Hedren
, and is married to actor Antonio Banderas
.
to actress Tippi Hedren and producer, former actor, and advertising executive Peter Griffith
. Her parents divorced when she was four years old, after which her father married model/actress Nanita Greene and had two more children: actress Tracy Griffith
and set designer Clay A. Griffith
. Her mother married agent and producer Noel Marshall
, and Griffith grew up with three stepbrothers. During her childhood and adolescent years, she divided her time between living in New York with her father and in Antelope Valley, California, where her mother formed the animal preserve Shambala. She also skipped a grade and graduated from Hollywood Professional School
when she was 16 years old.
(1969) and The Harrad Experiment
(1973). In 1975, she played her first major roles in Smile
, The Drowning Pool
, and Night Moves
, in which she did racy nude scenes at age 17, and she was typecast in sexy nymphet roles in later movies such as One on One
.
Griffith's career gained momentum in 1984 when she played a porn star in the Brian De Palma
thriller Body Double
. The film won her the National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress
, and led to her starring role in Jonathan Demme
's Something Wild (1986), which became a cult favorite. She achieved mainstream success when Mike Nichols
cast her as spunky secretary Tess McGill in the hit 1988 film Working Girl
, with Harrison Ford
, Sigourney Weaver
, Alec Baldwin
and Joan Cusack
. Griffith's performance earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress
and won her the Golden Globe Award
for Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy
.
Griffith's next role was starring in the thriller Pacific Heights (1990) with Michael Keaton
and Matthew Modine
. Despite her success, many of Griffith's following films were poorly received, especially The Bonfire of the Vanities
(1990), which also starred Bruce Willis
and Tom Hanks
and reunited her with Body Double director Brian de Palma. Other films were Paradise
(1991), Born Yesterday
(1993) (both of which co-starred Griffith's then husband Don Johnson
), Shining Through
(1992), A Stranger Among Us
(1992), and Now and Then (1995) with Demi Moore
. Griffith received good reviews for her role as a desperate housewife in the Oscar-nominated film Nobody's Fool (1994), which reunited her with Bruce Willis and Paul Newman. Griffith met future husband Antonio Banderas
on the set of the 1996 comedy Two Much
. Griffith received a Golden Globe nomination in the TV miniseries Buffalo Girls.
Griffith appeared in the Woody Allen
film Celebrity
in 1998 with Winona Ryder
, Leonardo DiCaprio
and Charlize Theron
. Later that same year, she starred as a ditzy heroin user in Another Day in Paradise
(1998). Some critics wrote that it was the best performance of her career. She formed Greenmoon Productions with Antonio Banderas in 1997, which produced her starring vehicle Crazy in Alabama
(1999), directed by Banderas and featuring Griffith's real-life daughters Dakota Johnson
and Stella Banderas playing her daughters. In 1999, Griffith made her stage debut at the Old Vic in London, England, where she acted with Cate Blanchett
in the Vagina Monologues. In the HBO film RKO 281
(1999), she played actress Marion Davies
. Her portrayal of Davies also earned her an Emmy nomination. Griffith's most recent mainstream film was Stuart Little 2
(2002) in which she voiced the character of Margalo. Since then, she has acted in several independent films.
In 2003, she made her Broadway debut playing Roxie in the musical Chicago. Untrained in song and dance, Griffith still impressed New York Times theatre critic Ben Brantley
, who wrote: "Ms. Griffith is a sensational Roxie, possibly the most convincing I have seen" and "[the] vultures who were expecting to see Ms. Griffith stumble...will have to look elsewhere". Griffith's celebratory reviews made it a box office success.
She starred on the short-lived The WB
sitcom Twins
(2005–2006). Her career took a blow when her 2007 series Viva Laughlin
, co-starring Hugh Jackman
, was canceled after two episodes. Griffith appeared on television in Nip/Tuck
during its sixth and final season in 2010.
At age 14, Griffith began dating 22-year old actor Don Johnson
who co-starred with her mother in The Harrad Experiment
, in which Griffith was an extra. The relationship culminated in a six-month marriage in 1976. Tatum O'Neal
has alleged in her 2004 autobiography that around that time, she (then 12) and Griffith (then 18) participated in an opium
-filled orgy
in a Paris hotel room.
In September 1981, Griffith married Steven Bauer
, her co-star in the TV film She's in the Army Now. They have a son, Alexander, born on August 22, 1985. The couple divorced in 1987. Griffith later admitted to having problems with cocaine
and liquor after her divorce from Bauer. "What I did was drink myself to sleep at night," she said. "If I wasn't with someone, I was an unhappy girl."
She checked into rehab in 1988. During this time, she reconciled with Johnson, became sober and pregnant. They remarried in June 1989. Their daughter, Dakota Johnson
, was born on October 4, 1989. She left him six years later because of his own substance abuse problems, reconciled with him, then left him again for her leading man Antonio Banderas
from the film Two Much
. They finalized their divorce in February 1996.
Griffith and Banderas have been married since May 14, 1996. Their daughter, Stella del Carmen Banderas Griffith, was born on September 24, 1996. In 2000, Griffith had her husband's first name "Antonio" inside of a heart tattooed on her right shoulder. In 2002, the couple received the Stella Adler Angel Award for their extensive charity work.
Griffith has struggled with drugs and alcohol
through much of her life. In 2000, she sought treatment for addiction to painkillers. She returned to rehab in August 2009 for substance abuse problems. She left three months later and underwent surgery for skin cancer
in December 2009.
Discussing Griffith’s treatment in rehab, Banderas said in April 2010, “The whole family took part, Stella included. I was there three times a week at a stretch, and we participated in group therapy with our daughter. It strengthened our relationship in many ways. We participated very directly, all of us." Griffith’s son Alexander and daughter Dakota were there, as was her former stepson, Jesse Johnson
, and Griffith's mother, Tippi Hedren
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actress. She is an Academy Award nominee and Golden Globe winner for her performance in the 1988 film Working Girl
Working Girl
Working Girl is a 1988 romantic comedy film written by Kevin Wade and directed by Mike Nichols. It tells the inspiring story of a Staten Island-raised secretary, Tess McGill , working in the mergers and acquisitions department of a Wall Street investment bank...
. She is the daughter of actress Tippi Hedren
Tippi Hedren
Nathalie Kay "Tippi" Hedren is an American actress and former fashion model with a career spanning six decades. She is primarily known for her roles in two Alfred Hitchcock films, The Birds and Marnie, and her extensive efforts in animal rescue at Shambala Preserve, an wildlife habitat which she...
, and is married to actor Antonio Banderas
Antonio Banderas
José Antonio Domínguez Banderas , better known as Antonio Banderas, is a Spanish film actor, film director, film producer and singer...
.
Early life
Griffith was born in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
to actress Tippi Hedren and producer, former actor, and advertising executive Peter Griffith
Peter Griffith
Peter Atwill Griffith was an American film actor.-Life and career:Griffith was born in Baltimore, Maryland, the son of Hilda and Ben E. Griffith. He had two sisters, Jennifer and Jessica Griffith. Griffith was a veteran in the U.S. Army serving in the Korean War...
. Her parents divorced when she was four years old, after which her father married model/actress Nanita Greene and had two more children: actress Tracy Griffith
Tracy Griffith
Tracy Griffith is an American actress and chef. She is the daughter of actor and producer Peter Griffith and model/actress Nanita Greene, and the older sister of production designer and set decorator Clay A. Griffith. She is also the half-sister of actress Melanie Griffith...
and set designer Clay A. Griffith
Clay A. Griffith
Clay A. Griffith is an American production designer and set decorator, working mainly in the American film industry. He was born in 1967. He is the youngest child of actor-producer Peter Griffith and model-actress Nanita Greene. His older sister is actress Tracy Griffith, and his half-sister is...
. Her mother married agent and producer Noel Marshall
Noel Marshall
Noel Marshall was an agent in Hollywood, California in the 1960s. He later became the executive producer of the 1973 horror film The Exorcist...
, and Griffith grew up with three stepbrothers. During her childhood and adolescent years, she divided her time between living in New York with her father and in Antelope Valley, California, where her mother formed the animal preserve Shambala. She also skipped a grade and graduated from Hollywood Professional School
Hollywood Professional School
Hollywood Professional School was a private school in Hollywood, California, United States, for children working in show business, operating mornings only so that the children could work in the afternoon...
when she was 16 years old.
Career
Griffith began work at just nine months old in a commercial and later became an extra on Smith!Smith!
Smith! is a Western Film, starring Glenn Ford and directed by Michael O'Herlihy.- Plot :Native American Jimmyboy flees to the ranch owned by Smith , a white man raised by a Native American. Jimmyboy has been accused of a crime by a white man and fears he will not receive a fair trial...
(1969) and The Harrad Experiment
The Harrad Experiment
The Harrad Experiment is a movie about a fictional Harrad College where the students learn about sexuality and experiment with each other...
(1973). In 1975, she played her first major roles in Smile
Smile (1975 film)
Smile is a 1975 film directed by American director Michael Ritchie, with a screenplay by Jerry Belson, about a beauty pageant in Santa Rosa, California. It stars Bruce Dern and Barbara Feldon and introduced a number of young actresses who later went on to greater success and recognition, such as...
, The Drowning Pool
The Drowning Pool (film)
The Drowning Pool is a 1975 American thriller film directed by Stuart Rosenberg, and based upon Ross Macdonald's novel The Drowning Pool. The film stars Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward, and Anthony Franciosa, and is a sequel to Harper...
, and Night Moves
Night Moves (1975 film)
Night Moves is a 1975 detective film directed by Arthur Penn. The film stars Gene Hackman, Jennifer Warren and Susan Clark, and features very early career appearances by Melanie Griffith and James Woods....
, in which she did racy nude scenes at age 17, and she was typecast in sexy nymphet roles in later movies such as One on One
One on One (film)
One on One is a 1977 drama film starring Robby Benson and Annette O'Toole. It was written by Benson and Jerry Segal , and shot on location in 1976 at Colorado State University. The film features songs from Seals and Crofts and was directed by Lamont Johnson.-Plot:Henry Steele , a naive high school...
.
Griffith's career gained momentum in 1984 when she played a porn star in the Brian De Palma
Brian De Palma
Brian Russell De Palma is an American film director and writer. In a career spanning over 40 years, he is probably best known for his suspense and crime thriller films, including such box office successes as the horror film Carrie, Dressed to Kill, Scarface, The Untouchables, and Mission:...
thriller Body Double
Body Double
Body Double is a 1984 American thriller film directed by Brian De Palma starring Craig Wasson, Melanie Griffith, and Gregg Henry. The film is an homage to Alfred Hitchcock's Vertigo, Rear Window, and Dial M for Murder. The original musical score was composed by Pino Donaggio...
. The film won her the National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress
National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress
The National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress is one of the annual awards given by the National Society of Film Critics.This awards was given for the first time in 1967 to Marjorie Rhodes for her role in The Family Way....
, and led to her starring role in Jonathan Demme
Jonathan Demme
Robert Jonathan Demme is an American filmmaker, producer and screenwriter. Best known for directing The Silence of the Lambs, which won him the Academy Award for Best Director, he has also directed the acclaimed movies Philadelphia, Rachel Getting Married, the Talking Heads concert movie Stop...
's Something Wild (1986), which became a cult favorite. She achieved mainstream success when Mike Nichols
Mike Nichols
Mike Nichols is a German-born American television, stage and film director, writer, producer and comedian. He began his career in the 1950s as one half of the comedy duo Nichols and May, along with Elaine May. In 1968 he won the Academy Award for Best Director for the film The Graduate...
cast her as spunky secretary Tess McGill in the hit 1988 film Working Girl
Working Girl
Working Girl is a 1988 romantic comedy film written by Kevin Wade and directed by Mike Nichols. It tells the inspiring story of a Staten Island-raised secretary, Tess McGill , working in the mergers and acquisitions department of a Wall Street investment bank...
, with Harrison Ford
Harrison Ford
Harrison Ford is an American film actor and producer. He is famous for his performances as Han Solo in the original Star Wars trilogy and as the title character of the Indiana Jones film series. Ford is also known for his roles as Rick Deckard in Blade Runner, John Book in Witness and Jack Ryan in...
, Sigourney Weaver
Sigourney Weaver
Sigourney Weaver is an American actress. She is best known for her critically acclaimed role of Ellen Ripley in the four Alien films: Alien, Aliens, Alien 3 and Alien Resurrection, for which she has received worldwide recognition .Other notable roles include Dana...
, Alec Baldwin
Alec Baldwin
Alexander Rae "Alec" Baldwin III is an American actor who has appeared on film, stage, and television.Baldwin first gained recognition through television for his work in the soap opera Knots Landing in the role of Joshua Rush. He was a cast member for two seasons before his character was killed off...
and Joan Cusack
Joan Cusack
Joan Mary Cusack is an American film, stage and television actress. Throughout her career, Cusack has appeared in many films as well as appearing in stage productions....
. Griffith's performance earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress
Academy Award for Best Actress
Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
and won her the Golden Globe Award
Golden Globe Award
The Golden Globe Award is an accolade bestowed by the 93 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association recognizing excellence in film and television, both domestic and foreign...
for Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy
Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
The Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy was first awarded by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association as a separate category in 1950...
.
Griffith's next role was starring in the thriller Pacific Heights (1990) with Michael Keaton
Michael Keaton
Michael John Douglas , better known by the stage name Michael Keaton, is an American actor known for his early comedic roles, most notably his performance as the title character of Tim Burton's Beetlejuice . Keaton is also famous for his dramatic portrayal of Bruce Wayne/Batman in Tim Burton's...
and Matthew Modine
Matthew Modine
Matthew Avery Modine is an award-winning American actor. His film roles include Private Joker in Stanley Kubrick's Full Metal Jacket, the title character in Alan Parker's Birdy, high school wrestler Louden Swain in Vision Quest, football star turned spy Alec McCall in Funky Monkey and the...
. Despite her success, many of Griffith's following films were poorly received, especially The Bonfire of the Vanities
The Bonfire of the Vanities (film)
The Bonfire of the Vanities is a 1990 American film adaptation of the best-selling novel of the same name by Tom Wolfe. The film was directed by Brian De Palma and stars Tom Hanks as Sherman McCoy, Bruce Willis as Peter Fallow, Melanie Griffith as Maria Ruskin, and Kim Cattrall as Judy McCoy,...
(1990), which also starred Bruce Willis
Bruce Willis
Walter Bruce Willis , better known as Bruce Willis, is an American actor, producer, and musician. His career began in television in the 1980s and has continued both in television and film since, including comedic, dramatic, and action roles...
and Tom Hanks
Tom Hanks
Thomas Jeffrey "Tom" Hanks is an American actor, producer, writer, and director. Hanks worked in television and family-friendly comedies, gaining wide notice in 1988's Big, before achieving success as a dramatic actor in several notable roles, including Andrew Beckett in Philadelphia, the title...
and reunited her with Body Double director Brian de Palma. Other films were Paradise
Paradise (1991 film)
Paradise is a 1991 film written and directed by Mary Agnes Donoghue. The original music score is composed by David Newman.Melanie Griffith and Don Johnson play Lily and Ben Reed, a young couple torn apart by a family tragedy...
(1991), Born Yesterday
Born Yesterday (1993 film)
Born Yesterday is a 1993 film based on Born Yesterday, a play by Garson Kanin. The film stars Melanie Griffith, John Goodman and Don Johnson. It was adapted by Douglas McGrath and directed by Luis Mandoki...
(1993) (both of which co-starred Griffith's then husband Don Johnson
Don Johnson
Donnie Wayne "Don" Johnson is an American actor known for his work in television and film. He played the lead role of James "Sonny" Crockett in the 1980s TV cop series, Miami Vice, which led him to huge success. He also played the lead role in the 1990s cop series, Nash Bridges...
), Shining Through
Shining Through
Shining Through is a 1992 British-American World War II film drama, directed and written by David Seltzer and starring Michael Douglas and Melanie Griffith, with Liam Neeson, Joely Richardson and John Gielgud in supporting roles. Although based on the novel of the same name by Susan Isaacs, the...
(1992), A Stranger Among Us
A Stranger Among Us
A Stranger Among Us is a film directed by Sidney Lumet and starring Melanie Griffith, released in 1992. It tells the story of an undercover police officer's experiences in a Hasidic community. It was entered into the 1992 Cannes Film Festival....
(1992), and Now and Then (1995) with Demi Moore
Demi Moore
Demi Guynes Kutcher , known professionally as Demi Moore, is an American actress. After minor roles in film and a role in the soap opera General Hospital, Moore established her career in films such as St...
. Griffith received good reviews for her role as a desperate housewife in the Oscar-nominated film Nobody's Fool (1994), which reunited her with Bruce Willis and Paul Newman. Griffith met future husband Antonio Banderas
Antonio Banderas
José Antonio Domínguez Banderas , better known as Antonio Banderas, is a Spanish film actor, film director, film producer and singer...
on the set of the 1996 comedy Two Much
Two Much
Two Much is a 1995 romantic screwball comedy film based on Donald Westlake's novel of the same name, and is also a remake of the 1984 French comedy film Le Jumeau, which was also based on Westlake's novel. Directed by Fernando Trueba, Two Much stars Antonio Banderas, Melanie Griffith, Daryl Hannah...
. Griffith received a Golden Globe nomination in the TV miniseries Buffalo Girls.
Griffith appeared in the Woody Allen
Woody Allen
Woody Allen is an American screenwriter, director, actor, comedian, jazz musician, author, and playwright. Allen's films draw heavily on literature, sexuality, philosophy, psychology, Jewish identity, and the history of cinema...
film Celebrity
Celebrity (film)
Celebrity is a 1998 comedy-drama film written and directed by Woody Allen. The screenplay focuses on the divergent paths a couple takes following their divorce.-Plot:...
in 1998 with Winona Ryder
Winona Ryder
Winona Ryder is an American actress. She made her film debut in the 1986 film Lucas. Ryder's first significant role came in Tim Burton's Beetlejuice as a goth teenager, which won her critical and commercial recognition...
, Leonardo DiCaprio
Leonardo DiCaprio
Leonardo Wilhelm DiCaprio is an American actor and film producer. He has received many awards, including a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor for his performance in The Aviator , and has been nominated by the Academy Awards, Screen Actors Guild and the British Academy of Film and Television...
and Charlize Theron
Charlize Theron
Charlize Theron is a South African actress, film producer and former fashion model.She rose to fame in the late 1990s following her roles in 2 Days in the Valley, Mighty Joe Young, The Devil's Advocate and The Cider House Rules...
. Later that same year, she starred as a ditzy heroin user in Another Day in Paradise
Another Day in Paradise (film)
Another Day in Paradise is a 1998 drama film directed by Larry Clark, and released by Trimark Pictures. It is based on the novel Another Day in Paradise written by Eddie Little.-Plot:...
(1998). Some critics wrote that it was the best performance of her career. She formed Greenmoon Productions with Antonio Banderas in 1997, which produced her starring vehicle Crazy in Alabama
Crazy in Alabama
Crazy in Alabama is a 1999 comedy-drama film directed by Antonio Banderas, written by Mark Childress , and starring Melanie Griffith as an abused wife who heads to California to become a movie star while her nephew back in Alabama has to deal with a racially-motivated murder involving a corrupt...
(1999), directed by Banderas and featuring Griffith's real-life daughters Dakota Johnson
Dakota Johnson
Dakota Mayi Johnson is an American fashion model and actress. She is the daughter of actors Don Johnson and Melanie Griffith and the granddaughter of actress Tippi Hedren.-Career:...
and Stella Banderas playing her daughters. In 1999, Griffith made her stage debut at the Old Vic in London, England, where she acted with Cate Blanchett
Cate Blanchett
Catherine Élise "Cate" Blanchett is an Australian actress. She came to international attention for her role as Elizabeth I of England in the 1998 biopic film Elizabeth, for which she won British Academy of Film and Television Arts and Golden Globe Awards, and earned her first Academy Award...
in the Vagina Monologues. In the HBO film RKO 281
RKO 281
RKO 281 is a 1999 historical drama film directed by Benjamin Ross. It stars Liev Schreiber, James Cromwell, Melanie Griffith, John Malkovich, and Roy Scheider and depicts the troubled production behind the 1941 film Citizen Kane...
(1999), she played actress Marion Davies
Marion Davies
Marion Davies was an American film actress. Davies is best remembered for her relationship with newspaper tycoon William Randolph Hearst, as her high-profile social life often obscured her professional career....
. Her portrayal of Davies also earned her an Emmy nomination. Griffith's most recent mainstream film was Stuart Little 2
Stuart Little 2
Stuart Little 2 is a 2002 American live action and CGI animated film, directed by Rob Minkoff and starring Geena Davis, Hugh Laurie and Jonathan Lipnicki and the voices of Michael J. Fox, Nathan Lane, Melanie Griffith, James Woods and Steve Zahn. The film is a sequel to the 1999 film and includes...
(2002) in which she voiced the character of Margalo. Since then, she has acted in several independent films.
In 2003, she made her Broadway debut playing Roxie in the musical Chicago. Untrained in song and dance, Griffith still impressed New York Times theatre critic Ben Brantley
Ben Brantley
Benjamin D. "Ben" Brantley is an American journalist and the chief theater critic of The New York Times.-Life and career:...
, who wrote: "Ms. Griffith is a sensational Roxie, possibly the most convincing I have seen" and "[the] vultures who were expecting to see Ms. Griffith stumble...will have to look elsewhere". Griffith's celebratory reviews made it a box office success.
She starred on the short-lived The WB
The WB Television Network
The WB Television Network is a former television network in the United States that was launched on January 11, 1995 as a joint venture between Warner Bros. and Tribune Broadcasting. On January 24, 2006, CBS Corporation and Warner Bros...
sitcom Twins
Twins (TV series)
Twins is an American situation comedy series that first aired on The WB in the United States and on CTV in Canada in September 2005. The series is produced by KoMut Entertainment in association with Warner Bros. Television...
(2005–2006). Her career took a blow when her 2007 series Viva Laughlin
Viva Laughlin
Viva Laughlin is an American musical–dramedy series adapted by Bob Lowry and Peter Bowker from the popular BBC British serial, Blackpool. They also served as executive producers alongside Hugh Jackman, John Palermo, Paul Telegdy and Gabriele Muccino. The latter also directed the pilot...
, co-starring Hugh Jackman
Hugh Jackman
Hugh Michael Jackman is an Australian actor and producer who is involved in film, musical theatre, and television.Jackman has won international recognition for his roles in major films, notably as action/superhero, period and romance characters...
, was canceled after two episodes. Griffith appeared on television in Nip/Tuck
Nip/Tuck
Nip/Tuck is an American drama series created by Ryan Murphy, which aired on FX in the United States. The series focuses on McNamara/Troy, a plastic surgery practice, and follows its founders, Sean McNamara and Christian Troy...
during its sixth and final season in 2010.
Personal life
Don Johnson
Donnie Wayne "Don" Johnson is an American actor known for his work in television and film. He played the lead role of James "Sonny" Crockett in the 1980s TV cop series, Miami Vice, which led him to huge success. He also played the lead role in the 1990s cop series, Nash Bridges...
who co-starred with her mother in The Harrad Experiment
The Harrad Experiment
The Harrad Experiment is a movie about a fictional Harrad College where the students learn about sexuality and experiment with each other...
, in which Griffith was an extra. The relationship culminated in a six-month marriage in 1976. Tatum O'Neal
Tatum O'Neal
Tatum Beatrice O'Neal is an American actress best known for her film work as a child actress in the 1970s. She is the youngest to win a competitive Academy Award, at the age of 10, which she won for her performance as Addie Loggins in Paper Moon opposite her father Ryan O'Neal...
has alleged in her 2004 autobiography that around that time, she (then 12) and Griffith (then 18) participated in an opium
Opium
Opium is the dried latex obtained from the opium poppy . Opium contains up to 12% morphine, an alkaloid, which is frequently processed chemically to produce heroin for the illegal drug trade. The latex also includes codeine and non-narcotic alkaloids such as papaverine, thebaine and noscapine...
-filled orgy
Orgy
In modern usage, an orgy is a sex party where guests engage in promiscuous or multifarious sexual activity or group sex. An orgy is similar to debauchery, which refers to excessive indulgence in sensual pleasures....
in a Paris hotel room.
In September 1981, Griffith married Steven Bauer
Steven Bauer
Steven Bauer is a Cuban-American actor. He is known for his role as Manny Ribera in the 1983 film Scarface, and his role on the bilingual PBS show Que Pasa, USA.-Early life:...
, her co-star in the TV film She's in the Army Now. They have a son, Alexander, born on August 22, 1985. The couple divorced in 1987. Griffith later admitted to having problems with cocaine
Cocaine
Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. The name comes from "coca" in addition to the alkaloid suffix -ine, forming cocaine. It is a stimulant of the central nervous system, an appetite suppressant, and a topical anesthetic...
and liquor after her divorce from Bauer. "What I did was drink myself to sleep at night," she said. "If I wasn't with someone, I was an unhappy girl."
She checked into rehab in 1988. During this time, she reconciled with Johnson, became sober and pregnant. They remarried in June 1989. Their daughter, Dakota Johnson
Dakota Johnson
Dakota Mayi Johnson is an American fashion model and actress. She is the daughter of actors Don Johnson and Melanie Griffith and the granddaughter of actress Tippi Hedren.-Career:...
, was born on October 4, 1989. She left him six years later because of his own substance abuse problems, reconciled with him, then left him again for her leading man Antonio Banderas
Antonio Banderas
José Antonio Domínguez Banderas , better known as Antonio Banderas, is a Spanish film actor, film director, film producer and singer...
from the film Two Much
Two Much
Two Much is a 1995 romantic screwball comedy film based on Donald Westlake's novel of the same name, and is also a remake of the 1984 French comedy film Le Jumeau, which was also based on Westlake's novel. Directed by Fernando Trueba, Two Much stars Antonio Banderas, Melanie Griffith, Daryl Hannah...
. They finalized their divorce in February 1996.
Griffith and Banderas have been married since May 14, 1996. Their daughter, Stella del Carmen Banderas Griffith, was born on September 24, 1996. In 2000, Griffith had her husband's first name "Antonio" inside of a heart tattooed on her right shoulder. In 2002, the couple received the Stella Adler Angel Award for their extensive charity work.
Griffith has struggled with drugs and alcohol
Alcohol
In chemistry, an alcohol is an organic compound in which the hydroxy functional group is bound to a carbon atom. In particular, this carbon center should be saturated, having single bonds to three other atoms....
through much of her life. In 2000, she sought treatment for addiction to painkillers. She returned to rehab in August 2009 for substance abuse problems. She left three months later and underwent surgery for skin cancer
Skin cancer
Skin neoplasms are skin growths with differing causes and varying degrees of malignancy. The three most common malignant skin cancers are basal cell cancer, squamous cell cancer, and melanoma, each of which is named after the type of skin cell from which it arises...
in December 2009.
Discussing Griffith’s treatment in rehab, Banderas said in April 2010, “The whole family took part, Stella included. I was there three times a week at a stretch, and we participated in group therapy with our daughter. It strengthened our relationship in many ways. We participated very directly, all of us." Griffith’s son Alexander and daughter Dakota were there, as was her former stepson, Jesse Johnson
Jesse Johnson
Jesse Johnson is the name of:* Jesse Johnson , American politician, filmmaker, actor, 2008 presidential candidate* Jesse Johnson , American musician, lead guitarist of The Time...
, and Griffith's mother, Tippi Hedren
Tippi Hedren
Nathalie Kay "Tippi" Hedren is an American actress and former fashion model with a career spanning six decades. She is primarily known for her roles in two Alfred Hitchcock films, The Birds and Marnie, and her extensive efforts in animal rescue at Shambala Preserve, an wildlife habitat which she...
.
Honors
- Named "Star of Tomorrow" by the Motion Picture Booker's Club (1984)
- TaorminaTaorminaTaormina is a comune and small town on the east coast of the island of Sicily, Italy, in the Province of Messina, about midway between Messina and Catania. Taormina has been a very popular tourist destination since the 19th century...
International Film Festival — Diamond Award (2000) - Cannes Film FestivalCannes Film FestivalThe Cannes International Film Festival , is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films of all genres including documentaries from around the world. Founded in 1946, it is among the world's most prestigious and publicized film festivals...
— Lifetime Achievement Award (2001)
Filmography
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1969 | Smith! | Extra | Uncredited |
| 1973 | The Harrad Experiment The Harrad Experiment The Harrad Experiment is a movie about a fictional Harrad College where the students learn about sexuality and experiment with each other... |
Extra | Uncredited |
| 1975 | Night Moves Night Moves (1975 film) Night Moves is a 1975 detective film directed by Arthur Penn. The film stars Gene Hackman, Jennifer Warren and Susan Clark, and features very early career appearances by Melanie Griffith and James Woods.... |
Delly Grastner | |
| The Drowning Pool The Drowning Pool (film) The Drowning Pool is a 1975 American thriller film directed by Stuart Rosenberg, and based upon Ross Macdonald's novel The Drowning Pool. The film stars Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward, and Anthony Franciosa, and is a sequel to Harper... |
Schuyler Devereaux | ||
| Smile Smile (1975 film) Smile is a 1975 film directed by American director Michael Ritchie, with a screenplay by Jerry Belson, about a beauty pageant in Santa Rosa, California. It stars Bruce Dern and Barbara Feldon and introduced a number of young actresses who later went on to greater success and recognition, such as... |
Karen Love | ||
| 1977 | The Garden | Young Girl | |
| One on One One on One (film) One on One is a 1977 drama film starring Robby Benson and Annette O'Toole. It was written by Benson and Jerry Segal , and shot on location in 1976 at Colorado State University. The film features songs from Seals and Crofts and was directed by Lamont Johnson.-Plot:Henry Steele , a naive high school... |
The Hitchhiker | ||
| Joyride Joyride (1977 film) Joyride is a 1977 film directed by Joseph Ruben. The screenplay was written by Ruben and Peter Rainer.-Taglines:"It was fun... while it lasted!""They're Burning Up The Blacktop!""Did You Ever Want to Just Shove It and Leave It All Behind?"-Plot:... |
Susie | ||
| 1978 | Daddy, I Don't Like it Like This | Girl in Hotel | |
| Steel Cowboy | Johnnie | ||
| 1981 | Roar Roar (film) Roar is a film starring Tippi Hedren and Noel Marshall. In addition to starring in the film, Marshall also directed and wrote the film, producing it entirely with his then-wife, Tippi. Tippi's real-life daughter Melanie Griffith plays her on-screen daughter, also named Melanie... |
Melanie | |
| Underground Aces | Lucy | ||
| The Star Maker | Dawn Barnett Youngblood | ||
| She's in the Army Now | Pvt. Sylvie Knoll | ||
| Golden Gate | Karen | ||
| 1984 | Fear City Fear City Fear City is a 1984 American action-thriller directed by Abel Ferrara. The lead roles are played by Billy Dee Williams and Tom Berenger.-Plot:... |
Loretta | |
| Body Double Body Double Body Double is a 1984 American thriller film directed by Brian De Palma starring Craig Wasson, Melanie Griffith, and Gregg Henry. The film is an homage to Alfred Hitchcock's Vertigo, Rear Window, and Dial M for Murder. The original musical score was composed by Pino Donaggio... |
Holly Body | National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress The National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress is one of the annual awards given by the National Society of Film Critics.This awards was given for the first time in 1967 to Marjorie Rhodes for her role in The Family Way.... Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture |
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| 1985 | Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Girl | |
| 1986 | Something Wild | Audrey Hankel aka Lulu | Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy |
| 1987 | Cherry 2000 Cherry 2000 Cherry 2000 is a 1987 science fiction cult film starring Melanie Griffith and David Andrews.-Plot :In the year 2017, robotic technology has made tremendous developments. Business executive Sam Treadwell's "Cherry 2000" android , short circuits during a make out session on the wet kitchen floor... |
Edith 'E' Johnson | |
| 1988 | The Milagro Beanfield War The Milagro Beanfield War The Milagro Beanfield War is a 1988 American drama film based on the John Nichols novel of the same name, the first book in a trilogy. It was directed by Robert Redford and the screenplay was written by Nichols and David S. Ward... |
Flossie Devine | |
| Stormy Monday Stormy Monday Stormy Monday is the 1988 feature film debut of director Mike Figgis. Starring Sean Bean, Tommy Lee Jones, Sting and Melanie Griffith, it is an atmospheric, noirish thriller. The notable jazz soundtrack is also by Figgis. Being set in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England, the film is something of an homage... |
Kate | ||
| Working Girl Working Girl Working Girl is a 1988 romantic comedy film written by Kevin Wade and directed by Mike Nichols. It tells the inspiring story of a Staten Island-raised secretary, Tess McGill , working in the mergers and acquisitions department of a Wall Street investment bank... |
Tess McGill | Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actress Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actress The Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actress is one of the annual film awards given by the Boston Society of Film Critics.-1980s:-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:... Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy Nominated — Academy Award for Best Actress Academy Award for Best Actress Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry... Nominated — BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role Best Actress in a Leading Role is a British Academy Film award presented annually by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts to recognise an actress who has delivered an outstanding leading performance in a film.- Winners and nominees :... |
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| 1990 | Women and Men: Stories of Seduction | Hadley | |
| In the Spirit | Lureen | ||
| Pacific Heights Pacific Heights (1990 film) Pacific Heights is a 1990 thriller film directed by John Schlesinger and starring Melanie Griffith, Matthew Modine, and Michael Keaton. Griffith's real-life mother Tippi Hedren has a cameo as a rich older woman who is conned by Keaton's character. The original music score was composed by Hans... |
Patty Palmer | ||
| The Bonfire of the Vanities The Bonfire of the Vanities (film) The Bonfire of the Vanities is a 1990 American film adaptation of the best-selling novel of the same name by Tom Wolfe. The film was directed by Brian De Palma and stars Tom Hanks as Sherman McCoy, Bruce Willis as Peter Fallow, Melanie Griffith as Maria Ruskin, and Kim Cattrall as Judy McCoy,... |
Maria Ruskin | ||
| 1991 | Paradise Paradise (1991 film) Paradise is a 1991 film written and directed by Mary Agnes Donoghue. The original music score is composed by David Newman.Melanie Griffith and Don Johnson play Lily and Ben Reed, a young couple torn apart by a family tragedy... |
Lily Reed | |
| 1992 | Shining Through Shining Through Shining Through is a 1992 British-American World War II film drama, directed and written by David Seltzer and starring Michael Douglas and Melanie Griffith, with Liam Neeson, Joely Richardson and John Gielgud in supporting roles. Although based on the novel of the same name by Susan Isaacs, the... |
Linda Voss | |
| A Stranger Among Us A Stranger Among Us A Stranger Among Us is a film directed by Sidney Lumet and starring Melanie Griffith, released in 1992. It tells the story of an undercover police officer's experiences in a Hasidic community. It was entered into the 1992 Cannes Film Festival.... |
Emily Eden | ||
| 1993 | Born Yesterday Born Yesterday (1993 film) Born Yesterday is a 1993 film based on Born Yesterday, a play by Garson Kanin. The film stars Melanie Griffith, John Goodman and Don Johnson. It was adapted by Douglas McGrath and directed by Luis Mandoki... |
Billie Dawn | |
| 1994 | Milk Money | V | |
| Nobody's Fool | Toby Roebuck | ||
| 1995 | Buffalo Girls Buffalo Girls (TV movie) Buffalo Girls is a 1995 television movie adapted from the novel of the same name by Larry McMurtry. Directed by Rod Hardy, the movie starred Gabriel Byrne, Anjelica Huston, and Melanie Griffith. It was nominated for two Golden Globe and several Emmy awards, winning one for sound mixing.-Plot:Jane... |
Dora DuFran | Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Series, Miniseries or Television Film |
| Now and Then | Tina 'Teeny' Tercell | ||
| Two Much Two Much Two Much is a 1995 romantic screwball comedy film based on Donald Westlake's novel of the same name, and is also a remake of the 1984 French comedy film Le Jumeau, which was also based on Westlake's novel. Directed by Fernando Trueba, Two Much stars Antonio Banderas, Melanie Griffith, Daryl Hannah... |
Betty Kerner | ||
| 1996 | Mulholland Falls Mulholland Falls Mulholland Falls is a 1996 American neo-noir crime thriller film directed by Lee Tamahori and written by Pete Dexter. The drama features Andrew McCarthy, Nick Nolte, Jennifer Connelly, Chazz Palminteri, Michael Madsen, Chris Penn, Melanie Griffith, Treat Williams, and John Malkovich.Nolte plays the... |
Katherine Hoover | |
| 1997 | Lolita Lolita (1997 film) Lolita is a 1997 French-American drama film directed by Adrian Lyne. It is the second screen adaptation of Vladimir Nabokov's novel of the same name and stars Jeremy Irons as Humbert Humbert and Dominique Swain as Dolores "Lolita" Haze, with supporting roles by Melanie Griffith as Charlotte Haze,... |
Charlotte Haze | |
| 1998 | Another Day in Paradise Another Day in Paradise (film) Another Day in Paradise is a 1998 drama film directed by Larry Clark, and released by Trimark Pictures. It is based on the novel Another Day in Paradise written by Eddie Little.-Plot:... |
Sid | Sant Jordi Award for Best Foreign Actress also for Crazy in Alabama Crazy in Alabama Crazy in Alabama is a 1999 comedy-drama film directed by Antonio Banderas, written by Mark Childress , and starring Melanie Griffith as an abused wife who heads to California to become a movie star while her nephew back in Alabama has to deal with a racially-motivated murder involving a corrupt... |
| Shadow of Doubt Shadow of Doubt Shadow of Doubt is a 1998 American independent mystery-thriller film directed by Randal Kleiser and starring Melanie Griffith, Tom Berenger, Craig Sheffer, and Huey Lewis.-Plot:... |
Kitt Devereux | ||
| Celebrity Celebrity (film) Celebrity is a 1998 comedy-drama film written and directed by Woody Allen. The screenplay focuses on the divergent paths a couple takes following their divorce.-Plot:... |
Nicole Oliver | ||
| 1999 | Crazy in Alabama Crazy in Alabama Crazy in Alabama is a 1999 comedy-drama film directed by Antonio Banderas, written by Mark Childress , and starring Melanie Griffith as an abused wife who heads to California to become a movie star while her nephew back in Alabama has to deal with a racially-motivated murder involving a corrupt... |
Lucille Vinson | Sant Jordi Award for Best Foreign Actress also for Another Day in Paradise Another Day in Paradise (film) Another Day in Paradise is a 1998 drama film directed by Larry Clark, and released by Trimark Pictures. It is based on the novel Another Day in Paradise written by Eddie Little.-Plot:... |
| RKO 281 RKO 281 RKO 281 is a 1999 historical drama film directed by Benjamin Ross. It stars Liev Schreiber, James Cromwell, Melanie Griffith, John Malkovich, and Roy Scheider and depicts the troubled production behind the 1941 film Citizen Kane... |
Marion Davies Marion Davies Marion Davies was an American film actress. Davies is best remembered for her relationship with newspaper tycoon William Randolph Hearst, as her high-profile social life often obscured her professional career.... |
Nominated — Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress – Miniseries or a Movie Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Series, Miniseries or Television Film |
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| 2000 | Cecil B. Demented Cecil B. Demented Cecil B. Demented is a 2000 black comedy film written and directed by John Waters. The film stars Melanie Griffith as a snobby A-list Hollywood actress who is kidnapped by a band of terrorist filmmakers who force her to star in their underground film... |
Honey Whitlock | |
| Forever Lulu | Lulu McAfee | Released on DVD as Along for the Ride (2000) | |
| 2001 | Tart Tart (film) Tart is a 2001 coming of age film starring Dominique Swain, Bijou Phillips, and Brad Renfro. Phillips and Renfro both starred in the 2001 film Bully.-Plot:... |
Diane Milford | |
| 2002 | Searching for Debra Winger Searching for Debra Winger Searching for Debra Winger is a 2002 American documentary film conceived and directed by Rosanna Arquette. It presents a series of interviews with leading actresses who discuss the various pressures they face as women working in the film industry while trying to juggle their professional... |
Herself | |
| Stuart Little 2 Stuart Little 2 Stuart Little 2 is a 2002 American live action and CGI animated film, directed by Rob Minkoff and starring Geena Davis, Hugh Laurie and Jonathan Lipnicki and the voices of Michael J. Fox, Nathan Lane, Melanie Griffith, James Woods and Steve Zahn. The film is a sequel to the 1999 film and includes... |
Margalo the Bird | Voice | |
| 2003 | The Night We Called It a Day The Night We Called It a Day (film) The Night We Called It a Day is an Australian film directed by Peter Clifton starring Dennis Hopper as Frank Sinatra and Melanie Griffith as Barbara Marx, and featuring Portia de Rossi, Joel Edgerton, Rose Byrne, and David Hemmings. The movie is based on the true events surrounding one of several... |
Barbara Marx | Nominated — Australian Film Institute Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role Australian Film Institute Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role The Australian Film Institute Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role is an award in the annual Australian Film Institute Awards. It has been awarded annually since 1976.-Previous winners:*1976: Melissa Jaffer – Caddie... |
| Shade Shade (film) Shade is a 2003 neo-noir crime drama starring Stuart Townsend, Gabriel Byrne, Thandie Newton, Jamie Foxx, Roger Guenveur Smith, Melanie Griffith and Sylvester Stallone... |
Eve | ||
| Tempo Tempo (film) Tempo is a 2003 film set primarily in Paris about a love triangle that gets increasingly complicated as criminal enterprises go wrong.-Cast:*Melanie Griffith as Sarah James*Rachael Leigh Cook as Jenny Travile*Hugh Dancy as Jack Ganzer... |
Sarah | ||
| 2005 | Heartless | Miranda Wells | |
| 2007 | Viva Laughlin Viva Laughlin Viva Laughlin is an American musical–dramedy series adapted by Bob Lowry and Peter Bowker from the popular BBC British serial, Blackpool. They also served as executive producers alongside Hugh Jackman, John Palermo, Paul Telegdy and Gabriele Muccino. The latter also directed the pilot... |
Bunny Baxter | Supporting role, TV series |
| 2010 | Nip/Tuck Nip/Tuck Nip/Tuck is an American drama series created by Ryan Murphy, which aired on FX in the United States. The series focuses on McNamara/Troy, a plastic surgery practice, and follows its founders, Sean McNamara and Christian Troy... |
Brandie Henry | Recurring role, TV series |
| 2011 | Hot in Cleveland Hot in Cleveland Hot in Cleveland is an American sitcom on TV Land starring Valerie Bertinelli, Jane Leeves, Wendie Malick and Betty White. The series, which is TV Land's first original scripted series, premiered on June 16, 2010, and was TV Land's highest rated telecast in the cable network's 14-year history. The... |
Herself | Episode: "Sisterhood of the Traveling SPANX" |