Marlee Matlin

Marlee Matlin (born August 24, 1965) is an American actress. Having been deaf since 18 months of age, she is known for her activism on behalf of deaf individuals in Hollywood and other industries. Her accolades include an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award, in addition to nominations for a British Academy Film Award and four Primetime Emmy Awards. In 2009, she received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Matlin made her acting debut playing Sarah Norman in the romantic drama film Children of a Lesser God (1986), winning the Academy Award for Best Actress and the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama. She is the first deaf performer to win an Academy Award, the youngest winner in the Best Actress category, and one of four women to win the award for their screen debut. For playing a district attorney in the police drama series Reasonable Doubts (1991–1993), she was twice nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Drama. She received a nomination for the Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series for her guest role in the comedy series Seinfeld (1993), and received three more nominations for Picket Fences (1993), The Practice (2000), and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (2004–2005) in the drama category.

Matlin has primarily worked in television, as she has found more roles for deaf actors. She played Joey Lucas on the political drama series The West Wing (2000–2006), appeared in the drama series The L Word (2007–2009) and Switched at Birth (2011–2017), and voiced Stella in the animated sitcom Family Guy (2012–2021). She made her Broadway debut in the 2015 revival of Spring Awakening. For her role in the coming-of-age film CODA (2021), she won the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture.

Outside of acting, Matlin is a prominent member of the National Association of the Deaf, and her interpreter is Jack Jason. She has published four works and won recognitions for her advocacy. A documentary about her life and work, Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore, was released in 2025.