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Ellen Muth

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Ellen Anna Muth
Headshot of actress Ellen Muth, looking to the right of the camera, with her blonde hair filling much of the image
Muth in 2007
Born (1981-03-06) March 6, 1981 (age 43)
Milford, Connecticut, U.S.
OccupationActress
Years active1993–2013

Ellen Muth (/ˈmjuːθ/;[1] born March 6, 1981)[2] is a retired American actress best known for her role as Georgia "George" Lass in Showtime's series Dead Like Me (2003–2004 series, 2009 film).

Early life

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Muth was born in Milford, Connecticut, to Eric (a military veteran) and Rachel Muth.[3]

As of 2004, Muth was a member of Intertel and Mensa, high-IQ societies.[4][5] She attended the Skip Barber Racing School[1] and the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute.[6]

Career

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After a brief stint as a model with Ford Models and Rascal's Agency, Muth pursued a career in acting, studying at the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute in New York City, and getting her first professional experience doing commercials in 1993.[7] Her first major role was in the 1995 film Dolores Claiborne. She followed that with a role in the eighth-season premiere of Law & Order.[8]

Muth's appearance as the daughter in the 1999 film The Young Girl and the Monsoon earned praise from Stephen Holden of The New York Times for her range in portraying a character "who one minute can be as clinging as a baby and the next delights in cruelly demolishing the nearest grownup with laser-like sarcasm" and her chemistry "whenever Constance (who narrates the film) is on the screen with her father Hank (Terry Kinney)".[9]

Her 2000 work included appearances in episodes of The Beat and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, as well as a role in The American Collection adaptation of "Cora Unashamed", a short story by Langston Hughes from his 1934 collection The Ways of White Folks.[10] Muth also had a guest role in "Don't Ask", the original unaired pilot episode of the 2000 Fox show that eventually aired as Normal, Ohio. The show's revamp eliminated her role.[11] That year, Muth played the lead in the Lifetime Original Movie The Truth About Jane about a high school girl's struggle with her sexuality and acceptance.

Muth starred in the 2003–04 Showtime television series Dead Like Me in the role of Georgia "George" Lass, the protagonist and one of a team of grim reapers.

Muth's next roles were lower in profile. She appeared in Jack 'n' Jill, a 2007 MFA thesis film.[12] She voiced the character of Addie Vost in the first animated short of Tofu the Vegan Zombie[13] and a character in the audio dramatization "Anne Manx in the Empress Blair Project".[14] In September 2008 she joined three other actors at the Theatre Artist Workshop in Norwalk, Connecticut, in a reading of Fleece the Flock, an original musical comedy in development and directed by Joel Vig.[15]

After some delay, Dead Like Me: Life After Death, a film directed by Stephen Herek based on Dead Like Me and featuring many members of the show's cast, including Muth, was released direct-to-video in March 2009.[16]

In 2012, Muth returned to the big screen in the romantic comedy Margarine Wars alongside Robert Loggia and Doris Roberts. The film debuted in Los Angeles on March 29, 2012.[17]

In 2013, Muth made a guest appearance in two episodes of the first season of the TV series Hannibal, produced by Bryan Fuller, the creator of Dead Like Me.[18][19]

In a 2015 interview, Muth confirmed that she had "hit the pause button on the acting" part of her life.[20]

Awards and nominations

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Muth shared a best supporting actress award at the 1995 Tokyo International Film Festival for her screen debut in Dolores Claiborne.[21] In 1999 she won the American Film Institute (AFI) Best Actress Award for The Young Girl and the Monsoon.

In 2004, Muth's work on Dead Like Me received two nominations: for a Saturn Award in the Best Actress in a Television Series category and for a Satellite Award in the category of Best Performance by an Actress in a Drama series.

Filmography

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Film

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Year Title Role Notes
1995 Dolores Claiborne Young Selena St. George Tokyo International Film Festival Award for Best Supporting Actress
1999 The Young Girl and the Monsoon Constance AFI Award for Best Actress
2001 Rain Jenny
2002 A Gentleman's Game Mollie Kilduff
2007 Tofu the Vegan Zombie in Zombie Dearest Addie Vost Short film
2008 Jack N Jill Jill Short film
2009 Dead Like Me: Life After Death George Lass Video
2011 Rose and Violet Rose Short film
2012 Margarine Wars Katie Trumbull
Rudyard Kipling's Mark of the Beast Natalie

Television

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Year Title Role Notes
1997 Law & Order Adele Green Episode: "Thrill"
1999 Only Love Rachel TV film
2000 The Beat Jacqueline Hutchinson Episode: "The Beat Goes On"
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Elaine Harrington Episode: "Chat Room"
The Truth About Jane Jane TV film
Normal, Ohio Dana Le Tour Original pilot
Cora Unashamed Jessie at 18 TV film
2002 Superfire Jill Perkins TV film
Two Against Time Emma Portman TV film
2003–2004 Dead Like Me Georgia "George" Lass Lead role (29 episodes)
Nominated—Saturn Award for Best Actress on Television
Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Actress – Television Series Drama
2012 Are We There Yet? Andrea Episode: "The Inappropriate Website Episode"[22]
2013 Hannibal Georgia Madchen Guest (2 episodes)

Personal life

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Muth has withdrawn from public life since her 2013 appearances on Hannibal, instead concentrating on a coffee business she launched and a cat-breeding business as of the early 2020s. Saying she eventually wanted "to settle down and have a family of my own", Muth told a relaxed-lifestyle website in December 2015 that she had "hit the pause button on the acting for now."[23]

References

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  1. ^ a b Moore, Scott (August 22, 2004). "Ellen Muth Is Reaping Life's Rewards". The Washington Post. p. Y07. Retrieved June 24, 2007.
  2. ^ "Muth, Ellen 1981– | Encyclopedia.com". www.encyclopedia.com. Retrieved August 14, 2024.
  3. ^ "Milford's newest Living Treasure is a military hero and a knight". Milford Mirror. July 10, 2013. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
  4. ^ Moore, Scott (August 22, 2004). "Ellen Muth Is Reaping Life's Rewards". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
  5. ^ "The 50 Hottest Smart Girls". Complex. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
  6. ^ "Ellen Muth". ValidProfits Consulting. August 3, 2020. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
  7. ^ "The Official Ellen Muth Website – Biography". Archived from the original on February 22, 2012. Retrieved March 10, 2012.
  8. ^ "Episode Guide > Season 8, Episode 1 ("Thrill") > Cast List". TV.com. Archived from the original on February 5, 2013. Retrieved July 15, 2010.
  9. ^ Holden, Stephen (May 4, 2001). "Film in Review:The Young Girl and the Monsoon". The New York Times. Retrieved July 15, 2010.
  10. ^ "Cora Unashamed". PBS. October 2000. Retrieved July 15, 2010.
  11. ^ "Episode Summary > Season 1, Episode 1 ("Don't Ask")". TV.com. Retrieved July 14, 2010. From the story of two roommates (LaPaglia and Goodman) – one straight and one gay – dealing with their sons, the storyline was changed to 'gay man returns home after coming out of the closet and running away to LA'. There was major recasting and some characters were dumped.
  12. ^ 'Jack and Jill' production photos ©2007, Kahlil Hudson, September 2007
  13. ^ "Students at the Dave School Created Tofu the Vegan Zombie". 3Dup.com. October 31, 2007. Archived from the original on January 22, 2008. Retrieved February 16, 2008.
  14. ^ "Radio Repertory Company of America". Retrieved February 16, 2008.
  15. ^ Gans, Andrew (August 15, 2008). "Stevens, Poarch, Muth and Wheat to Be Part of Fleece the Flock Reading". Playbill. Archived from the original on October 17, 2012. Retrieved July 15, 2010.
  16. ^ "DVD – Dead Like Me: Life After Death". Monsters and Critics. Archived from the original on October 10, 2012. Retrieved July 15, 2010.
  17. ^ "Margarine Wars, A Romantic Comedy, Goes Hollywood With The LA Premiere" (Press release). PR Web. January 26, 2012. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved January 27, 2012.
  18. ^ "Milford actress Ellen Muth to make guest appearance on new TV thriller". The Milford Mirror. February 3, 2013. Retrieved February 4, 2013.
  19. ^ "Buffet Froid". Hannibal. Season 1. Episode 10. March 30, 2013.
  20. ^ Furdyk, Brent (February 2, 2023). "What Happened To The Cast Of Dead Like Me". The List. Retrieved November 26, 2024.
  21. ^ "History – 8th Tokyo International Film Festival". Tokyo International Film Festival. The Best Supporting Actress Award: Ellen Muth (Dolores Claiborne) and Gledys Ibarra (Sicario – Assassin for Hire)
  22. ^ "The Inappropriate Website Episode". Are We There Yet?. Season 3. Episode 40.
  23. ^ Furdyk, Brent (May 28, 2021). "What Happened To The Cast Of Dead Like Me". The List. Retrieved June 5, 2021.
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