Brooke Shields

Brooke Shields began her career as a model in 1966 at 11 months old, working for Ivory Soap and photographed by Francesco Scavullo. She continued modeling as a child with agent Eileen Ford. In 1974, she appeared in the television adaptation of Arthur Miller's After the Fall. She made her feature film debut in Alice, Sweet Alice (1976), followed by a role in Woody Allen's Annie Hall (1977), although her scenes were cut from the final film.

Shields was cast as Violet in Louis Malle's Pretty Baby (1978). She subsequently appeared in Just You and Me, Kid (1979), Wanda Nevada (1979) and Tilt (1979). In 1980, she appeared in The Blue Lagoon and was a guest star on The Muppet Show. She hosted ABC's Fridays in 1981 and starred in Franco Zeffirelli's Endless Love (1981). She also appeared in the film Sahara (1983) and had a minor appearance in The Muppets Take Manhattan (1984).

Shields took a career hiatus while studying at Princeton University from 1983 to 1987, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in French literature. During this period, her autobiography On Your Own was published in 1985.

After returning to acting, Shields played the title role in Brenda Starr, which was filmed in 1986 and released in 1993. She appeared in The Simpsons in 1993 and starred as Rizzo in the Broadway revival of Grease in 1994. In 1996, she appeared in Friends, which led to her being cast as the title character in the NBC sitcom Suddenly Susan. She starred in Suddenly Susan from 1996 to 2000. In 1998, she appeared in The Misadventures of Margaret.

In 2001, Shields starred in the Lifetime film What Makes a Family and played Sally Bowles in the Broadway revival of Cabaret. In 2004, she made recurring appearances on That '70s Show as Pam Burkhart. She also replaced Donna Murphy as Ruth Sherwood in the Broadway revival of Wonderful Town in 2004. In 2005, she played Roxie Hart in Chicago in London's West End and later reprised the role in the Broadway revival. She also recorded the narration for The Runaway Bunny, a concerto for violin, orchestra and reader by Glen Roven.

Shields made guest appearances on Nip/Tuck, Two and a Half Men and Entourage in the 2000s. She appeared on Hannah Montana in 2007 and returned to prime-time television in Lipstick Jungle in 2008. Beginning in 2010, she made guest appearances on The Middle and appeared as a featured celebrity on Who Do You Think You Are?

In 2011, Shields took over the role of Morticia Addams in the Broadway musical The Addams Family. Beginning in 2013, she became an occasional guest co-host of the 9:00 hour of NBC's Today. She also appeared as Sheila Porter during the 19th season of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.

Shields was the subject of the two-part documentary Pretty Baby: Brooke Shields, which aired on Hulu in 2023. In 2024, she starred in the Netflix film Mother of the Bride and was elected president of the Actors' Equity Association.