Deborah Kara Unger (born 12 May 1966)[1][2][3] is a Canadian actress. She is known for her roles in the films Highlander III: The Sorcerer (1994), Crash (1996), The Game (1997), Payback (1999), The Hurricane (1999), White Noise (2005), Silent Hill (2006), 88 Minutes (2008) and The Way (2010).
Deborah Kara Unger | |
|---|---|
 Unger at the premiere of Cassandra's Dream, Toronto International Film Festival 2007 | |
| Born | 12 May 1966 Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1989–present |
Early life
editDeborah Kara Unger was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada to a nuclear disposal specialist mother and a gynaecologist father.[4] She was the first Canadian to be accepted into Australia's National Institute of Dramatic Art.[5]
Career
editUpon graduation Unger found steady work in Australian films and television series, including Bangkok Hilton with Nicole Kidman. Following her return to North America in the early 1990s she appeared in David Lynch's 1993 HBO mini-series Hotel Room, and a year later appeared in Highlander III: The Sorcerer opposite Christopher Lambert.[2][5]
Unger's breakthrough role came in David Cronenberg's 1996 erotic drama Crash, about a group of people who take sexual pleasure from car accidents, a notable form of paraphilia.[5] Unger followed up her performance in Crash by starring with Michael Douglas in the psychological thriller The Game, directed by David Fincher. In 1998 she played Ava Gardner in HBO's The Rat Pack, and in 1999 she appeared in Payback with Mel Gibson, The Hurricane with Denzel Washington and the award-winning ensemble drama Sunshine.[2]
Unger appeared in many independent films in the early 2000s, such as Signs and Wonders, Ten Tiny Love Stories, Fear X, Thirteen, Stander, Hollywood North, Emile, Paranoia 1.0 and A Love Song for Bobby Long. She played a leading role opposite Sophia Loren and Mira Sorvino in the 2002 independent movie Between Strangers, about three women who confront their pasts which changes their futures, for which she was nominated on Genie Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role.[6]
From 2005 to 2010, Unger appeared in White Noise, Things That Hang from Trees, The Alibi, Silent Hill, 88 Minutes, Walled In, Messages Deleted and The Way. She also appeared in the music video for "Jesus of Suburbia" by American rock band Green Day. In 2011, she took a starring role in the television series Combat Hospital, and in 2012 reprised her role as Dahlia Gillespie in the horror film sequel Silent Hill: Revelation.[2]
Filmography
editFilm
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | Blood Oath | Sister Littell | Original title: Prisoners of the Sun |
| 1990 | Breakaway | Marion | Original title: Escape from Madness |
| 1991 | Till There Was You | Anna Vivaldi | |
| 1992 | Whispers in the Dark | Eve Abergray | |
| 1994 | Highlander III: The Sorcerer | Dr. Alexandra Johnson / Sarah Barrington | |
| 1996 | Crash | Catherine Ballard | |
| 1996 | No Way Home | Lorraine | |
| 1997 | Keys to Tulsa | Vicky Michaels Stover | |
| 1997 | The Game | Christine / Claire | |
| 1998 | Luminous Motion | Mom | |
| 1999 | Payback | Lynn Porter | |
| 1999 | The Weekend | Marian Kerr | |
| 1999 | Sunshine | Maj. Carole Kovács | |
| 1999 | The Hurricane | Lisa Peters | |
| 2000 | Signs & Wonders | Katherine | |
| 2002 | The Salton Sea | Colette Vaughn | |
| 2002 | Between Strangers | Catherine | |
| 2002 | Leo | Caroline | |
| 2002 | Ten Tiny Love Stories | Seven | |
| 2003 | Thirteen | Brooke LaLaine | |
| 2003 | Fear X | Kate | |
| 2003 | Hollywood North | Sandy Ryan | |
| 2003 | Stander | Bekkie Stander | |
| 2003 | Emile | Nadia / Nadia's Mother | |
| 2004 | Paranoia 1.0 | Trish | |
| 2005 | A Love Song for Bobby Long | Georgianna | |
| 2005 | White Noise | Sarah Tate | |
| 2006 | The Alibi | Dorothy | |
| 2006 | Things That Hang from Trees | Connie Mae Wheeler | |
| 2006 | Silent Hill | Dahlia Gillespie | |
| 2007 | 88 Minutes | Carol Lynn Johnson | |
| 2007 | Shake Hands with the Devil | Emma | |
| 2009 | Walled In | Mary | |
| 2010 | Transparency | Danielle | |
| 2010 | The Way | Sarah | |
| 2010 | Sophie & Sheba | Tina Bradshaw | |
| 2010 | Messages Deleted | Det. Lavery | |
| 2011 | The Maiden Danced to Death | Lynn Court | |
| 2012 | The Samaritan | Helena | |
| 2012 | A Dark Truth | Morgan Swinton | |
| 2012 | 186 Dollars to Freedom | Consul Powers | |
| 2012 | Silent Hill: Revelation | Dahlia Gillespie | |
| 2013 | Samuel Bleak | Roselyn Ramirez | |
| 2015 | Rehearsal | Ellen Sinclair | |
| 2017 | Vengeance: A Love Story | Agnes | |
| 2017 | A Thought of Ecstasy | Liz Archer | |
| 2017 | Jackals | Kathy Powell | |
| 2017 | Torch | Sister Ingrid | |
| 2022 | The Long Night | The Master |
Television
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | Bangkok Hilton | Astra | TV miniseries |
| 1990 | Rafferty's Rules | Jill Bennett | Episode: "Many Happy Returns" |
| 1993 | Hotel Room | Sasha | Episode: "Getting Rid of Robert" |
| 1994 | State of Emergency | Sue Payton | TV film |
| 1998 | The Rat Pack | Ava Gardner | TV film |
| 2009 | Angel and the Bad Man | Temperance | TV film |
| 2011 | Combat Hospital | Maj. Grace Pederson, M.D. | 13 episodes |
| 2015 | A Dangerous Arrangement | Samantha | TV film |
| 2015 | The Hollow | Aunt Cora | TV film |
Video games
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Star Wars: The Old Republic | SCORPIO | Voice |
Music videos
edit| Year | Artist | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Green Day | "Jesus of Suburbia" | Jimmy's/Jesus's mother |
Awards and nominations
edit| Year | Result | Award | Category | Film |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Won | Seattle International Film Festival | Citation of Excellence for Ensemble Cast Performance | The Weekend |
| Nominated | Genie Awards | Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role | Sunshine | |
| 2003 | Nominated | Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role | Between Strangers | |
| Won | Dubrovnik International Film Festival | Libertas Award | ||
| Nominated | Sonoma Valley Film Festival | Imagery Honors Award | ||
| 2004 | Won | Method Fest | Best Actress | Emile |
| 2005 | Won | Málaga International Week of Fantastic Cinema | Best Actress | One Point O |
| 2010 | Won | Action on Film International Film Festival | Half-Life Award |
References
edit- ^ "Deborah Unger". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on 9 August 2012. Retrieved 19 September 2014.
- ^ a b c d Rebecca Flint Marx (2008). "Deborah Kara Unger". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. Baseline & All Movie Guide. Archived from the original on 22 April 2008. Retrieved 2 June 2011.
- ^ "Deborah Kara Unger- Biography". Yahoo! Movies. Archived from the original on 18 January 2013. Retrieved 13 March 2011.
- ^ Hochman, David (3 October 1997). "Unger Strikes". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on 14 October 2018. Retrieved 19 September 2014.
- ^ a b c Ojumu, Akin (13 February 2000). "Everyone's talking about... Deborah Kara Unger's big cover-up". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 2 June 2011.
- ^ "Deborah Kara Unger". Allmovie. Retrieved 19 September 2014.
External links
edit