Michelle Pfeiffer Biography
Michelle Pfeiffer is an American actress who was one of Hollywood’s most bankable stars, and her performances garnered her a Golden Globe Award, a British Academy Film Award, and nominations for three Academy Awards and a Primetime Emmy Award.
Age
She is 66 years old as of 29 April 2024. She was born in 1958 in Santa Ana, California, United States. Her real name is Michelle Marie Pfeiffer.
Family – Education
Pfeiffer was born on April 29, 1958, in Santa Ana, California, as the second of four children to housewife Donna Jean (née Taverna) and air-conditioning contractor Richard Pfeiffer. She has two younger sisters, Dedee and Lori, and an elder brother, Rick. Her parents were both originally from North Dakota. Her paternal grandpa was of German origin, and her paternal grandmother was of English, Welsh, French, Irish, and Dutch lineage, whereas her maternal grandfather was Swiss-German-Italian, and her maternal grandmother was of Swedish ancestry. Pfeiffer grew up in Midway City, another Orange County hamlet about seven miles (11 kilometers) away. Pfeiffer attended Fountain Valley High School and graduated in 1976. She worked as a check-out girl at Vons and attended Golden West College, where she belonged to the Alpha Delta Pi sorority.
Wife – Children
Jennifer Pfeiffer met Peter Horton during an acting lesson in Los Angeles. They married in 1981, and she realized she had landed the lead part in Grease II. Horton directed her in the 1985 ABC television spectacular One Too Many. In 1987, they appeared as a couple in John Landis’ comic skit compilation Amazon Women on the Moon. In 1988, Pfeiffer had an affair with her Dangerous Liaisons co-star, John Malkovich. They separated in 1988 and divorced two years later.
Pfeiffer then had a three-year romance with actor and producer Fisher Stevens. In 1993, she married David E. Kelley, a television writer and producer. She had a brief uncredited cameo in Kelley’s television series Picket Fences and played the title character in To Gillian on Her 37th Birthday. Prior to meeting Kelley, she had initiated private adoption proceedings and adopted a baby daughter, Claudia Rose. In 1994, she gave birth to a boy called John Henry Kelley II, after his grandfather and father-in-law, United States Hockey Hall of Fame coach John Henry “Jack” Kelley.
Net Worth
He has an estimated net worth of $3 million.
Grease 2
Pfeiffer made her leading cinematic debut as the female lead in Grease 2 (1982), the sequel to the 1978 musical blockbuster. Despite her initial minor film roles, Pfeiffer was chosen for her unique personality. The film was a critical and commercial flop, but Pfeiffer’s performance was praised as outstanding. The New York Times appreciated her calmness and comfort. Despite avoiding criticism, her representative claimed that her involvement with the film meant she couldn’t acquire gigs. Pfeiffer originally struggled to get work, relying on her attractiveness.
Director Brian De Palma declined to audition Pfeiffer for Scarface (1983), but she accepted at the producer’s persuasion. She was cast as Elvira Hancock, a trophy wife who is addicted to cocaine. Despite being deemed unnecessarily violent by reviewers, the picture proved a commercial success and developed a sizable cult following. Pfeiffer earned great feedback for her supporting part, with Time Magazine applauding her and Dominick Dunne claiming she was on the verge of fame.
Catwoman
In 1992, she starred as Catwoman in Batman Returns and garnered her third Academy Award nomination for Love Field. After Annette Bening left out due to her pregnancy, Pfeiffer stepped in to play Selina Kyle-Catwoman in Tim Burton’s superhero film Batman Returns (1992), alongside Michael Keaton and Danny DeVito. She practiced martial arts and kickboxing to prepare for the role. Pfeiffer gained unequivocal critical acclaim for her depiction of Catwoman, which critics and fans alike regard as the best performance of the character. Joy was particularly influenced by Pfeiffer’s shift from Selina Kyle to Catwoman in Batman Returns, whereas Ronson chose The Fabulous Baker Boys as his favorite Pfeiffer film.
Scarface
After watching Grease 2, director Brian De Palma declined to audition Pfeiffer for Scarface (1983), but yielded at the request of the film’s producer, Martin Bregman. She was cast as Elvira Hancock, a cocaine-addicted trophy wife. Most critics thought the film was too violent, but it became a commercial success and developed a sizable cult following in the years that followed. Pfeiffer earned excellent reviews for her supporting role; Richard Corliss of Time Magazine said, “most of the large cast is fine: Michelle Pfeiffer is better…”, while Dominick Dunne, in an essay for Vanity Fair headlined “Blonde Ambition,” commented, “[s]he is on the verge of stardom.” In industry parlance, she is hot.”
1980s
Pfeiffer’s acting career began in the 1980s, with the comedy The Hollywood Knights. She went on to take minor roles in Falling in Love Again and The Curse of the Dragon Queen, but neither received much critical or box office success. Pfeiffer studied acting at the Beverly Hills Playhouse before starring in three 1981 television films.
In 1982, she landed her first starring role as the female lead in Grease 2. She played Elvira Hancock in Scarface, a film that was deemed too violent by most reviewers but became a commercial success and gained a considerable cult following. Pfeiffer earned favorable feedback for her supporting roles, which included Time Magazine’s Richard Corliss and Vanity Fair’s Dominick Dunne.
Following Scarface, she portrayed Diana in John Landis’ comedy Into the Night, Isabeau d’Anjou in Ladyhawke, Faith Healy in Sweet Liberty, and Brenda Landers in an episode of Amazon Women on the Moon. She had a great box-office success as Sukie Ridgemont in the 1987 film adaptation of John Updike’s novel The Witches of Eastwick.
Pfeiffer was cast against type as a slain gangster’s widow in Jonathan Demme’s mafia comedy Married to the Mob, for which she received her first Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Actress in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy. She played stylish restaurateur Jo Ann Vallenari in Tequila Sunrise, but had creative and personal disagreements with director Robert Towne.
In 1988, Pfeiffer joined the cast of Stephen Frears’ Dangerous Liaisons as Madame Marie de Tourvel. Her performance as Susie Diamond in The Fabulous Baker Boys received overwhelming praise from critics, with Roger Ebert comparing her to Rita Hayworth in Gilda and Marilyn Monroe in Some Like It Hot.