# Melora Walters

Melora Walters (born October 21, 1959) is an American actress and filmmaker, best known for her starring roles as Wanda Henrickson on HBO's Big Love (2006–2010) and Kathy Kone on Hulu's PEN15 (2019–2021). She has frequently collaborated with Paul Thomas Anderson, earning two Screen Actors Guild nominations for her work in Boogie Nights (1997) and Magnolia (1999), respectively. Her other film credits include Dead Poets Society (1989), Eraser (1996), Matchstick Men, Cold Mountain (both 2003), The Butterfly Effect (2004), Short Term 12 (2013), Cam, Venom (both 2018), and Offseason (2021). Walters' directorial credits include Waterlily Jaguar (2018) and Drowning (2019), both of which she wrote and co-produced.

## Career
### Film

Walters made her screen debut with a small part in the 1988 film Underground, which she followed with the more substantial role of Gloria, a school student, in Peter Weir's critically acclaimed Dead Poets Society (1989). Following roles in various features throughout the early-mid 1990s, such as Beethoven (1992), Tim Burton's Ed Wood (1994), and the commercially successful Eraser (1996), Walters began a professional partnership with Paul Thomas Anderson when she appeared in his directorial debut, the 1996 crime drama Hard Eight. She earned praise for her work in his subsequent films Boogie Nights (1997) and Magnolia (1999), with Variety critic Emanuel Levy describing her portrayal of drug addict Claudia in the latter as "superlative". For her performance in Doubting Thomas (2018), Walters was named Best Supporting Actress at the Golden Door Film Festival.

### Television

On television, Walters has appeared in guest roles on series such as Roseanne, Seinfeld, NYPD Blue, CSI, Desperate Housewives, Californication, The Mentalist, NCIS, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, and American Gigolo. She also starred as Felicity on L.A. Doctors (1998–1999), Wanda Henrickson on Big Love (2006–2010), and Kathy Kone on PEN15 (2019–2021).

## Personal life

Walters has two children from her marriage to Dylan Walsh; they divorced in 2003. She was previously married to actor Christopher Scotellaro between 1990 and 1994. Walters married cinematographer Alex Vendler on June 21, 2008. She filed for divorce from Vendler in 2010, citing irreconcilable differences.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1988 | Underground | Prostitute |
| 1988 | Staring at the Dark | Eden | Short |
| 1989 | Dead Poets Society | Gloria | |
| 1989 | Rude Awakening | "Punky" | Uncredited |
| 1992 | Beethoven | Pet Shop Owner | |
| 1993 | America's Deadliest Home Video | Gloria | |
| 1993 | Twenty Bucks | The Stripper / Funeral Director | |
| 1994 | Cabin Boy | Trina | |
| 1994 | All Tied Up | Bliss | |
| 1994 | Ed Wood | Secretary #2 | |
| 1996 | Hard Eight | Jimmy's Girl | |
| 1996 | Eraser | Darleen Casteleone | |
| 1996 | American Strays | Cindy | |
| 1997 | Los Locos | Allison | |
| 1997 | Boogie Nights | Jessie St. Vincent | Florida Film Critics Circle Award for Best Cast |
| 1999 | Magnolia | Claudia Wilson Gator | Florida Film Critics Circle Award for Best Cast |
| 2001 | Speaking of Sex | Melinda | |
| 2001 | Rain | Ellen | |
| 2002 | WiseGirls | Kate | |
| 2002 | Desert Saints | FBI Agent Bennie Harper | |
| 2003 | Melvin Goes to Dinner | Trenice, Melvin's Girlfriend | Copper Wing Award for Best Ensemble |
| 2003 | The Big Empty | Candy | |
| 2003 | Matchstick Men | Heather, Roy's Ex-Wife | Uncredited |
| 2003 | Cold Mountain | Lila | |
| 2004 | The Butterfly Effect | Andrea Treborn | |
| 2007 | Brothers Three: An American Gothic | Loren | |
| 2008 | Harrison Montgomery | Margo Fleming | |
| 2008 | Black Crescent Moon | Katelan Beacon | |
| 2008 | Dark Yellow | Woman | Short |
| 2009 | Hurt | Helen Coltrane | |
| 2010 | Case 219 | Victoria Lash | |
| 2010 | Shit Year | Shelly | |
| 2010 | Love Ranch | Janelle | |
| 2011 | The River Murders | FBI Agent Glover | |
| 2012 | The Master | Band (voice) |
| 2012 | Mary | Mary | Short |
| 2012 | Missing Pieces | Delia Greenly | |
| 2013 | Short Term 12 | Dr. Hendler | |
| 2013 | Underdogs | Nancy Smith-Burkett | |
| 2013 | Lonely Boy | Betsy | |
| 2013 | They Shoot | Unknown | Short |
| 2014 | The Young Kieslowski | Barbara Kieslowski | |
| 2014 | Sacrifice | Enid | |
| 2015 | Sex, Death and Bowling | Evie | |
| 2016 | Indiscretion | Harper | |
| 2016 | The Muse | None | Short; writer and director |
| 2016 | Sugar Mountain | Tracy Huxley | |
| 2017 | Good After Bad | Victoria |
| 2017 | The Lovers | Lucy | |
| 2017 | An American Dog Story | Efthemia (voice) | |
| 2017 | Odious | Beatrice | |
| 2018 | Not a Stranger | Jill Madden | |
| 2018 | In a Relationship | Mia Ziniti | |
| 2018 | Doubting Thomas | Kate | Golden Door Festival Award for Best Supporting Actress |
| 2018 | Waterlily Jaguar | None | Writer and director |
| 2018 | Cam | Lynne Ackerman | |
| 2018 | Venom | Maria, Homeless Woman | |
| 2018 | The Amaranth | Lily Kendrick | |
| 2019 | Beneath the Leaves | Rose | |
| 2019 | Robert the Bruce | Ylfa | |
| 2019 | Kleen | Judith | Short |
| 2019 | Stuck | Nancy | Short |
| 2019 | Drowning | Rose | Also writer, director, producer |
| 2019 | Adeline, the Great | Ms. Nichols | Short |
| 2019 | Where Are You | Edith, The Gatekeeper | |
| 2020 | The Pale Door | Maria | |
| 2020 | Pink Skies Ahead | Hayley | |
| 2020 | Hard Luck Love Song | Sally "Gypsy Sally" | |
| 2021 | Far More | Evie Flores | |
| 2021 | Offseason | Ava Aldrich | |
| 2021 | Severed Silence | Naida | |
| 2021 | Attention Attention | Ruby | |
| 2021 | West of Eden | Evelyn | Short |
| 2022 | The Hater | Sally Jensen | |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1989–1990 | Roseanne | Debbie | Recurring (season 2); 5 episodes |
| 1990 | How to Murder a Millionaire | Ginger | Television film |
| 1991 | The Wonder Years | Waitress | Episode: "Road Trip" |
| 1991 | ABC Afterschool Specials | Unknown | Episode: "It's Only Rock & Roll" |
| 1992 | Murphy Brown | Lisa | Episode: "He-Ho, He-Ho, It's Off to Lamaze We Go" |
| 1992 | Dear John | Maria | Episode: "Adult Education" |
| 1993 | Telling Secrets | Karen Blake | Television film |
| 1993 | Walker, Texas Ranger | Star Buckley | Episode: "Bounty" |
| 1993 | Bakersfield P.D. | Marnie Archer | Episode: "Lucky 13" |
| 1994 | Dead Man's Revenge | Bunny | Television film |
| 1994 | Seinfeld | Jane | Episode: "The Hamptons" |
| 1994 | Midnight Run for Your Life | Lorna Bellstratten | Television film |
| 1995 | The Marshal | Sheryl | Episode: "The Ballad of Lucas Burke" |
| 1995 | Picket Fences | Sherri Watkins | Episode: "Reap the Whirlwind |
| 1995 | Dream On | Dina | Episode: "Little Orphan Eddie" |
| 1995 | NYPD Blue | Holly Snyder | Episodes: "The Bank Dick" and "Dirty Laundry" |
| 1996 | Simon | Emily | Episode: "Simon Night Fever" |
| 1996 | Nash Bridges | Florence "Flo" | Episode: "Skirt Chasers" |
| 1997 | High Incident | Unknown | Episode: "Camino High" |
| 1997 | Brooklyn South | Carly | Episode: "A Reverend Runs Through It" |
| 1998–1999 | L.A. Doctors | Felicity | Series regular (sesson 1); 20 episodes |
| 1998 | Twice Upon a Time | Alannah Merribone | Television film |
| 2002 | Push, Nevada | Grace | Main cast; 7 episodes |
| 2003–2004 | Threat Matrix | Lia "Lark" Larkin | Main cast; 13 episodes |
| 2005 | CSI: Crime Scene Investigation | Sage | Episode: "Gum Drops" |
| 2006–2010 | Big Love | Wanda Henrickson | Main cast (seasons 1–4); 35 episodes |
| 2007 | Desperate Housewives | Sylvia Greene | Episodes: "Distant Past", "Something's Coming" |
| 2012 | Californication | Lisa | Episode: "Raw" |
| 2012 | Franklin & Bash | Joan Ackermann | Episode: "Strange Brew" |
| 2014 | Rake | Jan Falcon | Episode: "Man's Best Friend" |
| 2015 | The Mentalist | Amber | Episode: "Byzantium" |
| 2015 | Criminal Minds | Paige | Episodes: "Protection" and "The Hunt" |
| 2016 | NCIS | Susan Elizabeth Lowe | Episode: "Reasonable Doubts" |
| 2017 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Laurel | Episode: "Something Happened" |
| 2018 | Cherries | Patsy | Television film |
| 2018 | Corporate | Nadine | Episode: "Corporate Retreat" |
| 2018 | The Lover in the Attic: A True Story | None | Television film; director |
| 2019 | The OA | Melody | Episode: "Angel of Death" |
| 2019–2021 | PEN15 | Kathy Kone | Main cast; 22 episodes |
| 2022 | American Gigolo | Maryanne Henderson | 3 episodes |

### Music videos

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1997 | "Try" | Michael Penn | Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson |
| 1999 | "Save Me" | Aimee Mann | Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson |