# Kathryn Erbe

Kathryn Elsbeth Erbe (born July 5, 1965) is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Alexandra Eames on Law & Order: Criminal Intent, a spin-off of Law & Order, and Shirley Bellinger in the HBO series Oz.

## Early life

Erbe was born in Newton, Massachusetts, the daughter of Elsbeth and Richard Erbe. She graduated from New York University (NYU) in 1989.

## Career

While an undergraduate student at NYU, Erbe was cast as the daughter of Lynn Redgrave's character on the sitcom Chicken Soup. She later became a member of Steppenwolf Theatre Company and has starred in many of their productions, including A Streetcar Named Desire, Curse of the Starving Class, and The Grapes of Wrath, which ran for six months and won the 1990 Tony Award for Best Play. Erbe earned a Tony Award nomination in 1991 for her portrayal of Mary in The Speed of Darkness.
Erbe starred in such films as What About Bob?, Stir of Echoes, Rich in Love, and the independent films Dream with the Fishes, Love from Ground Zero, and Entropy. She played opposite David Caruso in Kiss of Death. She portrayed Shirley Bellinger on the HBO series Oz. She made a guest appearance on Homicide: Life on the Street in 1997. From 2001 to early 2010, she starred as Detective Alexandra Eames on the NBC/USA Network series Law & Order: Criminal Intent, alongside Vincent D'Onofrio.
In 2010, both Erbe and D'Onofrio left Criminal Intent. Erbe signed on to reprise the role of Detective Eames for the eight-episode final season of the series, joining Vincent D'Onofrio, who had already signed up to return as Detective Robert Goren. She has reprised the role in guest appearances on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. In 2014, Erbe appeared in an episode of Last Week Tonight parodying her role on Law & Order: Criminal Intent. She also played Fay Ambrose, the wife of Detective Harry Ambrose, in the USA Network's The Sinner.

## Personal life

Erbe was married to actor Terry Kinney (who also starred in Oz) from 1993 until their divorce in 2006. Together, they have two children.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1989 | Runaway Dreams | Denise Donaldson | |
| 1991 | What About Bob? | Anna Marvin | |
| 1993 | Rich in Love | Lucille Odom | |
| 1994 | D2: The Mighty Ducks | Michele MacKay | |
| 1994 | Breathing Lessons | Fiona | Television film |
| 1995 | The Addiction | Anthropology Student | |
| 1995 | Kiss of Death | Rosie D'Amico-Kilmartin | |
| 1997 | Dream with the Fishes | Liz | |
| 1997 | George Wallace | Mrs. Folsom | Television film |
| 1998 | Love from Ground Zero | Alex | |
| 1998 | Naked City: Justice with a Bullet | Sarah Tubbs | Television film |
| 1999 | Entropy | Evan | |
| 1999 | Stir of Echoes | Maggie Witzky | |
| 2000 | The Runaway | Evelyn Carnes | Television film |
| 2001 | Speaking of Sex | Helen | |
| 2010 | 3 Backyards | John's Wife | |
| 2011 | Mother's House | Catherine | Short film |
| 2011 | The Love Guide | Cora | |
| 2014 | Worst Friends | Sam's Mom | |
| 2015 | Mistress America | Stevie Fishko | |
| 2017 | Dating My Mother | Joan | |
| 2018 | Alex Strangelove | Helen | |
| 2018 | Assassination Nation | Rebecca Colson | |
| 2021 | The Good House | Wendy Heatherton | |
| 2024 | Don't Pick Up | Louisa Bodek | Short Film |
| 2025 | Death of a Unicorn | Tapestry Video Narrator (voice) | |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1989 | Chicken Soup | Patricia Reece | 12 episodes |
| 1997 | Homicide: Life on the Street | Rita Hale | Episode: "All Is Bright" |
| 1998–2003 | Oz | Shirley Bellinger | 17 episodes |
| 2001–2011 | Law & Order: Criminal Intent | Det. Alexandra Eames | 142 episodes Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Actress – Television Series Drama |
| 2012–2013 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Lt. Alexandra Eames | 2 episodes |
| 2014 | Last Week Tonight with John Oliver | Alexandra Eames | Episode: "Civil Forfeiture" |
| 2015 | Blue Bloods | Sharon Bennett | Episode: "Unsung Heroes" |
| 2016 | Elementary | Nancy Davenport | Episode: "Miss Taken" |
| 2016 | Conviction | Carla Macy | Episode: "Bad Deals" |
| 2016 | American Experience | Lucretia Garfield | Episode: "Murder of a President" |
| 2017–2018 | How to Get Away with Murder | Jacqueline Roa | 4 episodes: "Lahey v. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania", "Live. Live. Live.", "Nobody Roots for Goliath", "Stay Strong, Mama" (Season 4) |
| 2017 | The Sinner | Fay Ambrose | 5 episodes |
| 2018 | Pose | Dr. Gottfried | 2 episodes |
| 2018 | The Gifted | Aunt Dane | Episode: "the dreaM" |
| 2019 | Instinct | Caitlyn Gerich | Episode: "Big Splash" |
| 2019–2022 | City on a Hill | Sue Stanton | 7 episodes |
| 2020 | The Good Fight | Zoe Redgrave | Season 4 Episode: "The Gang Deals With Alternate Reality" |
| 2021 | The Blacklist | Lois | 2 episodes |

## Theatre

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1990 | The Grapes of Wrath | Aggie Wainwright | |
| 1991 | The Speed of Darkness | Mary | Nominated—Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play |
| 1995 | A Month in the Country | Verochka | |
| 2012 | Checkers | Pat | Vineyard Theater |
| 2015 | Afghanistan, Zimbabwe, America, Kuwait | Mom | Gym at Judson |
| 2016 | The Father | Anne | Broadway: Samuel J. Friedman Theatre |
| 2024 | Ashes & Ink | Molly | AMT Theater |