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Natasha Lyonne

Acting

Born April 4, 1979 · New York City, New York, USA

Also known as Natasha Leon · Natasha Bianca Lyonne Braunstein

Biography

Natasha Bianca Lyonne Braunstein (/liˈoʊn/lee-OHN; born April 4, 1979) is an American actress, writer, director, and producer. Lyonne started her career as a teen actress before expanding her career, taking on mature roles in film and television. She is known for her distinctive raspy voice and "tough" persona, and the accolades she has received include nominations for five Primetime Emmy Awards and two Golden Globe Awards. She was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time Magazine in 2023. Lyonne started her career as a child actress, making her first uncredited appearance in Heartburn (1986), recurring in Pee-wee's Playhouse (1986), and supporting in Dennis the Menace (1993). She transitioned to taking on teen roles in several independent films such as Everyone Says I Love You (1996), Slums of Beverly Hills (1998), But I'm a Cheerleader (1999), and Party Monster (2003) as well as in broad comedic films such as American Pie (1999), American Pie 2 (2001), Scary Movie 2 (2001), and American Reunion (2012). She found a career resurgence and Emmy Award nominations for her performances as Nicky Nichols on the Netflix comedy-drama series Orange Is the New Black (2013–2019), a software engineer stuck in a time loop in the Netflix's comedy-drama series Russian Doll (2019–2022), and a woman who can tell when people are lying in the Peacock crime comedy series Poker Face (2023–present), the former of which she also served as a co-creator, writer, director, and executive producer of the series. She also starred in the Netflix drama film His Three Daughters (2024). Description above from the Wikipedia article Natasha Lyonne, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Awards & recognition

  • TCA AwardIndividual Achievement in Comedy · 2023

Filmography50+ titles

Steven Universe

2013as Smoky Quartz (voice)

Euphoria

2019as Hooker

Steven Universe Future

2019as Smoky Quartz (voice)

Pee-wee as Himself

2025as Self

What If...?

2021as Byrdie (voice)

The Simpsons

1989as Sophie (voice)

The Eric Andre Show

2012as Self

Law & Order: Special Victims Unit

1999as Gia Eskas

The Bad Guys 2

2025as Doom aka Susan (voice)

High Fidelity

2020Director

Big Mouth

2017as Ms. Dunn (voice)

Orange Is the New Black

2013as Nicky Nichols

Poker Face

2023as Charlie Cale

Explained

2018as Narrator (voice)

RuPaul's Drag Race

2009as Self - Guest Judge

Weeds

2005as Tiffany

Crush

2022Producer

Russian Doll

2019as Nadia Vulvokov

New Girl

2011as Gretchen

DC League of Super-Pets

2022as Merton (voice)

Uncut Gems

2019as Boston Player Personnel (voice)

Conan

2010as Self

Documentary Now!

2015as Carla Meola

Night Visions

2001as Bethany Daniels (segment "If a Tree Falls...")

But I'm a Cheerleader

1999as Megan

Pee-wee's Playhouse

1986as Opal

The Fantastic Four: First Steps

2025as Rachel Rozman

An Almost Christmas Story

2024as Pat (voice)

Glass Onion

2022as Natasha Lyonne

John Mulaney & The Sack Lunch Bunch

2019as Natasha Lyonne

Honey Boy

2019as Mom

The $100,000 Pyramid

as Self

Mae West: Dirty Blonde

2020as Self

Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens

2020as Woman in Hair Salon

Portlandia

2011as Carrie's Friend #2

Loving Leah

2009as Esther

Will & Grace

1998as Gillian

Saturday Night Live

1975as Self - Cameo (uncredited)

His Three Daughters

2023as Rachel

The Knights of Prosperity

2007

Grounded for Life

2001as Gretchen

Detroit Rock City

1999as Christine

The Second Best Hospital in the Galaxy

2024as Nurse Tup (voice)

Loot

2022Executive Producer

Roommates

2026as Hannah

Have a Good Trip

2020as Self

Ballmastrz: 9009

2018as Gaz Digzy (voice)

The Grey Zone

2001as Rosa

American Pie

1999as Jessica

The United States vs. Billie Holiday

2021as Tallulah Bankhead