Besides her remarkable success on the big screen, Kate Winslet has also delivered award-winning performances in TV shows. Although most of her accolades and recognition are in film, Winslet’s television credits have risen in the past decades. Interestingly, the English actress launched her screen acting career in television.
Over the years, the Academy Awards winner has received four Primetime Emmy Awards, with two wins. Unlike most English actors, Kate Winslet hasn’t worked much in theater. Her only credit is the 1994 What the Butler Saw play, in which she played Geraldine Barclay. In appreciation for her work on the small screen, here are Kate Winslet’s most outstanding performances in TV shows.
Dark Season
Although it didn’t earn her any major accolades or nominations, a good way to start with Kate Winslet‘s television acting journey is her debut. A then-16-year-old Kate Winslet was cast in her first-ever acting role as Reet. The character, one of the lead supporting characters in the BBC1 science fiction series Dark Season, joined forces with two friends (Marcie and Tom) and a teacher (Miss Maitland) to stop the evil Mr. Eldritch. When Mr. Eldritch arrives at their school and starts distributing free computers to students, the trio of friends discover his sinister intentions and collaborate to stop him. The miniseries comprised six 25-minute episodes, which originally aired from November 14 to December 19, 1991.
Get Back
Kate Winslet landed her first major role in television in the BBC1 British sitcom Get Back. Cast as Eleanor Sweet, Winslet appeared in all 15 episodes of the show across its 2 seasons. Kate Winslet’s character was the daughter of Ray Winstone’s character, Martin Sweet. Set in the early 1990s, Get Back centered around a self-made man, Martin Sweet, who lost his fortune to the recession. Forced to live in penury, Martin and his family move into his father’s council flat. Get Back aired from October 26, 1992, to November 15, 1993.
Mildred Pierce
With a knack for starring in miniseries, Mildred Pierce was Kate Winslet’s second miniseries in her career. Of all Kate Winslet’s roles in TV shows, Mildred Pierce was where she first played a lead role in television. Cast as the title character, the then-35-year-old Winslet co-starred alongside Guy Pearce, Melissa Leo, and Evan Rachel Wood. The miniseries was based on and adapted from James M. Cain’s 1941 psychological drama novel of the same name.
Kate Winslet’s performance did not go without recognition, as she was nominated for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series or Movie at the Primetime Emmy Awards. The nomination was Winslet’s first Primetime Emmy Awards win. Kate Winslet beat Taraji P. Henson (for Taken from Me: The Tiffany Rubin Story), Diane Lane (for Cinema Verite), Jean Marsh (for Upstairs Downstairs), and Elizabeth McGovern (for Downton Abbey) to clinch the win.
Mare of Easttown
The HBO miniseries Mare of Easttown is one of Kate Winslet’s most popular and most successful TV shows in her career. For a younger generation of television audiences, Mare of Easttown is Winslet’s first recognized television role. In the crime drama, Kate Winslet plays the titular character, Marianne “Mare” Sheehan. Winslet’s character is a Detective Sergeant in the fictional suburb of Easttown, Philadelphia. Pressed to prove her worth in her little hometown, Mare must solve the murder of a young girl and the disappearance of another. The 7-episode miniseries follows Winslet’s character’s ability to balance her detective duties with her troubled personal life.
Mare of Easttown aired on HBO from April 18 to May 30, 2021. The show received 16 nominations at the 73rd Primetime Emmy Awards. Of its 16 nominations, Kate Winslet received a nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series or Movie. Also, as one of its executive producers, Winslet was also nominated for Outstanding Limited Series. Although she lost the latter, Kate Winslet received her second Primetime Emmy Award for her performance as Mare Sheehan. Also nominated in her category were Michaela Coel (for I May Destroy You), Cynthia Erivo (for Genius: Aretha), Elizabeth Olsen (for WandaVision), and Anya Taylor-Joy (for The Queen’s Gambit).
The Regime
With Kate Winslet’s recent focus on TV shows, Winslet leads the cast of the HBO political satire miniseries The Regime. This is Winslet’s third cast lead miniseries with HBO. Released on March 3, 2024, Kate Winslet’s performance has already received tremendous praise and commendation. With her last two Primetime Emmy Awards nominations and wins from an HBO miniseries, television audiences hope the actress is on a clear path to a third win. Kate Winslet plays the authoritarian and increasingly paranoid Chancellor Elena “Lenny” Vernham of a Central European autocratic Nation. If you’re a fan of Kate Winslet‘s TV shows and her performances, check out the five best crying scenes of Kate Winslet’s acting career.
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