Sarah Jessica Parker, popularly referred to as SJP, is an American actress, film producer, fashion designer, and philanthropist. SJP is one of Hollywood’s most popular and successful actresses and is known for working with several charities. Born on March 25, 1965, in Nelsonville, Ohio, SJP is one of the industry’s child actors.
Although not famously recognized for her work as a child and teen actor, Sarah Jessica Parker is more popularly known for her role in HBO’s TV series Sex and the City. The award-winning actress played Carrie Bradshaw, a character she’ll reprise in two spin-off movies. For lovers and admirers of her acting performances, here are 10 things you didn’t know about Sarah Jessica Parker.
1. The TV Shows You Know Sarah Jessica Parker From
Reprising her role as Sarah Sanderson in the 2022 Hocus Pocus sequel, movie audiences of the 90s will easily recognize Sarah Jessica Parker from her role in the first movie. SJP’s character is the youngest of the three witches. In the 80s, SJP played the lead role of Janey Glenn in the romantic comedy movie Girls Just Want to Have Fun.
Most movie viewers recognize Sarah Jessica Parker from the TV series Sex and the City. Her character Carrie Bradshaw was the series’ main protagonist and narrator. SJP played the character and appeared in all 6 seasons and 94 episodes of the show from 1998–2004. She reprised her role in the 2008 and 2010 film adaptations.
2. How Sarah Jessica Parker Got Into Acting
SJP has always loved the arts. Her mother often took Parker and her siblings to public theaters and ballet institutions. At quite a young age, SJP was introduced to singing and ballet. By age 8, Parker made appearances in plays. One such production was the Municipal Theatre’s The Sound of Music, where she and four of her siblings appeared in the play.
3. Sarah Jessica Parker’s Early Acting Career
At age 9, Sarah Jessica Parker made her TV debut in the TV film The Little Match Girl (1974) as The Little Match Girl. Parker is also credited with playing Flora in 12 The Innocents (1976) performances at the Morocco Theatre, New York. In 1977, she landed a small role as July in Uris Theatre’s Annie. However, she soon replaced Andrea McArdle in the role of Annie. She reprised the role until 1980. In 1980, Parker was on 3 episodes of Samuel Y. Gibbon Jr.’s science educational TV show 3-2-1 Contact as Annie. In 1982, she played Katy in the TV movie My Body, My Child before landing a lead role as Patty Greene in 20 episodes of the CBS sitcom Square Pegs.
4. Sarah Jessica Parker’s Film Debut
Sarah Jessica Parker made her film debut almost a decade after her professional acting career began. She landed a role as Lori Anderson in the 1983 Somewhere Tomorrow. The next year, she played Rusty in the Box Office hit Footloose. The movie earned $80 million domestically from a production budget of $8.2 million. In 1984, she played Lisa alongside Robert Downey Jr. in Michael Apted’s drama film, Firstborn.
5. The Nominations & Awards Sarah Jessica Parker Has Received
With the kind of reputation Sarah Jessica Parker has in Hollywood, it’s no surprise the actress has received several accolades from top award associations. Parker has been nominated nine times at the Golden Globes, winning four, ten times at the Primetime Emmy Awards with two wins to her name, and nine nominations at the SAG Awards, winning two. However, Parker is yet to receive a nomination and win an Academy Award.
6. Sarah Jessica Parker Has Produced Works For Film and Television
Parker owns and runs her film production company, Pretty Matches. Parker co-founded the company in 2005 with Alison Benson. Pretty Matches produced one of HBO’s comedy-drama series, Divorce. The series aired on HBO from October 9, 2016, to August 5, 2019. In 2018, her company produced the romantic drama Here and Now, with Parker playing the lead role with Simon Baker.
As an established producer, Parker has produced several works in film and television. She produced 16 episodes of Sex and the City, co-produced 18, and was the executive producer of 28 episodes. Her most recent work as a producer is with HBO Max’s comedy-drama And Just Like That….
7. Sarah Jessica Parker Has Dated Career Co-workers
In the 80s, Parker was romantically involved with Robert Downey Jr. The couple dated for about seven years before separating in 1991. Parkers briefly dated John F. Kennedy Jr., son of President John F. Kennedy. On May 19, 1997, Sarah Jessica Parker married actor Matthew Broderick. The couple has been together since then and had their first child and son, James, in October 2002. In June 2009, the couple had twin daughters, Marion and Tabitha, through surrogacy.
8. Other Movies Sarah Jessica Parker Has Starred In
Besides Sex and the City and Hocus Pocus, Parker has appeared in over 30 films. In the 90s, Parker appeared in movies like L.A. Story (1991), Ed Wood (1994), and The First Wives Club (1996). In the 2000s, she did The Family Stone (2005), Smart People (2008), and Did You Hear About the Morgans? (2009). She also appeared in New Year’s Eve (2011), and All Roads Lead to Rome (2016).
9. Sarah Jessica Parker’s Siblings Are Also Actors
Parker has three siblings and four half-siblings from her mother’s second marriage to Paul Forste. Her older brother Timothy Britten Parker is an American actor. Most of his works are in theater, and he made his Broadway debut in 1976. Three of Parker’s half-siblings also have careers in the film industry. Aaron D. Forste is an assistant film director, Megan Forste works in the industry’s camera and electrical department, and Allegra Forste was a singing double in the 1989 children musical Creating Rem Lezar.
10. Other TV Shows Sarah Jessica Parker Was In
Before playing Carrie Bradshaw, Parker had played the main cast on a few other series. She was Patty Greene in Square Pegs (1982–1983), Kay Erickson in A Year in the Life (1987–1988), and Jo Ann Harris in Equal Justice (1990–1991). She hosted the 1994 “Sarah Jessica Parker/R.E.M.” episode of Saturday Night Live. Sarah Jessica Parker was also on 3 episodes of Glee from 2012 to 2013, playing the character of Isabelle Wright.
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