Amy Wright is an American actress and former model. She has appeared in such films as ''

The Deer Hunter ''The Deer Hunter'' is a 1978 American epic war drama film co-written and directed by Michael Cimino about a trio of Slavic-American steelworkers whose lives are upended by fighting in the Vietnam War. The soldiers are played by Robert De Niro ...

'', ''

Breaking Away ''Breaking Away'' is a 1979 American coming of age comedy-drama film produced and directed by Peter Yates and written by Steve Tesich. It follows a group of four male teenagers in Bloomington, Indiana, who have recently graduated from high sch ...

'', '' The Accidental Tourist'', ''

Hard Promises ''Hard Promises'' is the fourth studio album by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers released on May 5, 1981, on Backstreet Records. History Its working title was ''Benmont's Revenge'', referring to keyboard player Benmont Tench. The album feature ...

'', ''

Crossing Delancey ''Crossing Delancey'' is a 1988 American romantic comedy film adapted by Susan Sandler from her play of the same name, and directed by Joan Micklin Silver. It stars Amy Irving and Peter Riegert. The film also features performances from Reiz ...

'', and ''

Miss Firecracker ''Miss Firecracker'' is a 1989 American comedy film directed by Thomas Schlamme. It stars Holly Hunter, Mary Steenburgen, Tim Robbins, Alfre Woodard, and Scott Glenn. The film, set in Yazoo City, Mississippi, was written by Pulitzer Prize-w ...

''. She is the widow of actor

Rip Torn Elmore Rual "Rip" Torn Jr. (February 6, 1931 – July 9, 2019) was an American actor whose career spanned roughly 60 years. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for playing Marsh Turner in '' Cross Creek'' (1983). Tor ...

Early years

Born in Chicago, Wright is a graduate of

Beloit College Beloit College is a private liberal arts college in Beloit, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1846 when Wisconsin was still a territory, it is the state's oldest continuously operated college. It has an enrollment of roughly 1,000 undergradua ...

. Her father was a professor of psychology at the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...

. She developed an interest in acting when she was in high school. Encouragement from a teacher at an acting workshop led her to appear in school plays, and she majored in theater arts at Beloit. After that, she taught high school in

Stockbridge, Massachusetts Stockbridge is a town in Berkshire County in Western Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts, Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 2,018 at the 2020 census. A year-round resort area, Stockbridg ...

. During that time she acted in summer stock theater.

Career

Wright acted in summer-stock productions in Rockford, Illinois, before going to New York, where she studied acting with

Uta Hagen Uta Thyra Hagen (12 June 1919 – 14 January 2004) was a German-American actress and theatre practitioner. She originated the role of Martha in the 1962 Broadway premiere of '' Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?'' by Edward Albee, who called her "a ...

. She starred with

Eric Schweig Eric Schweig (born Ray Dean Thrasher; 19 June 1967) is a Canadian Inuvialuk actor best known for his role as Chingachgook's son Uncas in ''The Last of the Mohicans'' (1992). Early life Schweig was born in Inuvik, Northwest Territories. He is ...

in ''

The Scarlet Letter ''The Scarlet Letter: A Romance'' is a historical novel by American author Nathaniel Hawthorne, published in 1850. Set in the Puritan Massachusetts Bay Colony during the years 1642 to 1649, the novel tells the story of Hester Prynne, who concei ...

'' and ''

Tom and Huck ''Tom and Huck'' is a 1995 American adventure comedy-drama film based on Mark Twain's 1876 novel ''The Adventures of Tom Sawyer'', and starring Jonathan Taylor Thomas, Brad Renfro, Mike McShane, Eric Schweig, and Amy Wright. The film was d ...

'' (both made in 1995). She produced a Netflix series called ''The Next Step''. Wright starred in the original production of ''

Breakfast with Les and Bess ''Breakfast with Les and Bess'' was an off-Broadway play written by Lee Kalcheim that originally premiered at Hudson Guild Theatre in October 1982 before transferring to Lamb's Theatre in May 1983. Plot synopsis It follows a radio celebrity coup ...

'' as Shelby. Wright also appeared on Broadway in the original productions of ''

Fifth of July Fifth of July may refer to: Dates * July 5 * Independence Day (Venezuela) * Fifth of July (New York) Other uses * ''Fifth of July'' (play) by Lanford Wilson * '' The Fifth of July'', album by Watershed {{disambiguation, date ...

'' and ''

Noises Off ''Noises Off'' is a 1982 farce by the English playwright Michael Frayn. Frayn conceived the idea in 1970 while watching from the wings a performance of '' The Two of Us'', a farce that he had written for Lynn Redgrave. He said, "It was funni ...

''. Wright currently is on the faculty of

HB Studio The HB Studio (Herbert Berghof Studio) is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization offering professional training in the performing arts through classes, workshops, free lectures, theater productions, theater rentals, a theater artist residency prog ...

in New York City.

Personal life

Wright was married to actor

when he died in 2019, and the couple had two daughters, Katie and Claire Torn.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* Actresses from Chicago American film actresses Living people Beloit College alumni University of Chicago Laboratory Schools alumni 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American actresses Year of birth missing (living people) {{US-film-actor-1950s-stub