Deborah Rhea Seehorn ( ; born May 12, 1972) is an American actress and director. She is best known for playing
Kim Wexler
Kimberly "Kim" Wexler is a fictional character in the television series ''Better Call Saul'', a spin-off of ''Breaking Bad''. Kim is primarily portrayed by Rhea Seehorn, and was created by Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould. An intelligent and pro ...
in
AMC
AMC may refer to:
Film and television
* AMC Theatres, an American movie theater chain
* AMC Networks, an American entertainment company
** AMC (TV channel)
** AMC+, streaming service
** AMC Networks International, an entertainment company
*** ...
legal crime drama series ''
Better Call Saul
''Better Call Saul'' is an American legal crime drama television series created by Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould for AMC. Part of the ''Breaking Bad'' franchise, it is a spin-off of Gilligan's previous series, ''Breaking Bad'' (2008–201 ...
'' (2015–2022), for which she was nominated for two
Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series at the
74th and
75th Primetime Emmy Awards
The 75th Primetime Emmy Awards honored the best in American prime time television programming from June 1, 2022, until May 31, 2023, as chosen by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. The awards ceremony was held on January 15, 2024, at ...
, along with winning the
Television Critics Association Award for Individual Achievement in Drama. She also received another Emmy nomination for
Outstanding Actress in a Short Form Comedy or Drama Series for her performance in ''Cooper's Bar.''
She is also a two-time winner of the
Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actress – Series, Miniseries or Television Film for her role as Wexler, in addition to receiving three
Screen Actors Guild Award
Screen Actors Guild Awards (also known as SAG Awards) are accolades given by the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA). The award was founded in 1995 to recognize outstanding performances in movie an ...
and three
Critics' Choice Television Award
The Critics' Choice Television Awards were accolades that were presented annually by the Critics Choice Association (CCA). They were established in 2011, and the first ceremony was held on June 20, 2011, and streamed live on VH1.com. The fou ...
nominations.
Early life
Deborah Rhea Seehorn was born in
Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk ( ) is an independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. It had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Virginia, third-most populous city ...
,
on May 12, 1972.
Her mother was an executive assistant for the
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...
, while her father was an agent in the
Naval Investigative Service. She also has a sister. Her family moved frequently during her childhood, living in
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
, and
Arizona
Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...
, as well as in
Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
.
Following in the footsteps of her father and grandmother, she studied painting, drawing, and architecture from a young age.
She continued pursuing the visual arts, but had a growing passion for acting and was introduced to contemporary theater while attending
George Mason University
George Mason University (GMU) is a Public university, public research university in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. Located in Northern Virginia near Washington, D.C., the university is named in honor of George Mason, a Founding Father ...
.
Career

While in college, Seehorn was looking to get into theater after the encouragement of her acting teacher. She worked many ancillary positions in the theater industry in D.C. to try to get noticed. She ended up getting some major roles in local theater productions, but still needed to take odd jobs to help make ends meet; she took roles in various industrial short instructional films.
She soon started getting parts in more television productions, often playing roles that she considered as "very wry, sarcastic, knowing women," similar to her idol
Bea Arthur
Beatrice Arthur (born Bernice Frankel; May 13, 1922 – April 25, 2009) was an American actress, comedienne and singer. She began her career on stage in 1947, attracting critical acclaim before achieving worldwide recognition for her work o ...
.
However, most of these roles were short-run series cancelled after one or two seasons.
Among her early roles was the lead in a pilot for an American version of the Argentine telenovela ''
Lalola'', about a womanizing executive who gets turned female through witchcraft as revenge for his treatment of women, entitled ''Eva Adams'', and was filmed for the Fox network co-starring
James Van Der Beek
James David Van Der Beek (; born March 8, 1977) is an American actor. Known for his portrayal of Dawson Leery on The WB's ''Dawson's Creek'' (1998–2003), he also played a fictionalized version of himself on the cult ABC sitcom '' Don't Trus ...
in 2009. It was envisioned as a dramedy, in the vein of how ''
Yo soy Betty, la fea
''Yo soy Betty, la fea'' (English: I am Betty, the Ugly one), often referred to simply as ''Betty, la fea'', is a Colombian telenovela created by Fernando Gaitán. It aired from 25 October 1999 to 8 May 2001 on RCN. Ana María Orozco stars as ...
'', which was adapted for American audiences as ''
Ugly Betty
''Ugly Betty'' is an American comedy-drama television series developed by Silvio Horta, which aired on American Broadcasting Company, ABC from September 28, 2006, to April 14, 2010. It is based on the Colombian telenovela ''Yo soy Betty, la fea' ...
'', but Lalola wasn't picked up for a regular series.
In May 2014, Seehorn was cast in the ''
Breaking Bad
''Breaking Bad'' is an American crime drama television series created and produced by Vince Gilligan for AMC (TV channel), AMC. Set and filmed in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the series follows Walter White (Breaking Bad), Walter White (Bryan Cran ...
'' spin-off prequel series ''
Better Call Saul
''Better Call Saul'' is an American legal crime drama television series created by Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould for AMC. Part of the ''Breaking Bad'' franchise, it is a spin-off of Gilligan's previous series, ''Breaking Bad'' (2008–201 ...
'' (2015–2022), created by
Vince Gilligan
George Vincent Gilligan Jr. (born February 10, 1967) is an American screenwriter and filmmaker. He is best known as the creator, primary writer, executive producer, and occasional director of the AMC (TV channel), AMC crime drama series ''Brea ...
and
Peter Gould
Peter Gould is an American television writer, director and producer. He worked on all five seasons of the AMC drama ''Breaking Bad'', and was nominated for four Writers Guild of America (WGA) Awards for his work on the series. After ''Breakin ...
.
Seehorn portrays
Kim Wexler
Kimberly "Kim" Wexler is a fictional character in the television series ''Better Call Saul'', a spin-off of ''Breaking Bad''. Kim is primarily portrayed by Rhea Seehorn, and was created by Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould. An intelligent and pro ...
, a lawyer and the love interest of the titular
Jimmy McGill / Saul Goodman (
Bob Odenkirk
Robert John Odenkirk (; born October 22, 1962) is an American actor, screenwriter, comedian, and producer. He started his career as a comedian and comedy writer before expanding his career by acting in dramatic works. His List of awards and no ...
). The series premiered on February 8, 2015. For her role, she has received widespread critical acclaim, winning two
Satellite Awards for Best Supporting Actress – Series, Miniseries or Television Film, one
Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress on Television
The Saturn Awards, Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress on Television is presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films, honoring the work of actresses in science fiction, fantasy, and horror fiction on televis ...
out of two nominations, and one
Television Critics Association Award for Individual Achievement in Drama out of three nominations, also receiving two nominations for the
and two nominations for the
. ''TVLine'' named Seehorn “Performer of the Year” in 2022 for her work on ''Better Call Saul''.
In 2022, Seehorn made her television directorial debut with the fourth episode of ''Better Call Saul''
's
final season ("
Hit and Run
In traffic laws, a hit and run or a hit-and-run is the criminal act of causing a traffic collision and not stopping afterwards. It is considered a supplemental crime in most jurisdictions.
Additional obligation
In many jurisdictions, there ma ...
").
Seehorn will play a starring role in Gilligan's next series after ''Better Call Saul'', which was picked up by
Apple TV+
Apple TV+ is an American subscription over-the-top streaming service owned by Apple. The service launched on November 1, 2019, and it offers a selection of original production film and television series called Apple Originals. The service w ...
for a two-season order in September 2022.'
Seehorn's film credits include roles in the independent features ''Riders'' and ''Floating'', and the independent shorts ''The Pitch'', ''The Gentlemen'', and ''The Case Against Karen''. In 2021, she starred alongside
Amanda Seyfried
Amanda Michelle Seyfried ( ; born December 3, 1985) is an American actress and singer. She began acting at 15, with a recurring role as Lucy Montgomery in the CBS soap opera ''As the World Turns'' (1999–2001). She came to prominence for he ...
in the
horror thriller film
Thriller film, also known as suspense film or suspense thriller, is a broad film genre that evokes excitement and suspense in the audience. The suspense element found in most films' plots is particularly exploited by the filmmaker in this genre. ...
''
Things Heard & Seen
''Things Heard & Seen'' is a 2021 American horror film written and directed by Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini, based on the novel ''All Things Cease to Appear'' by Elizabeth Brundage. It stars Amanda Seyfried and James Norton (actor), J ...
''. Her theater credits include the Broadway production of ''
45 Seconds from Broadway'' as well as roles in ''The World Over'', ''
All My Sons
''All My Sons'' is a three-act play written in 1946 by Arthur Miller. It opened on Broadway at the Coronet Theatre in New York City on January 29, 1947, closed on November 8, 1947, and ran for 328 performances. It was directed by Elia Kazan ...
'', ''
Stop Kiss'', ''
How I Learned to Drive'', ''
Freedomland'', and ''
Marat/Sade
''The Persecution and Assassination of Jean-Paul Marat as Performed by the Inmates of the Asylum of Charenton Under the Direction of the Marquis de Sade'' (), usually shortened to ''Marat/Sade'' (), is a 1963 play by Peter Weiss. The work was firs ...
''.
Personal life

Seehorn got engaged to film producer and real estate agent Graham Larson in 2018. Upon their marriage, she became stepmother to his two sons from an earlier marriage.
She has gone by her middle name Rhea since childhood due to feeling a "disassociation" with the name Debbie from an early age.
Filmography
Film
Television
Other media
Awards and nominations
Notes
References
External links
*
*
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Seehorn, Rhea
1972 births
American film actresses
American television actresses
American women comedians
George Mason University alumni
Living people
Actresses from Norfolk, Virginia
20th-century American actresses
21st-century American actresses
20th-century American comedians
21st-century American comedians
Comedians from Virginia