Ellen Burstyn was born to her parents, John Austin Gillooly, and Correine Marie Hamel.

She grew up with her mother and stepfather, following her parents’ divorce at a young age.

Butstyn’s parents are of Irish, French, Pennsylvania Dutch, and Canadian Indian heritage.

Who Is Ellen Burstyn?

Ellen Burstyn is an actress known for portraying the lead character, Chris MacNeil, in the 1971 horror film “The Exorcist.”

Born on December 7, 1932, in Detroit, Michigan, United States, Burstyn began her acting career in the 1950s, and afterwards went on to gain fame with the films The Last Picture Show” (1971), and “Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore” (1974).

Other films she has appeared include “Same Time, Next Year” (1978), “Resurrection” (1980), and “Requiem for a Dream” (2000), for which she received an Academy Award nomination for the fifth time.

On television, Burstyn appeared on the series “The Ellen Burstyn Show” from 1986 to 1987, “Pack of Lies”, “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” and “Big Love.”

In theater, Burstyn performed in various Broadway productions, including “84 Charing Cross Road”, “Same Time, Next Year,” and “Long Day’s Journey Into Night.”

In 2021, she played Bernadette Stabler in Law & Order: Organized Crime, and Sara Roosevelt in the series The First Lady. In the same year, Burstyn “reprised her role as Chris MacNeil in the trilogy of sequels to The Exorcist.”

Burstyn has received numerous accolades including an Academy Award, a Tony Award, and two Primetime Emmy Awards.