Biography
British actress Marianne Jean-Baptiste first became known to an international audience through her breakthrough performance in
Mike Leigh's Secrets & Lies (1996). Jean-Baptiste has received Best Supporting Actress Oscar, BAFTA, and Golden Globe nominations for her measured, insightful portrayal of a young woman who is reunited with her biological mother who gave her up for adoption at birth. Jean-Baptiste subsequently began doing steady work in both film and television, appearing in a disparate number of films, including
Noah Baumbach's Mr. Jealousy (1997), the psychological thriller
A Murder of Crows (1998), the independent comedy
How to Make the Cruelest Month (1998), and
Nancy Savoca's
The 24-Hour Woman (1999). The beginning of the next decade founding Jean-Baptiste scoring roles in the thriller
The Cell, the comedy drama
28 Days, and the thriller
Spy Game. In 2002 she took on a role in the
Jerry Bruckheimer produced CBS television series
Without a Trace as FBI agent Vivian Johnson who works in the missing persons division.
In addition to acting, Jean-Baptiste is also a composer. She supplied the music for Leigh's
Career Girls in 1997. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, All Movie Guide