---
name: "Madeleine Stowe"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/madeleine-stowe"
fi1m_id: "madeleine-stowe"
imdb_id: "nm0000656"
tmdb_id: 289
wikidata_id: "Q209098"
roles: ["Actor"]
born: "18 August 1958"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 5
average_fi1m_score: 75
average_as: "actor"
average_over: 5
updated: "2026-10-04T20:04:20.012751+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Madeleine Stowe

## Identity

Madeleine Stowe

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/madeleine-stowe
- **Type:** Person
- **Fi1m ID:** madeleine-stowe
- **IMDb ID:** nm0000656
- **TMDB ID:** 289
- **Wikidata ID:** Q209098
- **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madeleine_Stowe, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q209098, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000656/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/289

Actor. Born 18 August 1958 in Los Angeles, California, USA.

## Details

- **Work:** Actor
- **Born:** 18 August 1958, Los Angeles, California, USA
- **Active:** 1987–present
- **Also known as:** Μαντλίν Στόου, Madeleine Marie Stowe Mora, مادلین استو, Мэделин Стоу
- **Average Fi1m score:** 75, as actor, over 5 titles
- **Fi1m score by decade:** 1980s 70 (1), 1990s 83 (3), 2020s 56 (1)
- **Fi1m against the critics:** 75 to 67 across 5 titles
- **Score spread:** 3 at 80+, 1 at 60–79, 1 under 60
- **Lead roles:** 2 of 4 acting credits billed first or second
- **Genres:** Drama 3, Comedy 2, Mystery 2, Action 1, Crime 1, History 1
- **Screen time:** 9 hours of reviewed films
- **Box office:** $316m across 4 films with figures
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madeleine_Stowe, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q209098, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000656/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/289

## Streaming the US now

- **Amazon Prime Video:** [*Stakeout*](https://film.one/film/stakeout.md) (70)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Fi1m on Madeleine Stowe

> Madeleine Stowe is especially valuable when a thriller needs someone who can think clearly and still look vulnerable. We rate her directness: it keeps the people worth watching when the film around them grows fussy.

In *Twelve Monkeys* (1995), Madeleine Stowe gives Dr Kathryn Railly a directness that is easy to miss until the surrounding performances grow louder. Brad Pitt's Jeffrey Goines supplies more agitation than the film can always use, while Stowe keeps an exchange worth following for what is being said. We rate that steadiness highly. Terry Gilliam's restless film gives her plenty to compete with, but the quieter performance is often the one that helps us stay interested in the people.

Her feature breakthrough came with *Stakeout* (1987), before the run of leading film parts in the early 1990s. Cora Munro in *The Last of the Mohicans* (1992) brought period drama; Sherri Shepard in *Short Cuts* (1993) placed her within an ensemble. The recurring casting is as intelligent, resilient women who give the audience someone to care about or trust. Stowe's expressive eyes allow vulnerability to remain visible alongside that strength. Those qualities are useful in genre films, where a capable character can too easily become someone who merely explains the plot.

In *Twelve Monkeys*, her work alongside Bruce Willis lets the characters' helplessness matter as much as the mechanics of time travel. We found the film unexpectedly moving because their quieter performances kept that distress clear amid the complications. Paul Buckmaster's score helps them, holding the unease without insisting on itself as much as the images do. There are limits to what this can repair: the script is overextended, and Gilliam sometimes makes following it harder than necessary. Stowe remains valuable through those stretches, but we would not pretend her presence makes them disappear.

Her workload reduced after 1996, and a later prominent television role was Victoria Grayson, the lead antagonist in *Revenge* (2011–2015). That part offers a different job from supplying a thriller's emotional or moral centre. It is worth keeping that distinction in mind before treating steadiness as the only thing she can do. Start with *Twelve Monkeys*, and do not let the commotion distract from what she is doing.

## Biography

Madeleine Stowe is an American actress. Born on 18 August 1958 in Los Angeles, California, she studied cinema and journalism at the University of Southern California and took up acting at the Solaris Theater in Beverly Hills. She began her career with television appearances in the late 1970s before her film breakthrough in *Stakeout* (1987).

Stowe is known for her roles as Cora in *The Last of the Mohicans* (1992), Sherri Shepard in *Short Cuts* (1993) and Dr Kathryn Railly in *Twelve Monkeys* (1995). For her performance in *Short Cuts* she received the National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress. Other film credits include *The General's Daughter* (1999) and *We Were Soldiers* (2002). She starred as Victoria Grayson in the television series *Revenge* (2011–2015). She is married to actor Brian Benben.

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, imdb.com, themoviedb.org.*

## On Fi1m (5)

- *I Will Find You* (2026), Fi1m 56, as Gertrude Payne — [page](https://film.one/tv/i-will-find-you.md)
- *Twelve Monkeys* (1995), Fi1m 82, as Dr. Kathryn Railly — [page](https://film.one/film/twelve-monkeys.md)
- *Short Cuts* (1993), Fi1m 84, as Sherri Shepard — [page](https://film.one/film/short-cuts.md)
- *The Last of the Mohicans* (1992), Fi1m 84, as Cora — [page](https://film.one/film/the-last-of-the-mohicans.md)
- *Stakeout* (1987), Fi1m 70, as Maria McGuire — [page](https://film.one/film/stakeout.md)

## Complete filmography (42)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *I Will Find You* (2026), series, as Gertrude Payne — Fi1m 56, [page](https://film.one/tv/i-will-find-you.md)
- *IT: Welcome to Derry* (2025), series, as Ingrid Kersh
- *Soundtrack* (2019), series, as Margot Weston
- *12 Monkeys* (2015), series, as Lillian
- *Revenge* (2011), series, as Victoria Grayson
- *The Christmas Hope* (2009), as Patricia Addison
- *Raines* (2007), series, as Dr. Samantha Kohl
- *Southern Comfort* (2006), as Charlotte
- *Saving Milly* (2005), as Milly
- *Octane* (2003), as Senga Wilson
- *Avenging Angelo* (2002), as Jennifer Barrett Allieghieri
- *We Were Soldiers* (2002), as Julie Moore
- *The Magnificent Ambersons* (2002), as Isabel Amberson Minafer
- *Impostor* (2001), as Maya Olham
- *The General's Daughter* (1999), as Warrant Officer Sarah Sunhill
- *Playing by Heart* (1998), as Gracie
- *The Proposition* (1998), as Eleanor Barret
- *Twelve Monkeys* (1995), as Dr. Kathryn Railly — Fi1m 82, [page](https://film.one/film/twelve-monkeys.md)
- *Bad Girls* (1994), as Cody Zamora
- *China Moon* (1994), as Rachel Munro
- *Short Cuts* (1993), as Sherri Shepard — Fi1m 84, [page](https://film.one/film/short-cuts.md)
- *Blink* (1993), as Emma Brody
- *Another Stakeout* (1993), as Maria McGuire (uncredited)
- *The Last of the Mohicans* (1992), as Cora — Fi1m 84, [page](https://film.one/film/the-last-of-the-mohicans.md)
- *Unlawful Entry* (1992), as Karen Carr
- *Closet Land* (1991), as Victim
- *The Two Jakes* (1990), as Lillian Bodine
- *Revenge* (1990), as Miryea
- *Worth Winning* (1989), as Veronica Briskow
- *Tropical Snow* (1988), as Marina
- *Stakeout* (1987), as Maria McGuire — Fi1m 70, [page](https://film.one/film/stakeout.md)
- *Blood & Orchids* (1986), series, as Hester Ashley Murdoch
- *Amazons* (1984), as Dr. Sharon Fields
- *Gangster Wars* (1981), as Ruth Lasker
- *The Gangster Chronicles* (1981), series, as Ruth Lasker
- *Beulah Land* (1980), series, as Selma Kendrick Davis
- *Trapper John, M.D.* (1979), series, Actor
- *The Deerslayer* (1978), as Hetty Hutter
- *The Nativity* (1978), as Mary
- *The Amazing Spider-Man* (1978), series, as Maria Calderon
- *Baretta* (1975), series, Actor
- *Little House on the Prairie* (1974), series, as Annie Crane

## Gallery

- ![Thank you Toronto! An impressive 1.5 million dollars was raised at the sixth annual Bovet 1822 and Artists for Peace and Justice 2014 Festival Gala held at Casa](https://film.one/media/person/81606/gallery-22b7d5b34951.jpg) Thank you Toronto! An impressive 1.5 million dollars was raised at the sixth annual Bovet 1822 and Artists for Peace and Justice 2014 Festival Gala held at Casa — Artists for Peace and Justice, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4b/Madeleine_Stowe_and_Father_Rick_Frechette_at_APJfest14.jpg/1280px-Madeleine_Stowe_and_Father_Rick_Frechette_at_APJfest14.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![1.5 million raised for children in Haiti! (2014)](https://film.one/media/person/81606/gallery-ec0bdaa2136b.jpg) 1.5 million raised for children in Haiti! (2014) — Artists for Peace and Justice, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/44/Madeleine_Stowe_and_Father_Rick_Frechette_at_Artists_for_Peace_and_Justice_2014_Festival_Gala.jpg/1280px-Madeleine_Stowe_and_Father_Rick_Frechette_at_Artists_for_Peace_and_Justice_2014_Festival_Gala.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Thank you Toronto! An impressive 1.5 million dollars was raised at the sixth annual Bovet 1822 and Artists for Peace and Justice 2014 Festival Gala held at Casa](https://film.one/media/person/81606/gallery-20fba68bb302.jpg) Thank you Toronto! An impressive 1.5 million dollars was raised at the sixth annual Bovet 1822 and Artists for Peace and Justice 2014 Festival Gala held at Casa — Artists for Peace and Justice, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/38/Madeleine_Stowe_at_APJfest14_%28cropped%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled)
- ![Madeleine Stowe](https://film.one/media/person/81606/gallery-328f3a78c030.jpg) Madeleine Stowe — Artists for Peace and Justice, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b2/Madeleine_Stowe_at_Artists_for_Peace_and_Justice_2014_Festival_Gala_%28cropped%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled)
- ![Madeleine Stowe](https://film.one/media/person/81606/gallery-f6551ef9d700.jpg) Madeleine Stowe — Image via TMDB
- ![Madeleine Stowe](https://film.one/media/person/81606/gallery-daca16577aa7.jpg) Madeleine Stowe — Image via TMDB
- ![Madeleine Stowe](https://film.one/media/person/81606/gallery-961dfcbe0cdd.jpg) Madeleine Stowe — Image via TMDB
- ![American actress Madeleine Stowe in Haiti (2011)](https://film.one/media/person/81606/gallery-8dfe51ca8652.jpg) American actress Madeleine Stowe in Haiti (2011) — Madeleine Stowe, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a6/Madeleine_Stowe_in_Haiti.jpg/1280px-Madeleine_Stowe_in_Haiti.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Madeleine Stowe](https://film.one/media/person/81606/gallery-c649da784969.jpg) Madeleine Stowe — Image via TMDB
- ![Madeleine Stowe](https://film.one/media/person/81606/gallery-7e5496a5ab4e.jpg) Madeleine Stowe — Image via TMDB
- ![Madeleine Stowe](https://film.one/media/person/81606/gallery-7d5077496cdf.jpg) Madeleine Stowe — Image via TMDB

## Awards

### Other awards — 1 won

- National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress 1993: National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress (won), for *Short Cuts*

*From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.*

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/madeleine-stowe