Laura Linney

Laura Linney, a 2008 Best Actress nominee for "The Savages," arrives at the Academy Awards Nominees Luncheon in Beverly Hills, Calif., Monday, Feb. 4, 2008. Linney was born in New York into a theater family. Her father is the playwright Romulus Linney. Thus she embarked on a career on the Broadway stage.

Laura Linney in "The Savages" — Fox Searchlight/Andrew Schwartz

Laura Linney in a scene from "The Savages." Linney's film career began in the early 1990s with small roles in Lorenzo's Oil (1992) and Dave (1993). Linney's first substantial big-screen role was in Primal Fear (1996) opposite Richard Gere. Clint Eastwood chose Linney to play his daughter in 1997's Absolute Power (1997), followed by another second billing in the following year's The Truman Show (1998).

Actress Laura Linney arrives for the premiere of "The Savages" in New York, on Monday, Nov. 19, 2007. A strong performer, Linney truly came into her own after 2000, starting the decade auspiciously with her widely-praised performance in "You Can Count on Me." She found herself nominated for an Academy Award for this, her first lead role, for which her salary had been $10,000.

Actress Laura Linney arrives at the premiere of "The Savages" at Odeon Leicester Square during the BFI 51st London Film Festival on Oct. 29, 2007, in London.

Laura Linney poses for a photograph with co-star Sean Penn as they arrive for the premiere of the film "Mystic River" in New York, Friday, Oct. 3, 2003. Linney has frequently been offered challenging dramatic roles, and always rises to the occasion, such as in Mystic River (2003), in which she worked again with Clint Eastwood, and Kinsey (2004), for which she received another Academy Award nomination.

Actress Laura Linney gets out of a car during the filming of the movie "The Savages" in Buffalo, N.Y., Thursday, March 30, 2006. Although her career now focuses on movies, she continues to appear on the Broadway stage on occasion.

Actress Laura Linney holds a dog carrier during the filming of the movie "The Savages" in Buffalo, N.Y., Thursday, March. 30, 2006.

Laura Linney, arrives for the 63rd Annual Golden Globe Awards on Monday, Jan. 16, 2006, in Beverly Hills, Calif. She was nominated for best actress in a musical or comedy for her work in "The Squid and the Whale."

Laura Linney and Mark Ruffalo pose for photographers after announcing nominations for the Independent Spirit Awards Tuesday, Nov. 29, 2005, in Beverly Hills, Calif.

Actress Laura Linney arrives at Lincoln Center in New York for the premiere of the film "The Squid and the Whale" on Monday, Sept. 26, 2005. Directed by Noah Baumbach, the film stars Linney and actor Jeff Daniels.

Actress Laura Linney accepts her Icon award at the 12th Annual Premiere Women in Hollywood event in Beverly Hills, Calif., Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2005. The evening honored women singled out by Premiere magazine for their achievements in the film industry.

Actress Laura Linney attends the photocall for the film "The Exorcism of Emily Rose" on the second day of the 62nd Venice Film Festival on Sept. 1, 2005, in Venice, Italy.

Actress Laura Linney arrives at the 20th IFP Independent Spirit Awards on Saturday, Feb. 26, 2005, in Santa Monica, Calif.

Laura Linney arrives for the 77th Academy Awards Sunday, Feb. 27, 2005, in Los Angeles. Linney was nominated for an Oscar for best actress in a supporting role for her work in "Kinsey."

Actress Laura Linney arrives for the premiere of her movie "p.s." Tuesday, Oct.12, 2004, in New York.

Laura Linney smiles as she and actor Liam Neeson, left, listen to a question during a news conference for the movie "Kinsey" at the Toronto Film Festival Monday, Sept. 13, 2004, in Toronto.

"Mystic River" director Clint Eastwood, center, poses with cast members Laura Linney, left, and Sean Penn, right, backstage at the 56th Annual Directors Guild Awards at the Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles, Saturday, Feb. 7, 2004.

Actress Laura Linney arrives at the European premiere of her film "Love Actually" in London's Leicester Square, Sunday, Nov. 16, 2003.

Actress Laura Linney during a press conference for her film "The Life of David Gale" at the 53rd Berlinale Film Festival in Berlin, Germany, on Friday, Feb. 7, 2003.

Holland Taylor, Jim Carrey and Laura Linney in a scene from "The Truman Show."