Gillian Anderson

Gillian Anderson was born in Chicago, Illinois on August 9, 1968. She is the daughter of Edward Anderson and computer analyst, Rosemary Anderson. Gillian’s family moved to Puerto Rico after her birth and lived there for 15 months. Soon, her family decided to move in London, England where she pursued her studies and started her acting career. She was interested in marine biology, but decided to engage in acting performances when she was a freshman in high school. She also attended in community theaters and served as a student intern at the School of Theater Arts and Grand Rapid Civic Theater.

When she was 22, she moved to New York where she began her career at the Manhattan Theater Club, where she starred in the play “Absent Friends,” by Alan Ayckbourn. She won the 1990-1991 Theater World “Newcomer” award for her performance in the play. Her award made her famous and her acting career flooded with offers from different theaters.

In 1992, Anderson went to Los Angeles, California to further pursue auditioning. She had vowed never to work in TV, but that vow had changed as she lost work for almost a year. That was the time when she broke into the TV mainstream and appeared in several collegiate dramas in 1993.

At 24, she received the script for the television series “The X Files.” This big break in her career was the result of her several guest appearances in “Class of 96.” She accepted a very special role in “The X Files” and won several awards in from 1998 to 2008. Among these awards are the Golden Globe and Emmy Awards.  She also won “Best Actress in a Drama Series” awards from Screen Actors Guild Awards.

After “The X Files,” Anderson started working in several film projects and performing in several stage productions. In 2005, Anderson appeared in BBC Television adaption of “Bleak House,” a novel of Charles Dickens. She also worked on several film projects where she was given starring roles. During 2007 and 2008, she appears in two British films, the “Straightheads” and “The Last King of Scotland”.

Aside from acting, Anderson also serves as honorary spokesperson for NF, Inc. and as a patron of UK-based Neurofibromatosis Association. She provides full support to this organization as her brother was diagnosed with the disease. She is also an active member of PETA and seriously supports the animal rights. To date, she is one of the 24 characters of the HBO and Showtime shows in the US.