Holly Hunter, born on March 20, 1958, is a critically acclaimed American actress who has had a versatile career spanning over four decades on the silver screen. Her talent was recognized early on and she made her film debut in the 1981 slasher movie The Burning. She shot to fame after her performance as Ada McGrath in the 1993 drama film The Piano, which won her the Academy Award for Best Actress. Besides, she has three more Academy Award nominations under her belt for her outstanding performances in Broadcast News (1987), The Firm (1993), and Thirteen (2003). Adding to her decorated career are two Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series or Movie for the television films Roe vs. Wade (1989) and The Positively True Adventures of the Alleged Texas Cheerleader-Murdering Mom (1993).

In addition to these accolades, Hunter has also proved her prowess in a range of other film roles such as Raising Arizona (1987), Always (1989), Miss Firecracker (1989), Home for the Holidays (1995), O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000), and The Incredibles (2004) and its sequel Incredibles 2 (2018) among others. Born and raised in Conyers, Georgia, Hunter's journey to stardom has not been devoid of adversities. She is unable to hear with her left ear due to a childhood case of the mumps, which sometimes leads to complications at work, and some movie scenes have to be altered from the script for her to use her right ear.