Before age eight, moved frequently with family, before settling in Pennsylvania

Stage acting debut in "Winterset: Four New American Plays" at Yale Repertory Theater

Moved to NYC, initially sharing a Bronx apartment with friend and fellow Yale graduate Holly Hunter

First professional stage role, "Trinidad" written by Jamaican poet Derek Walcott

New York stage debut, Tina Howe's "Painting Churches"

Film acting debut, "Blood Simple"; first collaboration with the Coen brothers

Credited as Fran McDormand for Sam Raimi's "Crimewave"

TV-movie acting debut, "Scandal Sheet" (ABC)

Co-starred in the CBS series, "Leg Work"

Re-teamed with the Coen brothers for "Raising Arizona"; starred former roommate Holly Hunter

Won substantial acclaim and a Best Supporting Oscar nomination for her turn in "Mississippi Burning"

Earned a Tony nomination for her turn as Stella Kowalski in a Broadway revival of "A Streetcar Named Desire"

Co-starred in Ken Loach's controversial political thriller "Hidden Agenda"

Reteamed with Raimi on "Darkman"

Appeared uncredited in a bit part as a secretary in the Coens' "Miller's Crossing"

Played Pfeni, the youngest of three sisters, in the original Broadway production of "The Sisters Rosenzweig"

Had featured role as Tim Robbins' girlfriend in Robert Altman's "Short Cuts"

Portrayed Patricia Arquette's sister in John Boorman's "Beyond Rangoon"

Acted in Tommy Lee Jones' critically-acclaimed writing-directing debut, "The Good Old Boys" (TNT)

Earned critical praise for her performance as the pregnant police chief in the Coen brothers' "Fargo"

Delivered a gem of a turn as Gus, a tough mechanic, in HBO's acclaimed "Hidden in America"

Cast as a German doctor forced into an internment camp with other European women in Bruce Beresford's "Paradise Road"

Starred as Blanche Du Bois in an Irish production of "A Streetcar Named Desire"

Portrayed Miss Clavell in "Madeline" the adaptation of a children's book series written by Ludwig Bemelmans

Returned to the New York stage co-starring with Billy Crudup in an Off-Broadway production of "Oedipus"

Co-starred as Michael Douglas' lover, a college chancellor, in "Wonder Boys"

Protrayed an eccentric, overprotective mother in Cameron Crowe's "Almost Famous"; received a Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination

Played a straying spouse in the Coen brothers' modern noir "The Man Who Wasn't There"

Co-starred in the drama "Laurel Canyon"; received an Independent Spirit Award nomination for best supporting female

Returned to the NYC stage opposite Willem Dafoe in "To You, the Birdie!"

Played Diane Keaton's sister in Nancy Meyers' "Something's Gotta Give"

Co-starred with Charlize Theron in "North Country" a fictionalized account of the first successful sexual harassment case in the US; earned Oscar, Golden Globe and SAG nominations for Best Supporting Actress

Re-teamed with Charlize Theron for the feature adaptation of MTV's cartoon "Aeon Flux"

Co-starred with Joan Cusack, Jennifer Aniston and Catherine Keener in director Nicole Holofcener's "Friends with Money"

Played the title role in "Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day"

Joined an ensemble cast for the Coen's brothers' "Burn After Reading"

Nominated for the 2008 Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy ("Burn After Reading")