Teri Hatcher Bio
Teri Lynn Hatcher (born December 8, 1964) is an American actress whose career has spanned television, film, voice acting, and writing. She is best known for her portrayal of Lois Lane on the television series Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman (1993–1997). She is also widely recognized for playing Susan Mayer on the ABC series Desperate Housewives (2004–2012), Paris Carver in the James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies (1997), and dual roles in the stop-motion film Coraline (2009).
Across her career, Hatcher has worked as an actress, singer, author, director, and former NFL cheerleader. Her Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy, three Screen Actors Guild Awards, and Primetime Emmy nomination mark her as one of the most acclaimed television performers of her generation.
Early Life and Background
Teri Lynn Hatcher was born on December 8, 1964, in Palo Alto, California. She is the only child of Esther Beshur, a computer programmer who worked for Lockheed Martin, and Owen Walker Hatcher Jr., a nuclear physicist and electrical engineer. Her father is of English, Irish, and Scottish ancestry, while her mother is of half Syrian and half Frisian ancestry.
Hatcher grew up in Sunnyvale, California, where she took ballet lessons at the San Juan School of Dance in nearby Los Altos. At De Anza College, she studied mathematics and engineering before choosing to pursue the performing arts. She later trained in acting at the American Conservatory Theater, a respected drama school that helped shape her approach to the craft.
Path to Celebrity
Before breaking into Hollywood, Hatcher worked in 1984 as an NFL cheerleader for the San Francisco 49ers. The following year she moved into television, joining the cast of The Love Boat (1985–1986) as one of the Mermaid showgirls, where she handled short comedic lines and dance routines.
From 1986 to 1989, she appeared in six episodes of the television series MacGyver as the talkative Penny Parker opposite Richard Dean Anderson. She also picked up guest roles on Night Court, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Quantum Leap, and L.A. Law. In 1989, she made her motion picture debut with a small part in The Big Picture, starring Kevin Bacon, and followed it with the big-budget action-comedy Tango & Cash, alongside Sylvester Stallone and Kurt Russell.
Teri Hatcher Career
Early Career (1985–1992)
Between 1985 and 1992, Hatcher built a steady résumé of television guest spots and supporting film parts. After The Love Boat, she became familiar to genre audiences through MacGyver and appeared in Star Trek: The Next Generation’s episode “The Outrageous Okona.” In 1991, she co-starred with Robert Loggia in the short-lived CBS comedy Sunday Dinner, created by Norman Lear.
She also acted in the 1991 television crime movie Dead in the Water and was featured as Michael Bolton’s love interest in the 1991 music video for the song “Missing You Now.” In 1992, Hatcher auditioned for the lead role of Jamie Buchman on Mad About You and reached the final two before losing the part to Helen Hunt.
Breakthrough (1993–1997)
Hatcher landed a starring role in the ABC television series Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman (1993–1997) as the Daily Planet reporter Lois Lane, opposite Dean Cain as Superman and Clark Kent. The series turned her into a household name and remains her signature television role.
Her guest appearance on a 1993 episode of Seinfeld, in which her character Sidra delivers the line “they’re real, and they’re spectacular,” became one of the show’s most quoted moments, and she returned for brief scenes in later episodes. In 1997, she was cast as Paris Carver in the James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies, having won the part over Monica Bellucci. She was voted the world’s sexiest woman by readers of FHM magazine in 1997, hosted Saturday Night Live in 1996, and co-wrote an episode of Lois & Clark in its third season.
Commercial Success with Desperate Housewives (2004–2012)
Hatcher starred as Susan Mayer on ABC’s Desperate Housewives (2004–2012), beating four other actresses for the role. Her performance earned her the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy in January 2005 and a Screen Actors Guild Award in the same category. In July 2005, she received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series, alongside co-stars Marcia Cross and Felicity Huffman.
By April 2006, she was reported to be earning $285,000 per episode, placing her among the highest paid television actresses in the United States. In May 2006, she released her first book, Burnt Toast: And Other Philosophies of Life, and performed on the charity album Unexpected Dreams – Songs From the Stars. In 2009, she voiced both the Other Mother and Coraline’s mother Mel Jones in the critically acclaimed stop-motion film Coraline.
Notable Works and Milestones
Hatcher’s signature roles include Lois Lane in Lois & Clark (1993–1997), Paris Carver in Tomorrow Never Dies (1997), Susan Mayer in Desperate Housewives (2004–2012), and the dual roles of Mel Jones and the Beldam in Coraline (2009). Her career-defining moments include her Golden Globe win, her SAG Award wins, and her widely discussed 1993 Seinfeld guest appearance.
Teri Hatcher Award Nominations
Teri Hatcher has received several major award nominations across her career, including a Primetime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series in 2005 for her work on Desperate Housewives. She has also earned additional Golden Globe, People’s Choice, and Screen Actors Guild nominations in leading and ensemble categories for her television work.
Teri Hatcher Awards Won
Teri Hatcher won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy in January 2005 for her performance as Susan Mayer on Desperate Housewives. She also received three Screen Actors Guild Awards, including one for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series and two as part of the Best Ensemble cast. She has additionally won Food Network’s celebrity edition of Chopped and the “Stand Up to Cancer” celebrity episode of The Great British Bake Off in 2018.
Teri Hatcher Family
Hatcher was born to Esther Beshur, a computer programmer who worked for Lockheed Martin, and Owen Walker Hatcher Jr., a nuclear physicist and electrical engineer. She is an only child. Hatcher has one daughter, Emerson, born in 1997, with her second husband, the actor Jon Tenney.
Personal Life
Hatcher married Marcus Leithold, of Butler, Pennsylvania, on June 4, 1988; they divorced the following year. On May 27, 1994, she married the actor Jon Tenney, and the couple had a daughter, Emerson, in 1997. They divorced in March 2003. In 2007, Hatcher began writing a column for Glamour magazine, expanding her voice as an author beyond acting.