Rise to Fame
The character of Lily Lebowski on Crossing Jordan didn't exist until an NBC exec spotted her at the Williamstown Theatre Festival. From there, she spent a decade doing exactly what Yale MFA graduates do: sharp supporting work in movies she wasn't leading. Anchorman, Step Brothers, We're the Millers. Good roles, forgettable billing. WandaVision fixed that. Agatha Harkness was supposed to be a side villain, but she stole the show so completely that Disney built her a spinoff. The "Agatha All Along" theme song went viral, won an Emmy, and turned her into someone you now recognize by first name.
In the Spotlight
Four Emmy nominations and no wins, which is either a curse or just how the industry treats character actors who got famous late. Agatha All Along gave her a Marvel franchise to anchor solo, earned her a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress, and spawned a theme song that earned its own Emmy nomination. She's also on The Studio (Apple TV+) and cast as Mother Gothel in the live-action Tangled. The nominations keep coming. The crown keeps going to someone else, and she keeps working like she hasn't noticed.
Side Notes
She auditioned for Pam Beesly in The Office and didn't get it, which is the most consequential casting call she lost. She holds a Yale MFA, which explains the precision in her comic timing and why she spent a decade as the funniest person in movies where someone else got top billing. Despite playing Jewish characters repeatedly in Transparent, Afternoon Delight, and elsewhere, she was raised Catholic in Cleveland Heights, Ohio. Her last name is German for "rooster," which feels about right.