Lily Gladstone bio, parents, partner, height, awards, ethnicity, age 2025

Biography of Lily Gladstone

Lily Gladstone is an American actress of Native American descent, who built her career primarily through independent films. For her role as ranch owner Jamie in the film "Certain Women" (2016), she earned an Independent Spirit Award nomination and won several other film honors.

In early 2024, she made history as the first Native American actress to win a Golden Globe. The award came for her role as Molly Burkhart in Martin Scorsese's drama "Killers of the Flower Moon." She was also nominated for an Oscar for the same role.

Childhood, Youth, Family

Lily was born in the summer of 1986 in the small American town of Kalispell, Montana. Their backyard looked out over the sprawling Glacier National Park in the Rocky Mountains. Her father worked in radio, while her mother was a preschool education specialist.

Lily's mother's side traces back to Dutch and Cajun roots, and she is related to the former British Prime Minister William Gladstone. Her father's side connects her to the Blackfoot and Nez Perce tribes.

Lily Gladstone in childhood with her father

Lily's entrance into the world was nothing short of dramatic. Her parents lived on the Blackfoot Indian Reservation near Browning. When Lily's mother went into labor early in the morning, no local doctor was available to perform the necessary cesarean section. They called in a helicopter to rush her to a hospital 100 kilometers away for emergency surgery.

Growing up, Lily faced bullying from classmates who made fun of how she looked. However, family relationships were wonderful:

...My mother is the foundation of our family, and my father is one of the most brilliant men I know – a gentle giant. I lived on the reservation until I was 11, then we moved due to a lack of economic opportunities.

Looking back on her childhood, Lily remembered being "an energetic and proactive child, often laughed at – just a plump mixed girl from the reservation with too much creative energy and not enough outlets." She has mixed memories of her hometown Browning:

There's poverty, violence, substance abuse, and unemployment everywhere. But there's so much love in this community. What brings people together there is the love for family, love for the land.

Her grandfather and father were both movie buffs who recorded films on videotape, giving Lily access to the best releases. At five years old, after watching "Star Wars: Return of the Jedi," Lily announced to her parents that she wanted to become an Ewok and fight anyone who dared harm those furry creatures.

Her father gently explained that Ewoks weren't real – they were just actors in costumes. That's when little Lily declared she'd become an actress instead, since she couldn't actually be a furry Endor resident. Her parents supported this aspiration and were delighted when their daughter performed on stage in school productions.

Gladstone graduated high school in Mountlake Terrace, a Seattle suburb. There, she began acting in the youth theater company Stone Soup plays. In 2008, she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Montana, where she studied directing and acting, as well as the culture of Native American peoples.

In 2009, Gladstone joined the touring theater group Living Voices. In 2017, Lily was part of the acting company at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, and three years later, she took part in a Yale Repertory Theatre production of Mary Kathryn Nagle's opera "Manahatta."

Film Career

In 2012, Lily stepped onto a film set for the first time. She made her debut in "Jimmy P: Psychotherapy of a Plains Indian," a drama about a Blackfoot World War II veteran played by Benicio Del Toro.

The budding actress then played Marlene in the drama "Winter in the Blood" alongside Chaske Spencer. She appeared with Nicholas Turturro in the detective movie "Subterranea" and landed a small role as Roxanne in the hit TV series "Billions."

Gladstone's breakthrough came playing ranch owner Jamie in Kelly Reichardt's 2016 film "Certain Women." She was nominated for Gotham and Independent Spirit awards and won the Los Angeles Film Critics Association and Boston Society of Film Critics awards for Best Supporting Actress. Rolling Stone described her performance as "so piercingly honest and aching that it's almost unbearable to watch."

In the following years, Lily appeared in TV series like "Room 104" and "Reservation Dogs," and took on small roles in low-budget films such as "Walking Out," "Freeland," "Two Eyes," and "First Cow."

By 2020, the actress was looking for another profession. She wanted seasonal work tracking murder hornets for the Department of Agriculture and had already submitted her resume, but then, amid the pandemic lockdown, she was invited to audition via Zoom. Martin Scorsese himself was searching for an actress for the lead role in "Killers of the Flower Moon."

Killers of the Flower Moon — Official Trailer

Leonardo DiCaprio later revealed the secret behind her casting, praising Gladstone as a co-star:

Lily is simply amazing in this film. She carries the entire movie and the whole story. Scorsese immediately realized she was right for the role, thanks to the truthfulness he saw in her eyes on the computer screen. There was no audition. Marty just instinctively knew that Lily was the one. ... I've never seen Scorsese meet someone and immediately feel such a pull and instinct to say, 'Let's not waste another minute.'

The drama tells the story of the FBI's investigation into a series of murders of Osage Indians in the early 1920s, with Robert De Niro, Jesse Plemons, and Cara Jade Myers also starring. The original screenplay was substantially rewritten so that Gladstone's character (the real-life Molly Kyle Burkhart) was given much more prominence.

Lily Gladstone in 'Killers of the Flower Moon'

While preparing for their roles, Lily and Leonardo reviewed numerous surviving documents. The actress, mindful of her roots, shared in an interview:

...I feel that I can never truly understand or bring to life what it meant to be an Osage woman at that time, because it's unimaginable what this community had to face, and it's horrifying how they were erased... We sat and looked at these court transcripts on very fragile old paper... I was so moved and clearly understood that this role for me is a responsibility to the community that was completely erased from its own history.

Lily Gladstone's Personal Life

The actress keeps her personal life firmly out of the spotlight. What we do know is that the talented Native American actress remains unmarried and doesn't have children. Right now, Lily's completely focused on her career, and all signs point to a bright Hollywood future. Based on her recent projects, that prediction looks spot-on.

On red carpets, Gladstone consistently chooses pieces from local designers, often paired with Native-inspired jewelry.

The actress has a dog named Birdie, whose photos she loves sharing on social media.

Lily Gladstone Now

Lily Gladstone's powerhouse performance as Mollie in "Killers of the Flower Moon" catapulted her to new heights. Early 2024 brought her a Golden Globe win for Best Actress, plus an Oscar nomination in the same category.

Gladstone then went on to work in the crime series "Under the Bridge," based on the non-fiction book of the same name by Rebecca Godfrey. Riley Keough landed the lead, while Lily plays Cam Bentland, one of the few women of color on Victoria's police force in Canada.

Her next intriguing project is the sci-fi drama "Memory Police," produced by Martin Scorsese and directed by Reed Morano, where Lily takes on a central role. Getting ahead of fan questions, the actress explained in an interview:

Charlie Kaufman is adapting the novel by Japanese author Yoko Ogawa. It's sci-fi, but in that distinctly Kaufman way we know from his other films. The story unfolds in the subconscious, exploring themes of memory and authoritarianism. It's universal – a story that could happen anywhere. Anyone from a culture or community that's faced systematic erasure of identity, memories, language, or heritage will connect with what I'm talking about.

Interesting Facts

After wrapping "Killers of the Flower Moon," Leonardo DiCaprio became a genuine fan of his co-star. He's repeatedly praised her incredible talent and called working with her one of the best experiences of his career. DiCaprio has also praised Lily's dedicated work with nonprofits addressing Native American community issues.

At the 2024 Golden Globe ceremony, Gladstone gave her acceptance speech in Blackfoot and dedicated the award to her parents and tribe.

The premiere of "Killers of the Flower Moon" took place at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2023. The nearly ten-minute standing ovation left Gladstone visibly moved by such a heartfelt reception. The actress recommends reading both the film's source book and Charles Red Corn's novel "Pipe for February," which is set in the same era and influenced elements of the movie.