Lily Gladstone

Latest News: Lily Gladstone Makes History with 2024 Emmy Nomination

Lily Gladstone has achieved a significant milestone with her recent nomination for the 2024 Emmy Awards, marking her as one of the first Indigenous women to be recognized in an acting category. The 38-year-old actress is set to learn whether she will add another trophy to her collection at the 76th Emmy Awards ceremony on September 15, where she will be both a nominee and a presenter.

Gladstone received her nomination for her compelling portrayal of Officer Cam Bentland in the Hulu true-crime series Under the Bridge, which focuses on the tragic case of Canadian teenager Reena Virk. She is competing for the award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series, Movie, or Anthology, in a highly competitive category that includes fellow Indigenous actor Kali Reis. This marks a historic moment, as Gladstone and Reis are the first Indigenous performers to receive acting nominations at the Emmys since August Schellenberg’s nomination for his role in HBO’s Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee in 2007.

Under the Bridge follows Gladstone’s acclaimed performance in another true-crime drama, Killers of the Flower Moon. This series is particularly noteworthy as it features Gladstone in the role of a police officer, a departure from her previous avoidance of the Native cop archetype. In an interview with Variety, Gladstone expressed her comfort in taking on this role, explaining that the character’s arc—which culminates in Cam leaving the force and shedding her “cop persona”—was essential to her decision to accept the part. “That’s kind of the exclusive way that I was going to play a cop: a cop who eventually ditches the badge,” she remarked. Gladstone further elaborated on the complexity of the Indigenous woman cop character, highlighting the inherent contradiction of wanting to protect one’s community while recognizing the potential for being mobilized against one’s own people.

Who Is Lily Gladstone?

Lily Gladstone is an acclaimed American actor of Blackfeet and Nimíipuu heritage, recognized for her compelling performances in both film and television. She gained significant attention for her role in the 2023 Martin Scorsese film Killers of the Flower Moon, portraying an Osage woman navigating life on an Oklahoma reservation during a harrowing series of murders in the 1920s. This performance is widely regarded as Gladstone’s breakthrough in mainstream cinema, earning her nominations for prestigious awards, including an Academy Award and a Golden Globe, the latter of which she won.

Prior to this standout role, Gladstone appeared in a variety of independent films and television series, notably including Reservation Dogs. Her portrayal in the 2016 film Certain Women garnered critical acclaim and earned her a nomination for an Independent Spirit Award, along with several other accolades. Additionally, she received a nomination for her performance in the Hulu series Under the Bridge at the 2024 Emmy Awards.

Early Life

Born on August 2, 1986, and raised in Browning, Montana, Lily Gladstone was immersed in a culturally rich environment. Her father, a broadcast journalist, is of Blackfeet and Nimíipuu descent, while her mother, an early childhood education specialist, is of European ancestry. Until the age of 11, Gladstone lived on the Blackfeet Nation reservation, experiencing firsthand the complexities of life in a community marked by both challenges and deep familial bonds. Reflecting on her upbringing, she noted, “There is poverty, violence, substance abuse, and unemployment everywhere. But there is so much love in that community. What unites people there is a love of family, a love of land.”

Gladstone describes herself as “an energetic and performative kid” who often faced teasing for being “the chubby mixed girl on the rez who had a little too much creative energy and not enough outlets.” Her passion for storytelling was nurtured by her father and grandfather, who were avid film enthusiasts. After moving from Browning in search of better economic opportunities, she graduated from high school in a suburb of Seattle before attending the University of Montana. There, she focused on acting and theater, earning a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree with a minor in Native American Studies in 2008. During her college years, she showcased her talent in productions with the Montana Repertory Theatre, where director Greg Johnson praised her as “absolutely a transcendent actress” and a standout among her peers.

Gladstone has carried forward a significant piece of advice from her time at university: “Keep yourself interested and invested in the world, and you will stay an interesting performer. As soon as you disconnect from the human experience, you’ll be flat.” This philosophy continues to guide her work and artistic choices.

Theater Work and Movies

From 2009 to 2013, Lily Gladstone showcased her talent with Living Voices, an educational touring theater company dedicated to presenting narratives surrounding marginalized histories. Her film career commenced with a noteworthy debut in Jimmy P: Psychotherapy of a Plains Indian (2012), a poignant portrayal of a Blackfeet World War II veteran, played by Benicio Del Toro.

Following her debut, Gladstone starred in Winter in the Blood (2013), a hallucinatory exploration of life in a small Montana town through the eyes of a Native American man. She referred to this project as a “labor of love” for the people of Montana, emphasizing its reliance on local community involvement and the deep connection many had to the source material. Her filmography further expanded with a role in Buster’s Mal Heart (2016).

Gladstone received widespread acclaim for her performance as a rancher in Certain Women (2016), directed by Kelly Reichardt. Sharing the screen with esteemed actors Michelle Williams, Laura Dern, and Kristen Stewart, her performance was heralded as a significant breakthrough. Critics from The Guardian noted it as her “big break,” while Rolling Stone praised her for delivering a performance imbued with “piercing honesty and yearning.” This role earned her numerous accolades, including the Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award and the Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress, along with a nomination for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Female.

In 2017, Gladstone continued her theatrical journey with a performance at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival and contributed to a Native American youth theater program, Red Eagle Soaring. Her television credits include appearances in HBO’s Room 104 (2017-2020), Showtime’s Billions (2019-2023), and FX’s Reservation Dogs (2022). She also collaborated with Reichardt again in the independent film First Cow (2019) and performed in a production of Mary Kathryn Nagle’s Manahatta at Yale Repertory Theatre in 2020.

Historic Oscar Nomination for Killers of the Flower Moon

In August 2020, amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Gladstone contemplated shifting her career path, even considering seasonal work with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. However, her fortunes changed when she received a Zoom invitation from renowned filmmaker Martin Scorsese, who had been impressed by her performance in Certain Women. This connection ultimately led to her casting in Killers of the Flower Moon, which premiered in October 2023.

Adapted from David Grann’s nonfiction work, Killers of the Flower Moon recounts a series of murders on the Osage Nation Reservation in Oklahoma during the 1920s. Gladstone takes on the role of Mollie Kyle Burkhart, based on a real Osage woman whose family suffers tragic losses. To authentically portray Burkhart, Gladstone dedicated months to her research, engaging with Burkhart’s granddaughter and attending numerous meetings with Osage leaders to grasp the community’s legacy. “I consider it a true gift and great responsibility to be trusted with Mollie Burkhart and will hold her preciously with both arms, close to my heart,” Gladstone remarked, emphasizing her gratitude to the Osage Nation for the opportunity to share their story.

Scorsese commented on Gladstone’s unique presence, noting, “I could see that she trusted in simplicity. She understood her own onscreen presence as an expressive instrument that could speak for itself.” Her co-star, Leonardo DiCaprio, further highlighted her significant influence on the cast, referring to her as a source of guidance in storytelling.

Killers of the Flower Moon has been recognized as Gladstone’s mainstream breakout role. Town & Country reported that she garnered the most significant Oscar buzz from the 2023 Cannes Film Festival, while Deadline referred to her as the “real star” of the film, despite sharing the screen with acclaimed actors such as DiCaprio and Robert De Niro. Making history, Gladstone became the first Native American nominee for Actress in a Leading Role at the Academy Awards, though she ultimately lost to Emma Stone for Poor Things. Expressing her sentiments about the nomination, she stated, “It belongs to so many people: the Osage Nation, the Blackfeet Nation, the Nez Perce Nation, every Indigenous actor whose shoulders I stand on. I just know that I’m not going to be the last, not by a long shot.”

Her performance led to historic achievements at the 2024 Golden Globes and Screen Actors Guild Awards, where she became the first Indigenous actress to win Best Actress in a Drama Motion Picture and Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role, respectively.

Under the Bridge and Newer Movies

Following the success of Killers of the Flower Moon, Gladstone transitioned to another true crime project for television. She starred alongside Riley Keough in Under the Bridge, a Hulu limited series that premiered in April 2024, based on the tragic true story of Reena Virk, a 14-year-old Canadian girl murdered by her friends. Gladstone portrays Cam Bentland, one of the few women of color on the police force in Victoria, British Columbia, as Keough’s character investigates the case as a journalist.

Her performance in Under the Bridge earned her a historic Emmy nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series, making her one of the first Indigenous women to receive such recognition. In June 2024, she starred in the Gladstone-led drama Fancy Dance, which was released on Apple TV+ after its debut at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. In this film, she plays Jax, a woman caring for her niece following her sister’s mysterious disappearance.

Gladstone also reprised her role in a sequel to 2022’s The Unknown Country, in which she plays Tana, a woman journeying across the United States while grappling with grief. The sequel features Jazzy, an Oglala Lakota girl portrayed by Jasmine Bearkiller-Shangreaux, with whom Tana previously shared scenes in The Unknown Country. The new film premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in June, though plans for a wider release have yet to be announced.

In addition, Gladstone is set to star in the upcoming sci-fi film The Memory Police and a remake of Ang Lee’s 1993 romantic comedy, The Wedding Banquet, alongside Bowen Yang.

Personal Life

Lily Gladstone often chooses to wear clothing and jewelry designed by Native artists during her red-carpet appearances. She shares her life with a dog named Birdy, who frequently features in her social media posts.

Identifying with she/they pronouns, Gladstone has articulated the influence of her Indigenous heritage on her identity. Reflecting on her childhood, she recalled, “I remember being 9 years old and just being a little disheartened seeing how often a lot of my boy cousins were misgendered because they wore their hair long. I remember back then being like, everybody should just be they. In most Native languages, most Indigenous languages, Blackfeet included, there are no gendered pronouns. There is no he/she, there’s only they.”