Irene Bedard
Irene Bedard (born July 22, 1967) is an American actress, who has played many Native American characters in a variety of films. She is perhaps best known for the role of Suzy Song in the 1998 film Smoke Signals, an adaptation from a Sherman Alexie collection of short stories, as well as for providing the speaking voice and being the physical model for the title character in the 1995 animated film Pocahontas.
Irene Bedard | |
|---|---|
 Bedard at a powwow in Livingston, Texas, June 2007. | |
| Born | July 22, 1967 Anchorage, Alaska, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1994–present |
| Spouse(s) | Deni Wilson
( m. 1993; div. 2012) |
| Children | 1 |
In 2012, she started "Sleeping Lady Films" and "Waking Giants Productions" with Canadian businessman Thom Denomme. The production companies, based out of Anchorage and Santa Fe, New Mexico, are dedicated to bringing stories that are both positive and inspirational from Indian Country to the world.
Early life and career
Bedard was born in Anchorage, Alaska, and is of Inuit and Cree ancestry.[1] Her first role was as Mary Crow Dog in the 1994 television production, Lakota Woman: Siege at Wounded Knee, which depicted the 1970s standoff between the US government and citizens of several Native nations, including many of the Pine Ridge Reservation, at Wounded Knee, South Dakota. She is probably best known as the voice of the eponymous heroine in the 1995 Disney animated film Pocahontas and its direct-to-video 1998 sequel Pocahontas II: Journey to a New World. Bedard was also the physical model for the character. She appeared in a different take of the story in Terence Malick's 2005 film The New World, as Pocahontas's mother, Nonoma Winanuske Matatiske.
Bedard graduated from A.J. Dimond High School in Anchorage, Alaska in 1985. Bedard attended The University of the Arts in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania where she studied Musical Theatre. In 2005, she was cast in the television mini-series Into the West as Margaret "Light Shines" Wheeler.[2] In the 2017 music video for "Family Feud" (a song by Jay-Z), she plays a Co-President of the United States in the future.[3][4]
She was chosen in 1995 as one of People magazine's '50 Most Beautiful People'.[1]
Personal life
Bedard married singer Deni Wilson in 1993. They have a son, Quinn Wilson, born in 2003. In November 2010, it was revealed that Bedard was being sexually and physically abused by Wilson throughout their marriage, taking her earnings and forbidding her to work in her career field unless he specifically approved the project, according to her niece Alia Davis. The couple eventually divorced in 2012.[5]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Squanto: A Warrior's Tale | Nakooma | |
| 1995 | Pocahontas | Pocahontas (voice) | |
| 1996 | Navajo Blues | Audrey Wyako | |
| 1997 | Song of Hiawatha | Minnehaha | |
| Det store flip | Oglala | AKA, Wild Flowers | |
| 1998 | 6/29 | Laura Cooper | |
| Naturally Native | Tanya Lewis | ||
| Smoke Signals | Suzy Song | ||
| Pocahontas II: Journey to a New World | Pocahontas (voice) | Direct-to-video | |
| 12 Bucks | Babe | ||
| 1999 | Wildflowers | Ruby | |
| 2000 | Pussykat | ||
| 2001 | Your Guardian | Katherine 'Kat' Damon | |
| 2003 | Paris | Sandy | |
| Greasewood Flat | Abbey | ||
| Edge of America | Annie Shorty | TV movie | |
| 2005 | Planting Melvin | Billie Lawrence | |
| Miracle at Sage Creek | Sunny | ||
| Love's Long Journey | Miriam Red Hawk McClain | TV movie | |
| The New World | Pocahontas's Mother (Nonoma) | ||
| 2007 | Cosmic Radio | K.C. | |
| Tortilla Heaven | Liberata | ||
| The Red Chalk | Eve | ||
| 2008 | Turok: Son of Stone | Catori (voice) | Direct-to-video |
| 2011 | The Tree of Life | Messenger | |
| Timberwolf | Eleni | Pre-Production | |
| 2013 | Vertical | Lucy Mills | |
| 2014 | Ron and Laura Take Back America | Mrs. Alma | |
| 2015 | Songs My Brothers Taught Me | Lisa Winters | |
| 2017 | Spreading Darkness | Marci Gippolin | |
| 2018 | Family Feud | Co-President of the United States | Music video |
| Ralph Breaks the Internet | Pocahontas (voice) | ||
| 2019 | The Bygone | Mrs. Call | |
| 2019 | The Harbinger | Floating Hawk | post-production |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Lakota Woman: Siege at Wounded Knee | Mary Crow Dog | TV movie |
| 1995 | The Marshal | Melissa Carey | Episode: "Twoslip" |
| 1996 | Grand Avenue | Reyna | TV movies |
| Crazy Horse | Black Buffalo Woman | ||
| Adventures from the Book of Virtues | Morning Light and Sharp Eyes / Chief's Daughter (voice) | Episodes: "Honesty" and "Perseverance" | |
| The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest | Alice Starseer (voice) | Episodes: "Return of the Anasazi"; "Trouble on the Colorado" | |
| 1997 | Profiler | Maddy Duvall | Episode: "The Sorcerer's Apprentice" |
| True Women | Tobe | TV movie | |
| 1998 | Two for Texas | Sana | TV movie |
| 1999 | Blood Money | Naomi Lister | TV movie |
| 1999–2001 | Roughnecks: The Starship Troopers Chronicles | General Miriam Redwing (voice) | 4 episodes |
| 2000 | The Lost Child | Grace | TV movie |
| 2001 | The Outer Limits | Callie Whitehorse Landau | Episode: "In the Blood" |
| The Agency | Diah Siagian | Episode: "The Year of Living Dangerously" | |
| House of Mouse | Pocahontas (voice) | Episode: "Thanks to Minnie" | |
| 2004 | What's New, Scooby-Doo? | Cody Long (voice) | Episode: "New Mexico, Old Monster" |
| 2005 | Higglytown Heroes | Forest Ranger Hero (voice) | Episode: "Fran Takes a Hike/Mystery at Kip's House" |
| Into the West | Margaret Light Shines | Episodes: "Hell on Wheels"; "Casualties of War"; "Ghost Dance" | |
| 2008–2009 | The Spectacular Spider-Man | Jean DeWolff (voice) | 4 episodes |
| 2012 | Young Justice: Invasion | Shelly Longshadow (voice) | 1 episode |
| 2012-2015 | Longmire | May Stillwater | 3 episodes |
| 2017 | The Mist | Kimi Lucero | 9 episodes |
| 2018 | Westworld | Wichapi | Episode: "Kiksuya" |
| 2020 | FBI: Most Wanted | Mary Lou Skye | 2 episodes |
Video games
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Animated Storybook: Pocahontas | Pocahontas |
Awards and nominations
| Year | Award | Category | Film | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Golden Globe | Best Performance by an Actress in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for TV | Lakota Woman: Siege at Wounded Knee | Nominated |
| Western Heritage Awards | Bronze Wrangler - Television Feature Film | Won | ||
| 1999 | Two for Texas | Won | ||
| 2004 | American Indian LA Film and TV Awards | Best Lead Actress in a Feature Film | Greasewood Flat | Won |
| 2006 | NAMIC Vision Awards | Best Dramatic Performance | Into the West | Won |
| Western Heritage Awards | Bronze Wrangler - Television Feature Film | Won | ||
References
- "Irene Bedard". PEOPLE.com. May 8, 1995.
- Alvin H. Marill (11 October 2010). Movies Made for Television: 2005-2009. Scarecrow Press. p. 48. ISBN 978-0-8108-7659-0.
- Meagan Fredette. "Celebrities in Jay Z Family Feud Video Recap". Refinery29.com. Retrieved 2018-01-08.
- Shannon Carlin. "Who Plays Female President Jay-Z "Family Feud" Native". Refinery29.com. Retrieved 2018-01-08.
- "Irene Bedard Abused". Newspaper Rock. Retrieved 2015-02-28.
External links
- Irene Bedard Biography at who2.com
- Irene Bedard on IMDb
- Irene Bedard at AllMovie
Authority control  |
|
|---|