Sarah Jessica Parker is an American actress and TV producer born on March 25, 1965. She’s won six Golden Globe Awards and two Primetime Emmy Awards. Time magazine even named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2022.
You might know her best as Carrie Bradshaw from the show Sex and the City which aired from 1998 to 2004. She nailed that role, winning two Primetime Emmy Awards, four Golden Globe Awards, and three Screen Actors Guild Awards. Carrie became super famous and is now considered one of the best female characters on American TV. Sarah later played Carrie again in the movies Sex and the City (2008) and Sex and the City 2 (2010), and in the new series And Just Like That… (2021).
Sarah’s acting career started early. She was on Broadway when she was just 11, in a show called The Innocents in 1976. Then, in 1979, she starred in Annie. Her first big movie roles were in Footloose and Firstborn in 1984. She’s been in lots of other movies too, like L.A. Story (1991), Honeymoon in Vegas (1992), Hocus Pocus (1993), The First Wives Club (1996), The Family Stone (2005), Failure to Launch (2006), Did You Hear About the Morgans? (2009), New Year’s Eve (2011), and Hocus Pocus 2 (2022).
In 2012, Sarah Jessica Parker came back to TV with a role on Glee, playing Isabelle Wright. Then, from 2016 to 2019, she starred in Divorce on HBO as Frances Dufresne, which got her a Golden Globe nomination. Since 2005, she’s been running her own production company called Pretty Matches, making shows and movies for HBO and other networks.
| Full Name | Sarah Jessica Parker |
| Date of Birth | March 25, 1965 |
| Place of Birth | Nelsonville, Ohio, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actress, Television Producer |
| Height | 5 ft 2 in (1.6 m) |
| Spouse | Matthew Broderick (married 1997) |
| Children | 3 |
| Net Worth | $200 million |
Sarah Jessica Parker’s Early Life and Education
Sarah Jessica Parker was born in Nelsonville, Ohio. Her mom, Barbara ran a nursery school, and her dad, Stephen was an entrepreneur and journalist. She’s got a big family with seven siblings, including actors Timothy Britten Parker and Pippin Parker. When she was small, her parents split and her mom married Paul Forste who worked as a truck driver and account executive.
Stephen’s family is Jewish, originally from Eastern Europe, with the surname “Bar-Kahn.” Barbara is of German descent. Sarah says she feels culturally Jewish, like her dad, even though she wasn’t raised religiously.
Money was tight in Sarah’s family. Sometimes they couldn’t pay the electric bill, or they had to skip holidays and birthdays. But Sarah says she wouldn’t change a thing. Her mom made sure they still experienced the culture, taking them to free events like ballet and theater in Cincinnati.
Sarah got into singing and ballet when she was young. She even scored a role in a Broadway play called The Innocents. Her family moved around a lot for her career, first to Cincinnati, then to Dobbs Ferry, New York, and later to Roosevelt Island, near Manhattan. Eventually, they settled in Englewood, New Jersey, where Sarah went to high school.
She studied at various schools for her passions, like the School of American Ballet in NYC, the New York Professional Children’s School, the School for Creative and Performing Arts in Cincinnati, and Hollywood High School in Los Angeles.
Sarah Jessica Parker’s Rise: From Broadway to Hollywood Stardom
Sarah Jessica Parker and her four siblings performed in The Sound of Music at a theater in St. Louis when she was younger. Later, she got a part in the Broadway musical Annie, first as a minor character named “July,” and then as the lead role, replacing other actors. She held this lead role for about a year.
Then, in 1982, she got a big role in a TV show called Square Pegs, where she played a shy teenager. Critics liked her performance, even though the show only lasted one season. Over the next few years, she acted in a few movies, like Footloose and Girls Just Want to Have Fun.
In 1991, she was in a romantic comedy called L.A. Story, playing the role of a goofy aspiring model who meets a weatherman on TV. Both the movie and her acting got good reviews. She also starred in Honeymoon in Vegas in 1992, and in Hocus Pocus in 1993, where she played one of three witches. Honeymoon in Vegas did well at the box office, while Hocus Pocus didn’t do as great initially but became popular later on.
In 1993, she acted in Striking Distance as a police diver, and in 1994, she was in Ed Wood, a movie about the life of a filmmaker. She played the girlfriend of the main character. In 1995, she starred in Miami Rhapsody, a romantic comedy, and also acted in a play called Sylvia.
She appeared in another movie by Tim Burton in 1996, called Mars Attacks, where she played a talk show host who ends up with a dog’s head. She was also in The First Wives Club, a comedy about divorced women seeking revenge on their ex-husbands. This movie did well at the box office and became popular with older women. In the same year, she was in The Substance of Fire, where she played a role she had done on stage before.
Sarah Jessica Parker: The Iconic Carrie Bradshaw Who Redefined Women’s TV Roles
HBO sent Sarah Jessica Parker the script for Sex and the City. The show is about four women in New York City who are best friends. They’re all different but they stick together through everything, especially their love lives.
Darren Star, who made the show, really wanted Parker to be in it. She wasn’t sure about being in a TV show for a long time, but she said yes. She plays Carrie Bradshaw, who tells the story and is the main character. Each episode is like a peek into Carrie’s thoughts while she writes her column for the New York Star newspaper, also called “Sex and the City.”
People loved Parker’s acting while the show was on and even after it ended. Carrie Bradshaw became famous and is considered one of the best female characters on American TV. In 2009, The Guardian called her an icon of the decade, saying she changed how people think about women’s issues. Parker won lots of awards for her role, including two Emmys, three Screen Actors Guild Awards, and four Golden Globes.
SJP’s Hollywood Journey: From Golden Globe Nods to Box Office Hits and Misses
In 2005, Sarah Jessica Parker starred in The Family Stone alongside Diane Keaton. She played a serious career woman from New York City. Critics praised her performance, saying she nailed her character’s development. The movie did well at the box office, earning over $92 million worldwide, and Parker got a Golden Globe nomination for her role.
Soon after, she appeared in Failure to Launch with Matthew McConaughey. The movie, despite negative reviews, opened at number one in North America, making over $24 million in its first weekend. Parker also produced and starred in Spinning into Butter, an independent drama.
After Sex and the City ended, rumors swirled about a movie, which eventually came out in 2008. Despite mixed reviews, it was a hit, leading to a sequel in 2010. Parker’s next project was Did You Hear About the Morgans? with Hugh Grant. While it did okay at the box office, Parker received a Razzie nomination for her performance.
In 2011, Parker starred in I Don’t Know How She Does It, which critics found uninspired. She also appeared in New Year’s Eve, a star-studded romantic comedy. Both movies earned her Razzie nominations.
Parker made a guest appearance on the TV show Glee in 2012, playing a Vogue executive. Critics praised her performance, saying she brought her trademark charm to the role. In 2013, she lent her voice to an animated film and played Gloria Steinem in deleted scenes of a biographical drama. In 2015, she starred in All Roads Lead to Rome, a romantic comedy set in Italy
Starting in late 2016, Sarah Jessica Parker was both a producer and a lead actor in the HBO show Divorce. She played Frances Dufresne, a woman who cheats on her husband, leading to their divorce. Parker was attracted to the story’s complexity and the challenge of making her character likable despite her flaws. The show lasted for three seasons and was praised by critics. Parker’s performance was especially appreciated, with critics noting her knack for well-timed reactions.
In 2018, Parker starred in and produced the movie Here and Now, where she played a singer in New York City who receives a life-changing medical diagnosis.
In February 2020, Parker and her husband Matthew Broderick performed in a revival of Neil Simon’s Plaza Suite in Boston. They were supposed to take the show to the Hudson Theatre in March 2020, but it was delayed because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
And Just Like That…, the reboot of Sex and the City, was announced by HBO Max in January 2021. The first season premiered on December 9, 2021.
From MTV Fashion Icon to Fragrance Maven – A Fashion Journey
In 2000, Sarah Jessica Parker hosted the MTV Movie Awards and wowed everyone by changing into fourteen different outfits during the show. Since then, she’s become a big deal in the fashion world, working with top brands like Garnier and the Gap.
In 2003, she signed a deal with Garnier to promote their Nutrisse hair products on TV and in ads. Then, in 2004, right after “Sex and the City” ended, she scored a massive $38 million contract with the Gap. Some people thought it was strange for her to work with the Gap because they’re not known for high-fashion stuff, but the ads turned out to be a hit.
But all good things come to an end, and in 2005, her contract with the Gap finished, and they replaced her with the singer Joss Stone. Sarah Jessica Parker then launched her perfume called Lovely, followed by a fashion line called “Bitten” in partnership with Steve & Barry’s, a store known for affordable clothes.
She didn’t stop there—Sarah Jessica Parker released more fragrances and even started her footwear line, the SJP Collection, in 2014. She’s also been a spokesmodel for Jordache Jeans and partnered with Gilt to create a bridal collection for modern brides in 2018.
Sarah Jessica Parker’s Pretty Matches: Empowering Female Voices in Media Since 2005
Sarah Jessica Parker operates her own production company called Pretty Matches, which has been involved in creating content for HBO and various other channels since 2009. The inception of Pretty Matches dates back to 2005, initiated by Parker in collaboration with Alison Benson, after an introduction facilitated by her agent Kevin Huvane.
Notable productions under Parker’s stewardship include the television series Divorce (2016–2019) and the film “Here and Now” (2018). Benson and Parker jointly prioritize the advancement of female representation within the media and production domains through their collaborative endeavors at Pretty Matches.
What is Sarah Jessica Parker’s Net Worth?
Sarah Jessica Parker’s Net Worth is estimated to be $200 Million as of 2024, according to Celebrity Net Worth.
She raked in a whopping $50 million for the first three seasons of her show which breaks down to about $1 million for each episode. Then for the last three seasons, she earned a staggering $147 million averaging about $3.2 million per episode. Altogether that’s around $200 million. Her paychecks put her in the record books as the highest-paid TV actress ever.
Sarah Jessica Parker’s Literary and Wine Ventures: A Timeline
In October 2016, Sarah Jessica Parker revealed a collaboration with Crown Publishing Group, forming SJP for Hogarth. Then, in 2017, she teamed up with the American Library Association (ALA) to launch Book Club Central, an online hub offering reading resources like recommendations and curated book lists for book clubs and readers.
Moving on to 2019, Parker joined forces with New Zealand Winery Invivo & Co to create a line of wines. Together, they produce an annual vintage, including the acclaimed Invivo X, Sarah Jessica Parker Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough, New Zealand, and the Invivo X, Sarah Jessica Parker Rosé from Provence.
From Hollywood Romances to Greenwich Village Bliss
Sarah Jessica Parker had a relationship with actor Robert Downey Jr. from 1984 to 1991. They met while filming Firstborn. Downey struggled with drug addiction, which affected their relationship. Parker once mentioned, “I felt like I was the one keeping him together.” She also briefly dated John F. Kennedy Jr.
Parker tied the knot with actor Matthew Broderick on May 19, 1997, in Manhattan’s Lower East Side. The ceremony was in an Episcopal church and officiated by Broderick’s sister. They were introduced by one of Parker’s brothers at the Naked Angels theater company where they both performed. Their son James was born on October 28, 2002. Later, they had twin daughters, Marion and Tabitha, born via surrogacy on June 22, 2009. Their middle names, Elwell and Hodge, are from Parker’s mother’s family, discovered while researching her ancestry for a TV show.
Since 2009, Parker has lived in Greenwich Village with her family. In 2017, news surfaced that they were combining two townhouses they bought for $35 million in 2016 on West 11th Street, with renovations continuing into 2019. They also have a second home near Kilcar, a village in County Donegal, Ireland, where Broderick spent summers as a child.
