Jessica Phyllis Lange was born on 20 April 1949 in Cloquet, Minnesota, USA. She obtained a scholarship to study art at the University of Minnesota, but instead went to Paris to study drama. She moved to New York, working as a model until producer Dino De Laurentiis cast her as the female lead in KING KONG (1976).

She was giving a memorable performance in Bob Rafelson's THE POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE (1981). The following year, she won rave reviews for her exceptional portrayal of actress Frances Farmer in FRANCES (1982) and a Best Supporting Actress Academy Award for her work in Sydney Pollack's TOOTSIE (1982). She is one of the elite eight thespians to have been nominated for both a Supporting and Lead Acting Academy Award in the same year (1983). She was especially outstanding in Karel Reisz’s SWEET DREAMS (1985) as well as in and MUSIC BOX (1989).

Other important films include Martin Scorsese's CAPE FEAR (1991) and Tony Richardson's BLUE SKY (1994), for which she won a Best Actress Academy Award. She made her Broadway debut in 1992, playing Blanche in Tennessee Williams' A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE. She was nominated for a Laurence Olivier Theatre Award in 2001 (2000 season) for Best Actress for her performance in LONG DAY'S JOURNEY INTO NIGHT AT THE LYRIC THEATRE. Jessica attended Theater Drama School at the prestigious Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis, Minnesota and received the Anton Chechov Fine Arts Award. By the end of 2004, she completed filming on Wim Wenders’ DON’T COME KNOCKING.

She is married to the actor Sam Shepard since 1982 and has three children, Alexandra (whose father is Mikhail Baryshnikov), Hanna and Walker. Jessica is a big supporter for rights of the Monks of Nepal.