The following is a comprehensive list of the acting and directing credits of American actress Kathy Bates. With over 200 acting and directing credits to her name, Bates is perhaps best known for her breakout role in the 1990 horror film Misery, based on the novel of the same name by Stephen King. Her role as Annie Wilkes was met with much praise, earning her the Academy Award for Best Actress and Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama the following year. Since then she has acted in numerous other films, in both comedy and drama categories, earning three additional Academy Award nominations (all for Best Supporting Actress) as well as seven further Golden Globe Award nominations.
In 2011, Bates starred as Harriet Korn on the NBC legal drama series Harry's Law, her first starring role on television. The show ran for two seasons and Bates was nominated for two consecutive Primetime Emmy Awards. In 2013, she starred in the third season of the FX anthology horror series American Horror Story, subtitled . Bates won her second Emmy Award for her role in the series.
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1971 | Taking Off | Audition Singer | Credited as Bobo Bates |
| 1978 | Straight Time | Selma Darin | |
| 1982 | Come Back to the 5 & Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean | Stella Mae | |
| 1983 | Two of a Kind | Furniture Man's Wife | |
| 1986 | Woman on Mateo Street | ||
| 1987 | Murder Ordained | Bobbi Birk | |
| Summer Heat | Ruth Stanton | ||
| My Best Friend Is a Vampire | Helen Blake | Credited as Kathy D. Bates | |
| 1988 | Mrs. Canby | ||
| 1989 | Signs of Life | Mary Beth Alder | |
| High Stakes | Jill | ||
| 1990 | Men Don't Leave | Lisa Coleman | |
| Dick Tracy | Mrs. Green | ||
| White Palace | Rosemary Powers | ||
| Misery | Annie Wilkes | Academy Award for Best Actress | |
| 1991 | Shadows and Fog | Prostitute | |
| At Play in the Fields of the Lord | Hazel Quarrier | ||
| Fried Green Tomatoes | Evelyn Couch | ||
| The Road to Mecca | Elsa Barlow | ||
| 1992 | Prelude to a Kiss | Leah Blier | |
| Used People | Bibby Berman | ||
| 1993 | Living and Working in Space: The Countdown Has Begun | Lunar Mom | Direct-to-video |
| A Home of Our Own | Frances Lacey | ||
| 1994 | North | Alaskan Mom | |
| Curse of the Starving Class | Ella Tate | ||
| 1995 | Dolores Claiborne | Dolores Claiborne | |
| Angus | Meg Bethune | ||
| 1996 | Diabolique | Det. Shirley Vogel | |
| Maurine Collier | |||
| 1997 | Swept from the Sea | Miss Swaffer | |
| Titanic | Margaret “Molly” Brown | ||
| 1998 | Primary Colors | Libby Holden | |
| Raphaella, the Magic Bunny | Voice | ||
| Helen "Mama" Boucher | |||
| A Civil Action | Bankruptcy Judge | Uncredited cameo | |
| 1999 | Baby Steps | Mrs. Mellon | Short film |
| 2000 | Bruno | Mother Superior | |
| 2001 | Rat Race | The Squirrel Lady | Uncredited cameo |
| American Outlaws | Ma James | ||
| 2002 | Love Liza | Mary Ann Bankhead | |
| Dragonfly | Mrs. Miriam Belmont | ||
| About Schmidt | Roberta Hertzel | ||
| Unconditional Love | Grace Beasley | ||
| 2004 | Around the World in 80 Days | Queen Victoria | |
| Little Black Book | Kippie Kann | ||
| Sea Hag, Siren | Voice[1] | ||
| The Judge | Short film | ||
| Narrator | Documentary | ||
| The Marquesa | |||
| 2005 | Hansel and Gretel | Narrator | Direct-to-video |
| Rumor Has It... | Aunt Mitsy | Uncredited cameo | |
| 2006 | Failure to Launch | Sue | |
| Solace | Marrow's Wife | Short film | |
| Relative Strangers | Agnes Menure | ||
| Bonneville | Margene Cunningham | ||
| Charlotte's Web | Bitsy | Voice | |
| Guilty Hearts | The Judge | ||
| 2007 | Bee Movie | Janet Benson | Voice |
| Fred Claus | Mother Claus | ||
| Hester | Voice | ||
| P.S. I Love You | Patricia Reilly | ||
| Christmas Is Here Again | Miss Dowdy | Voice | |
| 2008 | Charlotte Cartwright | ||
| Secretary of Defense Regina Jackson | |||
| Revolutionary Road | Helen Givings | ||
| Personal Effects | Gloria | ||
| 2009 | Chéri | Madame Charlotte Peloux | |
| Miss Sue | |||
| The Legend of Pancho Barnes and the Happy Bottom Riding Club | Narrator | Documentary | |
| 2010 | Valentine's Day | Susan Milton | |
| 2011 | Midnight in Paris | ||
| You May Not Kiss the Bride | Mrs. Lighthouse | ||
| Beverly Corbett | |||
| 2014 | Tammy | Lenore | |
| When Marnie Was There | Mrs. Kadoya | Voice | |
| 2015 | Boychoir | Headmistress | |
| The Great Gilly Hopkins | Maime Trotter | ||
| 2016 | The Boss | Ida Marquette | |
| Complete Unknown | Nina | ||
| Bad Santa 2 | Sunny Soke | ||
| 2017 | Krystal | Vera | [2] |
| 2018 | The Death & Life of John F. Donovan | Barbara Haggermaker | [3] |
| On the Basis of Sex | Dorothy Kenyon | [4] | |
| 2019 | The Highwaymen | Miriam A. Ferguson | [5] |
| Richard Jewell | Bobi Jewell | [6] | |
| 2020 | Home | Bernadette | [7] |
| 2023 | Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret. | Sylvia Simon | [8] |
| The Miracle Club | Eileen Dunne | [9] | |
| 2024 | Summer Camp | Ginny Moon | [10] |
| A Family Affair | Leila Ford | [11] |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Johnny Bull | Katherine Kovacs | |
| 1987 | Murder Ordained | Bobbi Birk | |
| 1989 | Roe vs. Wade | Jessie | |
| No Place Like Home | Boonie Cooper | ||
| 1992 | Hostages | Peggy Say | |
| 1995 | The West Side Waltz | Mrs. Goo | |
| 1996 | Helen Kushnick | ||
| 1999 | Annie | Miss Agatha Hannigan | |
| 2000 | Possessed | Student | Credited as Katherine Bates |
| 2002 | My Sister's Keeper | Christine Chapman | |
| 2005 | Ambulance Girl | Jane Stern | |
| Warm Springs | Helena Mahoney | ||
| 2024 | The Great Lillian Hall | Edith Wilson | Also executive producer |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1977 | Phyllis | Unknown episode | ||
| 1978 | Sally Allison | Episode: "Too Hot to Handle / Family Reunion / Cinderella Story" | ||
| 1984 | All My Children | Belle Bodelle | Unknown episode | |
| One Life to Live | Evelyn Maddox | Episode: "December 17, 1984" | ||
| 1986 | Cagney & Lacey | Brenda Harris | Episode: "Revenge" | |
| 1986–1987 | St. Elsewhere | Polly | 2 episodes | |
| 1989 | China Beach | Nurse Jan Wyatt | Episode: "The World (Part 2)" | |
| L.A. Law | Charlotte Haley | Episode: "One Rat, One Ranger" | ||
| 1993 | American Experience | Narrator | Episode: "Amelia Earhart: The Price of Courage" | |
| 1994 | Rae Flowers | Episode: "The Plague"; uncredited | ||
| 1997 | Adventures from the Book of Virtues | Mother | Voice, episode: "Respect" | |
| 1999 | 3rd Rock from the Sun | Charlotte Everly | Episode: "Alien Hunter" | |
| 2000 | MADtv | Stuart's Grandma | Episode: "#6.2" | |
| 2001 | King of the Hill | Police Officer | Voice, episode: "Lupe's Revenge" | |
| 2003–2005 | Six Feet Under | Bettina | 10 episodes | |
| 2004 | American Experience | Narrator | Episode: "Tupperware!" | |
| 2009 | Alice | Queen of Hearts | 2 episodes | |
| 2010–2011 | The Office | Jo Bennett | 8 episodes | |
| 2011–2012 | Harry's Law | Harriet Korn | 34 episodes | |
| 2012 | Two and a Half Men | Ghost of Charlie Harper | Episode: "Why We Gave Up Women" | |
| 2013–2014 | Delphine LaLaurie | 10 episodes | ||
| 2014–2015 | Ethel Darling | 10 episodes | ||
| 2014–2015 | Mike & Molly | Kay McKinnon | 2 episodes | |
| 2015–2016 | Iris | 11 episodes | ||
| 2015 | American Dad! | D.O. Rothy | Voice, episode: "Manhattan Magical Murder Mystery Tour" | |
| 2016 | Thomasin White / The Butcher | 5 episodes | ||
| Agnes Mary Winstead | 4 episodes | |||
| 2017 | Feud: Bette and Joan | Joan Blondell | 5 episodes | |
| 2017–2018 | Disjointed | Ruth Whitefeather Feldman | 20 episodes | |
| 2018 | Lip Sync Battle | Herself | Episode: "Kathy Bates vs. Tone Bell" | |
| The Big Bang Theory | Mrs. Fowler | 3 episodes | ||
| Miriam Mead | 10 episodes | |||
| Delphine LaLaurie | Episode: "Apocalypse Then" | |||
| 2024– | Matlock | Madeline "Matty" Matlock[12] | Lead role and executive producer |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1975 | Casserole | Performer | Playwrights Horizons, Off-Broadway |
| A Quality of Mercy | |||
| 1976 | Vanities | Joanne | |
| 1979 | The Art of Dining | Herrick Simmons | The Public Theater, Off-Broadway |
| 1980 | Goodbye Fidel | Isabel | New Ambassador Theatre, Broadway |
| Fifth of July | June Talley (replacement) | New Apollo Theatre, Broadway | |
| 1982 | Come Back to the 5 & Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean | Stella May | Martin Beck Theatre, Broadway |
| 1983–84 | 'night, Mother | Jessie Cates | |
| John Golden Theatre, Broadway | |||
| Music Box Theatre, Broadway | |||
| 1985 | Curse of the Starving Class | Ella | Promenade Theatre, Off-Broadway |
| 1987 | Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune | Frankie | Manhattan Theatre Club, Off-Broadway |
| Westside Theatre, Broadway | |||
| 1988 | The Road to Mecca | Elsa Barlow (replacement) | Promenade Theatre; Off-Broadway |
| 2006 | Master Class | Maria Callas | Stage reading Broadhurst Theatre, Broadway |
| Year | Title | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Great Performances | Episode: "Talking With" | |
| 1996 | Episode: "Scene of the Crime" | ||
| 1997 | NYPD Blue | Episode: "I Love Lucy" | |
| 1998 | Oz | Episode: "Family Bizness" | |
| 1999 | Dash and Lilly | ||
| 2001–03 | Six Feet Under | 5 episodes | |
| 2002 | Everwood | Episode: "The Great Doctor Brown" | |
| 2003 | Fargo | Unsold TV pilot | |
| 2005 | Ambulance Girl | ||
| 2006 | Have Mercy |