Naomi Watts biography

Naomi Watts is one of the most respected and accomplished actresses of her generation. Renowned for her fearless performances and remarkable emotional range, she has built an extraordinary career spanning film, television, and production, earning two Academy Award nominations, an Emmy nomination, and numerous honors from the industry's most prestigious organizations. Beyond acting, Watts is an accomplished producer, entrepreneur, and advocate whose work has helped redefine conversations around women's health. In 2025, she added bestselling author to her list of accomplishments with Dare I Say It: Everything I Wish I'd Known About Menopause, published by Crown, which debuted as a New York Times bestseller.

Watts earned her first Emmy Award nomination for her acclaimed portrayal of Babe Paley in Ryan Murphy's Feud: Capote vs. The Swans, the second installment of FX's acclaimed anthology series. Her nuanced transformation earned widespread critical praise, as well as Golden Globe and Critics Choice Award nominations. Watts also served as an executive producer on the series, which received ten Emmy Award nominations.

She reunited with Ryan Murphy in Hulu's legal drama All's Fair, which she executive produces and stars in alongside Glenn Close, Sarah Paulson, Niecy Nash, Teyana Taylor, and Kim Kardashian. The series is currently in production on a second season. She also recently starred in Murphy's FX anthology Love Story, portraying Jackie Kennedy, and guest starred in Lena Dunham's Netflix romantic comedy series Too Much.

On the big screen, Watts will next star opposite Tye Sheridan and Michael Imperioli in the psychological thriller The Housewife and in Cody Fern's feature length directorial debut Closing Night, opposite Sarah Paulson and Odessa A'zion. She will next play legendary dancer Margot Fonteyn in the romantic ballet drama Margot & Rudi. Most recently, she starred alongside Bill Murray in Scott McGehee and David Siegel's acclaimed adaptation of Sigrid Nunez's bestselling novel The Friend, which she also executive produced.

Watts received her first Academy Award nomination for Best Actress for Alejandro G. Iñárritu's 21 Grams, opposite Sean Penn and Benicio Del Toro. The performance also earned BAFTA and Screen Actors Guild Award nominations, along with numerous critics' awards. She received her second Academy Award nomination for J.A. Bayona's The Impossible, once again earning Golden Globe, SAG, Critics Choice, and numerous international honors. She later received a SAG Award nomination for St. Vincent opposite Bill Murray and appeared in Iñárritu's Academy Award-winning Best Picture Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance).

Her breakthrough performance came in David Lynch's landmark masterpiece Mulholland Drive, where her unforgettable dual performance as Betty Elms and Diane Selwyn established her as one of cinema's most compelling talents. The role earned Best Actress honors from the National Board of Review, the National Society of Film Critics, and numerous critics' organizations worldwide. More than two decades later, the performance continues to be regarded as one of the defining achievements of modern cinema, with The Ringer recently naming it the greatest film performance of the 21st century.

Watts has continued to balance acclaimed dramatic work with major studio films throughout her career. Her extensive film credits include Peter Jackson's King Kong; Gore Verbinski's The Ring and The Ring 2; David Cronenberg's Eastern Promises; Michael Haneke's Funny Games; Doug Liman's Fair Game; Clint Eastwood's J. Edgar; Noah Baumbach's While We're Young; Mother and Child, which earned her an Independent Spirit Award nomination; The Painted Veil, We Don't Live Here Anymore, Adore, Luce, Ophelia, The Glass Castle, The Book of Henry, Infinite Storm, Goodnight Mommy, and Audrey Diwan's Emmanuelle. She has also served as a producer on several projects, including The Painted Veil, We Don't Live Here Anymore, Funny Games, Adore, 3 Generations, The Wolf Hour, and Penguin Bloom.

Her television work is equally distinguished, including starring roles in Netflix's The Watcher; Showtime's The Loudest Voice, portraying Gretchen Carlson opposite Russell Crowe; David Lynch's Twin Peaks: The Return; Netflix's Gypsy, which she also produced; and a memorable guest appearance on Netflix's BoJack Horseman.

Throughout her career, Watts has received numerous industry honors, including the Montecito Award from the Santa Barbara International Film Festival, the Desert Palm Achievement Actress Award from the Palm Springs International Film Festival, ShoWest's Female Star of Tomorrow Award, the Hollywood Film Festival's Breakthrough Acting Award, and a career achievement tribute from the Deauville American Film Festival.

Born in England and raised in Australia, Watts began studying acting as a teenager before making her feature film debut in John Duigan's Flirting. She later produced and starred in the short film Ellie Parker, which premiered in competition at the Sundance Film Festival before being expanded into a feature.

Outside of entertainment, Watts is a passionate advocate for women's health and menopause awareness. In 2022, she founded Stripes Beauty, a science-backed wellness and beauty company dedicated to normalizing conversations around menopause while empowering women through education, community, and innovative products.

Sale of tickets for the opening and closing galas, and for the Donostia Award ceremony

Tomorrow, 1 September, at 10.00, tickets will go on sale for the opening gala, at which Werner Herzog will receive the Donostia Award, the closing gala, and the ceremony at which Naomi Watts will also receive the Donostia Award. All three events at the 74th edition of the San Sebastián Festival will take place in the Kursaal Auditorium. In addition, the Velodrome will host a live broadcast of the closing ceremony at an extravaganza also including screening of the films to close the Official Selection and Perlak.

For the first time, the San Sebastián Festival galas will be written and directed by Fer Pérez, author of the screenplays of films directed by Paco León, such as Kiki, el amore se hace and Arde, Madrid. In this year's Made in Spain, the filmmaker from Seville will also present his debut feature film Los justos /The Righteous, directed with Jorge A. Lara, with whom he also worked on the screenplay of Aída.

Actresses Fariba Sheikhan and Mariona Terés will have the task of presenting the opening gala, on 18 September at 20:30, with the collaboration of Cayetana Guillén Cuervo. During the ceremony, the director, screenwriter, producer and actor Werner Herzog will receive his Donostia Award, and the FIPRESCI Grand Prix will be presented. At the same gala, the members of the official jury will be introduced prior to the opening film, Fatih Akin's  Geister / Ghost Song. 

The following day, 19 September, Naomi Watts will collect her Donostia Award at 22:15, followed by a screening of The Housewife.

Lastly, the closing gala presented by the actress Bárbara Goenaga and the actor Fernando Guallar will take place on Saturday 26 September. This event will include presentation of the awards corresponding to the 74th edition of the San Sebastián Festival and the screening of Michaël R. Roskam's Le Faux Soir, the film closing the edition's Official Selection out of competition.

As usual, the Velodrome will also host a live broadcast of the closing gala and a screening of the closing film. Prior to the ceremony, at 18:00, there will be a showing of Juste une illusion / Just an Illusion, the film closing the Perlak section out of competition. Said film and broadcast of the ceremony will be followed by a screening of the film closing the Official Selection out of competition, Le Faux Soir, at the Velodrome. 

Tickets for all of these sessions will go on sale tomorrow, 1 September, at 10:00, through the San Sebastián Festival (sansebastianfestival.janto.es) and Kutxabank (tickets.kutxabank.es) websites.

Tickets for the opening and closing galas at the Kursaal will cost 80 euros, while tickets for Naomi Watts' Donostia Award ceremony will cost 50 euros for the general areas and 55 euros for Zone B.