Actor / Director Profile

This Canadian actress started acting as a late teen in theatre, receiving critical acclaim in her homeland over the years. Hollywood has not been as generous. Although she has worked alongside some of Hollywood's biggest stars, including Dudley Moore and Eddie Murphy in Best Defense (1984), Tom Cruise and Paul Newman in The Color of Money (1986), Martin Sheen in The Believers (1987), and Peter Boyle in Born to Be Wild (1995/I), it has been her gutsy, more potent portrayals back home that have reaped the trophies and respect. So far she has won bookend Genie Awards for both "Best Actress" in In Praise of Older Women (1978)and "Supporting Actress" in We All Fall Down (2000). Helen has always courted controversy, none more so than for her sexually-charged role in the afore-mentioned film In Praise of Older Women and for her later performance in Desert Hearts (1985) which featured a torrid lesbian love scene that is still considered one of the most erotic in movie history. Helen eventually stepped behind the camera, directing television segments of "The Outer Limits," "Judging Amy" and "Joan of Arcadia" among many others. Raised in a small city in Ontario, about 120 miles southwest of Toronto, Ontario with her five sisters, Helen suffered from rheumatic fever as a child and was forced to spend six months of each year in bed. She says this triggered her imagination and desire to become an actress. In 1992 Helen received a Theatre World Award for her Broadway stage role in "Jake's Women." Her third husband is key grip Steve Smith and they have one son.