Dale Dickey

Known as a "consummate character actor," Dickey made her screen debut in 1995. She won the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Female for her breakthrough performance as Merab in the 2010 independent drama film Winter's Bone. Over her career, she has appeared in more than 60 movies, most notably Changeling (2008), Super 8 (2011), Iron Man 3 (2013), Regression (2015), Hell or High Water (2016), Leave No Trace (2018), Bloodline (2018) and No Exit (2022). Her television credits including recurring roles on My Name Is Earl (2005–09), Breaking Bad (2009), True Blood (2012–13), Justified (2014), and Claws (2017–22). She also was a regular cast member on the second season of the HBO comedy series Vice Principals (2017), co-starred in the Netflix miniseries Unbelievable (2019), and featured in Amazon's 2022 comedy-series reboot of A League of Their Own. Dickey received widespread acclaim from critics for her lead performance in the 2022 romantic drama film A Love Song, for which she received the Chlotrudis Award for Best Actress and was nominated for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Lead Performance and the Gotham Independent Film Award for Outstanding Lead Performance. In 2023 she played the leading role in the thriller film The G. For her performance as Rosemary in the Apple TV+ series, Widow's Bay, Dickey was nominated for a 2026 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series.

• Name — Dale Dickey • Birth Name — Diana Dale Dickey • Years Active — 1972–present • Birthplace — Knoxville, Tennessee, U.S. • Occupation — Actress • Education — University of Tennessee

Diana Dale Dickey was born in Knoxville, Tennessee, and attended Bearden High School. She played several roles in high school productions, notably as Emily in Our Town. According to the Knoxville News Sentinel, Dickey likely made her acting debut in a Clarence Brown Theater production of "Oliver!" in 1972. She later attended the University of Tennessee from 1979 to 1984, but left to pursue her acting career. On December 10, 2015, she returned to the University of Tennessee as a guest speaker, where she gave the commencement speech to Fall graduates, and was awarded an honorary Master of Fine Arts degree from the university.

Dickey has been working as a character actress in both mainstream and independent films since the 1990s. Prior it she spent 11 years in New York performing on theater productions. She made her television debut playing the recurring role of Opal McHone in CBS historical drama series, Christy from 1994 to 1995. The following year, she made her big screen debut in the comedy-drama film The Incredibly True Adventure of Two Girls in Love and the following year appeared in the drama Running Wild. She later had supporting parts in the made-for-television movies Cagney & Lacey: Together Again (1995), Prison of Secrets (1997) and Christy: Return to Cutter Gap (2000). In 1995 she moved to Los Angeles and went to audition for the ABC police procedural High Incident when director, Charles Haid said: “Could you come back tomorrow as a heroin addict?”. The following years she was typecast for playing roles such as prisoners, prostitutes, drug addicts and homeless. She played Glyndora Roberts in the 2000 independent comedy film, Sordid Lives, and later returned to the role in the Logo sitcom Sordid Lives: The Series (2008). She returned to the franchise in 2017, playing a different role in A Very Sordid Wedding (replacing Beth Grant as Sissy Hickey). Her other 2000s film credits include The Pledge (2001), Our Very Own (2005), and Changeling (2008). During the 2000s, Dickey guest-starred in a number of television series, including The X-Files, Frasier, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Gilmore Girls, The Closer and Ugly Betty. From 2005 to 2009, she had a recurring role as Patty the Daytime Hooker in the NBC comedy series, My Name Is Earl. In 2009, she had a recurring role as Spooge's "Skank" Lady, a meth addict in the AMC drama series, Breaking Bad. Dickey also performed in various stage productions, include the Broadway production of The Merchant of Venice (1989), the 1989 Chicago production of Steel Magnolias playing Annelle Dupuy-DeSoto opposite Constance Towers and receiving a note from Chicago Tribune, and in the 2009 stage adaptation of A Streetcar Named Desire as Blanche DuBois, and many other off-Broadway and regional theatres receiving two Ovation Awards. Dickey received critical praise for her performance as Merab in 2010 independent drama film Winter's Bone opposite Jennifer Lawrence, winning the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Female in February 2011. From 2012 to 2013, she played the role of Martha Bozeman in the fifth and sixth seasons of the HBO series True Blood. After Winter's Bone, Dickey appeared in the science fiction film Super 8 (2011) directed by J. J. Abrams, the road comedy The Guilt Trip starring Barbra Streisand, and the superhero film Iron Man 3, directed by Shane Black in 2013. In 2013 she starred in the miniseries Bonnie and Clyde: Dead and Alive on Lifetime and appeared in the drama film, The Trials of Cate McCall starring Kate Beckinsale. In 2014, she had a recurring role in the FX series Justified. She also made guest appearances on 2 Broke Girls, Grey's Anatomy, Sons of Anarchy, Better Things, Shameless and Why Women Kill. In 2015, Dickey portrayed Rose Gray in the Spanish-American thriller film Regression, in which she co-stars with Ethan Hawke and Emma Watson. Dickey mostly appeared in the independent features during the 2010s playing character roles, notable the Gothic thriller The Yellow Wallpaper (2011), the dramas Being Flynn (2012) starring Robert De Niro, Blues for Willadean (2013) alongside Beth Grant and Octavia Spencer, Southern Baptist Sissies (2013), White Bird in a Blizzard (2014), the action thriller What Lola Wants (2015), the comedy-drama Waffle Street (2015), the action thriller Blood Father (2016), and the prison drama Dead Women Walking (2018) receiving a positive review from Variety. On television, she had a recurring role of Juanda Husser in the TNT crime comedy-drama series, Claws from 2017 to 2022. In 2017, she starred in the second season of HBO dark comedy Vice Principals and in 2019 appeared in the Netflix miniseries Unbelievable. In 2022, she had a recurring role in the Amazon series A League of Their Own. She also appeared in the films Hell or High Water (2016), Leave No Trace (2018), Bloodline (2018), Palm Springs (2020), and Flag Day (2021). In 2022, Dickey played the leading role in the drama film A Love Song. The performance received positive reviews from critics, notably from the Los Angeles Times and Rolling Stone. The film marks the first leading role in her career. In her interview for IndieWire, Dickey said: "I fell between the cracks. I was not pretty enough in this category to be the leading lady and I wasn't quirky or odd enough in this category to be the only character actress". "Even in college, I tended to play everybody under 12 or over fifty. I think you finally grow into your age range and, sure enough, when I started getting into my mid-forties is when I started working more. I slowly built a career, but it was difficult." She received Independent Spirit Award for Best Lead Performance and Gotham Independent Film Award for Outstanding Lead Performance nominations for her role. Also that year, she starred in the thriller film, No Exit, and played another leading role in the Irish drama film The Cry of Granuaile playing a grieving American filmmaker who travels to the west of Ireland with an Irish assistant, in order to research the 16th-century swashbuckler of the title. In 2023, Dickey was cast in the Paramount+ western series Lawmen: Bass Reeves and Amazon series Fallout. Also that year, Dickey played the leading role in the crime thriller film The G written and directed by Karl R. Hearne. Released on November 29, 2024, The G received positive reviews from critics, on the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 100% of 41 critics' reviews are positive. Her performance was praised by Variety, The Guardian, Screen Daily and Alliance of Women Film Journalists. In 2024, Dickey played strong matriarch in the Western film, Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1, and in 2026 appeared in the road comedy-drama film, Hot Water playing key supporting role. On television, she had recurring roles on Bookie, Bosch: Legacy and The Lowdown. In 2026, Dickey guest-starred in an episode of Dutton Ranch, and later began starring in the horror comedy series, Widow's Bay. For her performance as Rosemary, an office worker whose monologue scenes went viral, Dickey received positive reviews and a Primetime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series.

Key • Denotes works that have not yet been released

• Year — Title — Role — Notes • 1994–1995 — Christy — Opal McHone — 4 episodes • 1995 — Cagney & Lacey: Together Again — Gloria — TV movie • The Client — Estelle — Episode: "Drive, He Said" • 1996 — High Incident — Jane Doe — 2 episodes • 2000 — City of Angels — Rose Odalee Greenup — Episode: "The High Cost of Living" • Christy: The Movie — Opal McHone — TV movie • 2001 — Christy, Choices of the Heart, Part II: A New Beginning — Opal McHone — TV miniseries; 2 episodes • The X-Files — Game Warden — Episode: "Existence" • 2003 — Frasier — Mrs. Grant — Episode: "Some Assembly Required" • 2004 — CSI: Crime Scene Investigation — Cassie — Episode: "Bad to the Bone" • ER — Mrs. Price — Episode: "Twas the Night" • 2005 — Numb3rs — Karen — Episode: "Counterfeit Reality" • 2005–2009 — My Name Is Earl — Patty, the daytime hooker — 19 episodes • 2006 — Gilmore Girls — Ruthie — 2 episodes • Cold Case — Reba Dautry — Episode: "Joseph" • The Closer — Anna Larson — Episode: "Out of Focus" • 2007 — Shark — Nancy Padget — Episode: "Porn Free" • Ugly Betty — Sugar Free Shirley — Episode: "East Side Story" • 2008 — Sordid Lives: The Series — Glyndora Roberts — Series regular, 6 episodes • 2009 — Princess Protection Program — Helen — TV movie • Breaking Bad — Spooge's "Skank" Lady — Episodes: "Breakage" and "Peekaboo" • 2010 — All Signs of Death — Thea — TV Pilot • Bones — Marsha Vinton — Episode: "The X in the File" • Criminal Minds — Carol — Episode: "Exit Wounds" • Weeds — Sugarpop — Episode: "Gentle Puppies" • 2011 — 2 Broke Girls — Elena — Episode: "And the Pop-Up Sale" • 2012–2013 — Raising Hope — Patty — 2 episodes • True Blood — Martha Bozeman — 12 episodes • 2013 — Grey's Anatomy — Gasoline — Episode: "Things We Said Today" • Southland — Maureen — Episode: "Heroes" • Last Man Standing — Doris — Episode: "Shoveling Snow" • Bonnie and Clyde: Dead and Alive — Cummie Barrow — TV miniseries; 2 episodes • 2014 — Justified — Judith — 4 episodes • The Middle — Sandy — Episode: "Orlando" • Dinner with Friends with Brett Gelman and Friends — Herself — TV special • Sons of Anarchy — Renee O'Leary Egan — Episode: "The Separation of Crows" • 2015 — Backstrom — Judge Nunn — Episode: "Rock Bottom" • Documentary Now! — Joelle Fellweather — Episode: "The Eye Doesn't Lie" • 2016 — Better Things — Jace — Episode: "Sam/Pilot" • 2017 — Red Blooded — Bo — TV pilot • Vice Principals — Nash — Series regular, 9 episodes • Shameless — Aunt Ronnie — Episode: "Fuck Paying It Forward" • 2017–2022 — Claws — Juanda Husser — 11 episodes • 2018 — Into the Dark — Red — Episode: "Pooka!" • 2019 — Unbelievable — RoseMarie — Miniseries, 6 episodes • Why Women Kill — Ruby Jenkins — Episode: "Practically Lethal in Every Way" • Room 104 — Sharon — Episode: "Animal for Sale" • 2021 — Them — The Woman — 3 episodes • 2022 — A League of Their Own — Beverly — 8 episodes • Let the Right One In — Debra Harper — 2 episodes • 2023 — The Mandalorian — Saifir (voice) — Episode: "Chapter 22 Guns For Hire" • Station 19 — June Hardy — Episode: "What Are You Willing to Lose" • Lawmen: Bass Reeves — Widow Dolliver — 2 episodes • 2024, 2026 — Fallout — Ma June — 2 episodes • 2024–2025 — Bookie — Wendy — Recurring role • 2025 — Bosch: Legacy — Sheila Walsh — 3 episodes • The Lowdown — Bonnie — 3 episodes • 2026 — Widow's Bay — Rosemary — Main role • Dutton Ranch — Anna Dupree — Episode: "Act of God Business" • The Hunting Wives — Zelda Moffitt — Season 2