Helen Shaver

She received another Canadian Screen Award for Best Actress nomination for the 1986 drama film Lost!, and won a Best Supporting Actress for We All Fall Down (2000). Shaver also starred in some short-lived television series, including United States (1980) and Jessica Novak (1981), and from 1996 to 1999 starred in the Showtime horror series, Poltergeist: The Legacy, for which she received a Saturn Award for Best Actress on Television nomination. In the mid-1990s, Shaver began working as a television director, directing more than 50 shows. She won three Directors Guild of Canada Awards, one Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Miniseries or TV Film, two Canadian Screen Awards, and three Women's Image Network Awards. She was nominated for an Emmy Award for directing the 1999 television movie Summer's End and in 2020 made her big screen debut with the drama film Happy Place. In 2004, Shaver was inducted into Canada's Walk of Fame.

• Name — Helen Shaver • Born — 24 February 1951 • Birthplace — St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada • Years Active — 1972–present • Children — 1 • Occupation — Actress, director

Shaver was born and raised with five sisters in St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada.

After roles in Canadian features such as Outrageous! (1977), Starship Invasions (1977), Who Has Seen the Wind (1977) and High Ballin (1978), Shaver won a Canadian Film Award as Best Lead Actress opposite Tom Berenger (for her performance as "Ann MacDonald") in In Praise of Older Women (1978). Shaver was one of the stars of director Sam Peckinpah's final film, 1983's The Osterman Weekend. In 1985, Shaver starred in Desert Hearts as a 1950s university professor who falls in love with another woman. Her performance, with co-star Patricia Charbonneau, drew critical praise and Shaver won the Bronze Leopard Award at the Locarno International Film Festival. Another prominent film performance during that time came in 1986 as the love interest of Paul Newman in his Oscar-winning portrayal of "Fast" Eddie Felson in Martin Scorsese's The Color of Money, a sequel to 1961's The Hustler. • Illustration — Helen Shaver's star on Canada's Walk of Fame In 1980, Shaver starred with Beau Bridges in the short-lived NBC television series United States developed by Larry Gelbart. A year later she starred in the short-lived drama series Jessica Novak. She was in the 1984 Canadian-made Countdown to Looking Glass. She subsequently appeared on such television shows as Hill Street Blues and T. J. Hooker. In 1990, she guest-starred as the murderer in Rest in Peace, Mrs. Columbo, and later that year co-starred on the short-lived series WIOU, playing a television journalist (as she also did on Jessica Novak). From 1996-1999, Shaver co-starred on the television series Poltergeist: The Legacy, playing Dr. Rachel Corrigan, a widowed psychiatrist with an eight-year-old daughter who is helped by the Legacy in the pilot episode; her performance earned a Saturn Award nomination. In 2000, she won a Genie Award for her portrayal of a drug-addicted prostitute in the independent feature We All Fall Down. Shaver made her feature-length directorial debut in 1999 with the television film Summer's End, which won an Emmy and earned her a directorial nomination. Shaver has also directed a number of television shows and cable movies, including The Outer Limits, Judging Amy, Joan of Arcadia, Medium, The O.C., Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, The L Word, Jericho, Journeyman, Private Practice, The Unit, Crusoe, Orphan Black, Vikings, 13 Reasons Why, and Westworld. In 2003, she won a Gemini award for Best Direction in a Dramatic Series for the Just Cause television series episode "Death's Details". In 2004, Shaver was inducted into Canada's Walk of Fame. Happy Place, her first theatrical feature film after directing for television, premiered at the Cinéfest Sudbury International Film Festival, and was screened at the 2020 Vancouver International Film Festival. In 2021, Shaver picked up The Living Legend Tribute at the 23rd Women's Image Network Awards with fellow honoree JoJo Siwa its Rising Musical Star recipient. In 2023, Shaver won the DGA award for directing episode 8 ("Who's There?") of Station Eleven.

• Year — Title — Role — Notes • 1974 — data-sort-value="Beachcombers, The" | The Beachcombers — "Affairs of the Heart" • Police Surgeon — Gloria — "The Killer" • 1975 — Police Surgeon — Bonnie — "Web of Guilt" • 1977 — Search and Rescue: The Alpha Team — Dr. Liz Warren — TV film • 1978 — Lovey: A Circle of Children, Part II — Patty — TV film • 1979 — Overlanders — Mrs. O'Mara — TV film • 1980 — United States — Libby Chapin — Main role • 1981 — Jessica Novak — Jessica Novak — Main role • 1982 — Between Two Brothers — Susan Frazer — TV film • Off Your Rocker — Miss Beecher — TV film • Hill Street Blues — Teresa Hyler — 4 episodes • 1983 — T. J. Hooker — Lisa Jericho — "The Shadow of Truth" • 1984 — Countdown to Looking Glass — Dorian Waldorf — TV film • 1985 — The — Valery — TV film • 1986 — Amazing Stories — Karen — "Mirror, Mirror" • Philip Marlowe, Private Eye — Belle Delaguerra — "Spanish Blood" • The — Phyllis Dayton — "The Case of the Friendly Fugitive", "Gems and Jelly Beans", "The Maharajah of Weston" • Many Happy Returns — Sally Robinson — TV film • 1987 — data-sort-value="Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, The" | The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson — Herself — TV talk show, June 25, 1987 • 1988 — The — Miss Haight — "The Emissary" • No Blame — Amy Donaldson — TV film Nominated — Gemini Award for Best Performance by a Lead Actress in a Dramatic Program or Mini-Series • 1989 — B.L. Stryker — Diane Decker — "The Dancer's Touch" • Mothers, Daughters and Lovers — Claire Nichols — TV film • 1990 — Pair of Aces — Rose — TV film • Columbo — Vivian Dimitri — "Rest in Peace, Mrs. Columbo" • 1990–1991 — WIOU — Kelby Robinson — Main role • 1992 — E.N.G. — Sandra Brady — "Child's Play" • Fatal Memories — Elaine Tipton — TV film • 1993 — Survive the Night — Stacy — TV film • Poisoned by Love: The Kern County Murders — Edie Ballew — TV film • Trial & Error — Katherine Woodfield — TV film • 1994 — The — Monique — TV film • Ride with the Wind — Katherine Barnes — TV film • Without Consent — Nora Fields — TV film • Janek: The Silent Betrayal — Monique Dessier — TV film • 1995 — Falling for You — Mary — TV film • The — Cathy Kress — "The Sandkings" Nominated — CableACE Award for Actress in a Dramatic Series • 1996–1999 — Poltergeist: The Legacy — Dr. Rachel Corrigan — Main role Nominated — Saturn Award for Best Actress on Television • 1997 — Dead Man's Gun — Dianna McKinney — "Next of Kin" • 1998 — The — Mrs. Martin — TV film • 1999 — The — Marjorie Litchfield — TV film • 2000 — Common Ground — Janet — TV film • 2001–2002 — The — Erica Bettis — Main role • 2003 — The — Lynn Todd — TV film • D.C. Sniper: 23 Days of Fear — Sandy Moose — TV film • 2004 — The — Faye Buckley — "Luck, Next Time", "Liberally" • The — Barbara Yates — "Becoming", "Trial by Fire" • 2008 — A — Rose — TV film • 2010 — Iris Expanding — Iris's Mom — TV film

• Year — Title — Note(s) • 1996–1999 — Poltergeist: The Legacy — 2 episodes • 1997–2000 — data-sort-value="Outer Limits, The" | The Outer Limits — 6 episodes • 1998 — Dead Man's Gun — Episode: "Stage Coach Marty" • data-sort-value="Net, The" | The Net — Episode: "Bulls and Bears" • 1999 — Summer's End — TV movie • 2000–2001 — Beggars and Choosers — 2 episodes • 2001 — data-sort-value="Associates, The" | The Associates — Unknown episodes • Soul Food — Episode: "This Crazy Life" • 2001–2005 — Judging Amy — 11 episodes • 2002 — data-sort-value="District, The" | The District — Episode: "Shell Game" • Due East — TV movie • 2003 — Just Cause — Episode: "Death's Details" • Dead Like Me — Episode: "Rest in Peace" • Joan of Arcadia — Episode: "The Uncertainty Principle" • 2004 — data-sort-value="O.C., The" | The O.C. — Episode: "The Proposal" • data-sort-value="4400, The" | The 4400 — Episode: "The New and Improved Carl Morrissey" • 2005 — Close to Home — Episode: "Divine Directions" • data-sort-value="Stranger I Married, The" | The Stranger I Married — TV movie • 2006 — Medium — Episode: "Doctor's Orders" • 2006–2007 — data-sort-value="Unit, The" | The Unit — 3 episodes • 2006 — Vanished — Episode: "The Feed" • Standoff — Episode: "Borderline" • Ultra — TV movie • 2007 — Jericho — Episode: "Black Jack" • Journeyman — Episode: "Winterland" • 2008–2011 — Law & Order: Special Victims Unit — 9 episodes • 2008–2009 — Crusoe — 2 episodes • Private Practice — 2 episodes • 2009 — Castle — Episode: "One Man's Treasure" • 2010 — Make It or Break It — Episode: "Save the Last Dance" • data-sort-value="Bridge, The" | The Bridge — 2 episodes • Shattered — 2 episodes • 2011 — Flashpoint — Episode: "I'd Do Anything" • Stargate Universe — Episode: "Seizure" • Law & Order: LA — Episode: "Big Rock Mesa" • Combat Hospital — 2 episodes • 2012 — data-sort-value="Firm, The" | The Firm — 5 episodes • 2012–2015 — Person of Interest — 3 episodes • 2013 — Republic of Doyle — Episode: "Firecracker" • 2013–2014 — Revolution — 3 episodes • 2014 — Reign — Episode: "For King and Country" • Elementary — Episode: "Dead Clade Walking" • 2014–2017 — Orphan Black — 3 episodes • 2015–2019 — Vikings — 6 episodes • 2016 — Heartbeat — Episode: "100,000 Heartbeats" • Travelers — 2 episodes • 2017–2018 — Anne with an E — 2 episodes • 2017 — 13 Reasons Why — 2 episodes • 2018 — Sneaky Pete — Episode: "The Reluctant Taxidermist" • Impulse — Episode: "The Eagle and the Bee" • Dietland — 2 episodes • 2020 — Westworld — Episode: "Passed Pawn" • Snowpiercer — 2 episodes • Lovecraft Country — Episode: "Meet Me in Daegu" • Happy Place — Feature film • 2021–2022 — Station Eleven — 3 episodes • 2022 — Quantum Leap — Episode: "What a Disaster!" • 2023 — data-sort-value="New Look, The" | The New Look — 4 episodes • 2024 — data-sort-value="Penguin, The" | The Penguin — Episodes: "Cent'Anni" and "Homecoming" • 2026 — Matlock — Episode: "The Greater Good"