Shonda Rhimes

She has been nominated five times for a Primetime Emmy Award, won a Golden Globe Award and a Daytime Emmy Award, and received special honors at the British Academy Television Awards and International Emmy Awards. In 2015, Rhimes was inducted into the NAB Broadcasting Hall of Fame. In 2017, she was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame and became a Chair's Appointee of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences's executive committee. She is also part of the USC Film Council and the Writers Guild Inclusion Committee. In 2007, 2013, and 2021, Rhimes was named by Time to the Time 100, their annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world. In 2015, she published her first book, a memoir, Year of Yes: How to Dance It Out, Stand in the Sun, and Be Your Own Person. In 2016, Rhimes formed The Rhimes Family Foundation whose mission is to support arts, education, and activism.

Shonda Rhimes studied at Dartmouth College, University of Southern California and USC School of Cinematic Arts. The recorded working language is English. Residence is recorded at Los Angeles. Employment is recorded with Netflix. Works named in the authority record are Grey's Anatomy, Scandal, How to Get Away with Murder, Bridgerton and Inventing Anna. Distinctions recorded are Writers Guild of America Award, International Emmy Founders Award, Lucy Award and Time 100.

• Name — Shonda Rhimes • Birth Name — Shonda Lynn Rhimes • Born — 13 January 1970 • Birthplace — Chicago, Illinois, U.S. • Education — * Dartmouth College (BA) • University of Southern California (MFA) • Occupation — * Television producer • screenwriter • Years Active — 1995–present • Children — 3

Rhimes was born in Chicago, Illinois, the youngest of six children. Her mother, Vera P. (née Cain), was a college professor who earned a PhD in educational administration in 1991 while raising the family. Her father, Ilee Rhimes Jr., served as a university administrator and later became the chief information officer at the University of Southern California, a position he held until 2013. Rhimes lived in Park Forest South (now University Park, Illinois), with her two older brothers and three older sisters. She has said she exhibited an early affinity for storytelling. While in high school, she served as a hospital volunteer, which inspired an interest in hospital environments. Raised Catholic, Rhimes attended Marian Catholic High School in Chicago Heights, Illinois. At Dartmouth College, she majored in English and film studies and earned her bachelor's degree in 1991. At Dartmouth, she joined the Black Underground Theater Association. She divided her time between directing and performing in student productions, and writing fiction. She also wrote for the college newspaper. After college, she relocated to San Francisco with an older sibling and worked in advertising at McCann Erickson. She subsequently moved to Los Angeles to attend the University of Southern California and study screenwriting. Ranked at the top of her USC class, Rhimes earned the Gary Rosenberg Writing Fellowship. She obtained a Master of Fine Arts degree from the USC School of Cinematic Arts. While at USC, Rhimes was hired as an intern by Debra Martin Chase. Rhimes credits her early success, in part, to mentors such as Chase, a prominent African-American producer. Chase later again served as a mentor to Rhimes on The Princess Diaries 2. Rhimes also worked at Denzel Washington's company, Mundy Lane Entertainment.

After graduation, Rhimes was an unemployed scriptwriter in Hollywood. To make ends meet, Rhimes worked at a variety of day jobs, including as an office administrator and then a counselor at a job center that taught job skills to people with housing instability and mental illness. During this period, Rhimes worked as research director on the documentary Hank Aaron: Chasing the Dream (1995), which won the 1995 Peabody Award. In 1998, Rhimes made a short film, Blossoms and Veils, starring Jada Pinkett-Smith and Jeffrey Wright, which is her only credit as a film director. New Line Cinema purchased a feature script of hers. Rhimes received an assignment to co-write the HBO movie Introducing Dorothy Dandridge (1999), which earned numerous awards for its star, Halle Berry. In 2001, Rhimes wrote Crossroads, the debut film of pop singer Britney Spears. Despite being panned by critics, the film grossed more than $60 million worldwide. Rhimes next worked on writing Disney's sequel to its popular movie The Princess Diaries (2001). Although The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement (2004) did not score as well at the box office, Rhimes later said that she treasured the experience, if only for the opportunity to work with its star, Julie Andrews. In 2003, Rhimes wrote her first TV pilot for ABC about young female war correspondents, but the network turned it down.

On August 14, 2017, Netflix announced that it had entered into an exclusive multi-year development deal with Rhimes, under which all of her future productions will be Netflix Original series. The service had already purchased American streaming rights to past episodes of Grey's Anatomy and Scandal. Chief Content Officer Ted Sarandos described Rhimes as being a "true Netflixer at heart" since "she loves TV and films, she cares passionately about her work, and she delivers for her audience". The deal was considered to be a coup for Netflix due to Rhimes's prominence at ABC; it was also considered to be a counter toward the effort by Disney, ABC's parent company, to reduce the availability of their content on Netflix in favor of a planned subscription streaming service of their own. As of October 2020, she was working on more than 12 projects for Netflix. In July 2021, Rhimes extended her deal with Netflix. The first production was Bridgerton, which was released in 2020 and became the most-watched series ever on the platform, leading to the production of four seasons by 2026. In 2021, Rhimes produced the drama miniseries Inventing Anna. In April 2022, the production of Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story conceived by Rhimes was announced, as a spin-off of Bridgerton. Rhimes won her first competitive Emmy Award at the 52nd Daytime Creative Arts & Lifestyle Emmy Awards, where she took home the Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Arts and Popular Culture Program for Black Barbie: A Documentary (2023).

• Illustration — Rhimes was created a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for services to UK/US Relations in 2024 Rhimes adopted her first daughter in June 2002 and adopted another daughter in February 2012. In September 2013, Rhimes welcomed her third daughter via gestational surrogacy. In 2014, Rhimes gave a commencement address at her alma mater, Dartmouth College, where she received an honorary doctorate. In September 2015, Rhimes revealed she had lost 117 lbs via exercise and dieting. In 2024, Rhimes was bestowed an Honorary Commander of the British Empire award for her contribution to US–UK relations and the positive economic impact of the Bridgerton series of over a quarter of a billion pounds.

In April 2017, Rhimes joined the national board of Planned Parenthood. Later that same year, Rhimes and Katie McGrath co-founded Time's Up, and both of them donated the funds to hire its first seven employees. In 2019, Rhimes joined the organization When We All Vote as a co-chair. This organization was founded to get out the vote prior to the 2020 general election.

Shondaland is the name of Rhimes's production company. Shondaland and its logo also refer to the shows Rhimes has produced and to Rhimes herself. Shows included in Shondaland are: • Grey's Anatomy (2005–present) • Private Practice (2007–2013) • Off the Map (2011) • Scandal (2012–2018) • How to Get Away with Murder (2014–2020) • The Catch (2016–2017) • Still Star-Crossed (2017) • For the People (2018–2019) • Station 19 (2018–2024) • Bridgerton (2020–present) • Inventing Anna (2022) • Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story (2023) • The Residence (2025)

• Year — Title — Credited as • Creator — Director — Writer — Producer • |1995 — Hank Aaron: Chasing the Dream • |1998 — Blossoms and Veils • |1999 — Introducing Dorothy Dandridge • |2002 — Crossroads • |2004 — The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement • |2005–present — Grey's Anatomy • | 2007–2013 — Private Practice • |2009 — Inside the Box • |2009 — Seattle Grace: On Call • |2009 — Seattle Grace: Message of Hope • |2011 — Off the Map • |2012 — Gilded Lilys • | 2012–2018 — Scandal • | 2014–2020 — How to Get Away with Murder • | 2016–2017 — The Catch • 2017 — Still Star-Crossed • 2018–2019 — For the People • 2018–2024 — Station 19 • 2020–present — Bridgerton • 2022 — Inventing Anna • 2023 — Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story • 2025 — The Residence

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Shonda Rhimes is recorded at birth as Шонда Лин Раймс. Recorded as having studied at Dartmouth College, University of Southern California and USC School of Cinematic Arts.