Cast & creator
Rosemary Harris
Best known for Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Great Performances, Great Performances
Rosemary Harris (born September 19, 1927) is a distinguished English actress with a career spanning over seven decades. Renowned for her work in theater, film, and television, she has received numerous accolades, including a Tony Award, an Emmy Award, and a Golden Globe. Harris is perhaps best known to modern audiences for her portrayal of Aunt May in Sam Raimi's Spider-Man trilogy (2002–2007). Her illustrious stage career includes a Tony Award for Best Actress for her role as Eleanor of Aquitaine in The Lion in Winter (1966). She has also been nominated for an Academy Award for her performance in Tom & Viv (1994). Harris was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame in 1986 and received a Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in 2017. Born in Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Leicestershire, England, Harris trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA). She has been celebrated for her versatility and emotive performances, making her a beloved figure in the world of performing arts. Rosemary Harris is married to the late American novelist John Ehle, who passed away in 2018. Together, they have a daughter, Jennifer Ehle, who is a celebrated actress known for her roles in Pride and Prejudice (1995) and The King's Speech (2010). Harris's family has been deeply involved in the arts, with her husband contributing significantly to Appalachian literature and her daughter excelling in film, television, and theater.
Also known as: Rosemary Ann Harris
46
film credits
25
television credits
71
1948–2025 · acting roles
6.6
average across scored titles
Signature credits
Known for
Across film & television
Filmography (71)
Showing 71 of 71 credits
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
Francine Brooks
1999
Great Performances
Hesione Hushabye
1971Great Performances
Adela Shannon
1971
American Playhouse
Mrs. Amos Evans
1982
Studio One
Nora Marsh
1948
Spider-Man
May Parker
2002
Omnibus
1952
Spider-Man 3
May Parker
2007
Performance
Margaret Dawlish
1991
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
Louise Rogers
1955Alfred Hitchcock Presents
Louise Rogers / Countess Helen Mattoni
1955Alfred Hitchcock Presents
Dorothy Whitely
1955
Suspicion
Sybil Merton
1957
Spider-Man 2
May Parker
2004
Search Party
Beatrice
2016
The Undoing
Janet Fraser
2020
DuPont Show of the Month
Lady Edith
1957DuPont Show of the Month
Lucie Manette
1957Profiles in Courage
Mary S. McDowell
1964CBS Playhouse
Charlotte Marshall
1966
This Means War
Nana Foster
2012
Holocaust
Berta Palitz Weiss
1978
Before the Devil Knows You're Dead
Nanette Hanson
2007
The Gift
Annie's Granny
2000
Hallmark Hall of Fame
Viola
1951Hallmark Hall of Fame
Margot Wendice
1951Hallmark Hall of Fame
Elvira
1951
The Chisholms
Minerva Chisholm
1979
Spider-Man: All Roads Lead to No Way Home
Self (archive footage)
2022
The Boys from Brazil
Mrs. Doring
1978
The Camomile Lawn
Calypso (older)
1992
Hamlet
Player Queen
1996
Strange Interlude
Mrs. Amos Evans
1988
Sunshine
Valerie Sors
1999
Looking for Richard
Self - Interviewee
1996
My Life So Far
Gamma MacIntosh
1999
Being Julia
Julia's Mother
2004
Broadway: The Next Generation
Self
Crossing Delancey
Pauline Swift
1988
Notorious Woman
Amantine Lucile Aurore Dupin / George Sand
1974
Beau Brummell
Mrs. Fitzherbert
1954
On the Set: Spider-Man 3
Self
2007
Broadway: The Golden Age, by the Legends Who Were There
Self
2003
Blow Dry
Daisy
2001
Spider-Man 2: Making the Amazing
Self
2004
Is Anybody There?
Elsie
2009
Uncle Vanya
Yelena
1963
Hero in Crisis
Self
2004
The von Trapp Family: A Life of Music
Older Agathe von Trapp
2015
Tom & Viv
Rose Haigh-Wood
1994
Radio Free Albemuth
VALIS (voice)
2010
Behind the Ultimate Spin: The Making of 'Spider-Man'
Self
2002
The Monday Before Thanksgiving
Lillian Cotlo
2008
A Flea in Her Ear
Gabrielle Chandebisse
1968Tales from the Wings: A Lincoln Center Theatre Celebration!
Self
2021
Death of a Salesman
Linda
1996
To the Lighthouse
Mrs. Ramsay
1983
How Holocaust came to Television
Self
2019
Wuthering Heights
Catherine Earnshaw
1958
The Ploughman's Lunch
Ann Barrington
1983
Blithe Spirit
Elvira Condomine
1966
Twelfth Night
Viola
1957
Oscar Wilde About America
2025
The Bridge
Aunt Jude
1992A Summer Day's Dream
1994
The Shiralee
Lily Parker
1957
The Royal Family
Julie Cavendish
1977The Fall
a reporter
2009
Belonging
May Copplestone
2004The Little Riders
Grandma Roden
1996
Othello
Desdemona
1955