Sandy Dennis
Actor · Died March 2, 1992, aged 54 · Hastings, Nebraska, USA
Oscar winner · Golden Globe nominee
Sandra Dale "Sandy" Dennis (April 27, 1937 – March 2, 1992) was an American actress. She made her film debut in the drama Splendor in the Grass (1961). For her performance in the comedy-drama film Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966), she received the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Dennis appeared in the films The Three Sisters (1966), Up the Down Staircase (1967), That Cold Day in the Park (1969), The Out-of-Towners (1970), God Told Me To (1976), The Four Seasons (1981), Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean (1982), and Another Woman (1988). Her final film appearance came in the crime drama film The Indian Runner (1991). Dennis had a successful career on stage, appearing in the original stage production of Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean. For her performance in the play A Thousand Clowns, she received the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play. For her performance in the play Any Wednesday, she received the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play. Description above from the Wikipedia article Sandy Dennis, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
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Biography from TMDB.
- April 27, 1937
- March 2, 1992 (aged 54)
- Hastings, Nebraska, USA
- Actor
- 19 on MovieCove · 31 credits in all
What are Sandy Dennis' films like?
Across their 17 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Self.
Genres
Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.
Themes
What they feel like to watch
Ironic 0 · Wry 0 · Earnest 16
A split, not a type: Light 3 · Serious 6 · Dark 8
Grounded 12 · Stylized 5 · Heightened 0
Gentle 2 · Charged 8 · Intense 7
Steady 6 · Shifting 7 · Whiplash 4
Straight-faced 11 · Some laughs 5 · Funny 1
Slow burn 11 · Even-paced 6 · Relentless 0
A split, not a type: Casual 7 · Engaged 6 · Full focus 4
A split, not a type: Easy watch 2 · Affecting 6 · Heavy 9
A split, not a type: Resolved 7 · Open-ended 4 · Ambiguous 6
Roles they play
Usually the Hero: 3 of 11 analyzed roles.
Show the 11 rolesHide the roles
- Threshold guardianas Honey in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966)
- Heroas Sylvia Barrett in Up the Down Staircase (1967)
- Allyas Celia Pope in A Hatful of Rain (1968)
- Shapeshifteras Sara Deever in Sweet November (1968)
- Heroas Rosamund in A Touch of Love (1969)
- Shadowas Frances Austen in That Cold Day in the Park (1969)
- Mentoras Dr. Enid Bingham in The Man Who Wanted to Live Forever (1970)
- Allyas Gwen Kellerman in The Out of Towners (1970)
- Heroas Marjorie Worden in Something Evil (1972)
- Shadowas Mona in Come Back to the 5 & Dime Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean (1982)
- Allyas Elsa Spahn in The Execution (1985)
Moods and endings
- Bittersweet11
- Ambiguous5
- Cyclical1
AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.
Where can I watch Sandy Dennis' films?
As of October 24, 2026, 8 of their 19 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (6).
Subscription and free streaming for Sandy Dennis' titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.
Filmography
31 credits, 19 with a MovieCove page; 2 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.
The Indian Runner(1991)
Midcredits score: 74th percentile of all films
Parents(1988)
Midcredits score: 52nd percentile of all films
976-EVIL(1988)
Midcredits score: 17th percentile of all films
Another Woman(1988)
Midcredits score: 86th percentile of all films
The New Alfred Hitchcock Presents (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1985)
The Equalizer (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1985)
The Execution(1985)
Midcredits score: 32nd percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 82nd percentile of all films
The Animals Film (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1981)
The Four Seasons(1981)
Midcredits score: 72nd percentile of all films
Wilson's Reward (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1980)
Perfect Gentlemen (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1978)
Nasty Habits (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1977)
God Told Me To(1976)
Midcredits score: 53rd percentile of all films
Mr. Sycamore (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1975)
Police Story (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1973)
Something Evil(1972)
Midcredits score: 16th percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 25th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)
The Out of Towners(1970)
Midcredits score: 81st percentile of all films
A Touch of Love(1969)
Midcredits score: 59th percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 82nd percentile of all films
A Hatful of Rain(1968)
Midcredits score: 66th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)
Sweet November(1968)
Midcredits score: 74th percentile of all films
The Fox (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1967)
Up the Down Staircase(1967)
Midcredits score: 90th percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all films
The Three Sisters (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1966)
The Fugitive (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1963)
Arrest and Trial (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1963)
Splendor in the Grass(1961)
Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all films
Naked City(1958)
Midcredits score: 82nd percentile of all shows
Career shape
Star power in the 97th percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 31 titles from 1958 to 1991; peak year 1968.
Film career
Peak 1968 · back in prominent film roles after a quiet stretch. Top draw in 6 MovieCove titles. Film roles by billing, audience size and rating; 25+ votes. A show carries a single first-air date, so shows are not on the curve.
- 1961Screen debut· Splendor in the Grass
- 1966Oscar win· Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
- 1967First top-billed film· Up the Down Staircase
- 1969Breakout· That Cold Day in the Park
- 1970Golden Globe nomination· The Out-of-Towners
Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored. Billing is TMDB cast order for roles with 25+ votes, billed in the top 30; the columns are the share of top-billed roles in each era, 5-year spans from the year on the label, merged until each holds at least 5 roles.
Awards
an Oscar from 3 major nominations, 1967–1971.
- Golden Globe, nominated · Best Actress in a Motion Picture - Comedy or Musical
- Oscar, won · Best Actress in a Supporting Role
- Golden Globe, nominated · Best Supporting Actress
Major bodies only: the Oscars, Primetime Emmys, Golden Globes, BAFTAs and Screen Actors Guild Awards are named; Cannes, Venice, the Berlinale, Sundance, the directors', writers' and producers' guilds, the Grammys, Critics Choice and the Independent Spirit Awards count as other major bodies. Festival and regional prizes are not counted. Source: IMDb.
How do Sandy Dennis' films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 73rd percentile, the median of all 18; across their 17 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 66th percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up8
- 50th to 74th7
- 25th to 49th2
- Below 25th2
Shape of the crowd
8 of their 19 titles are Crowd Pleasers.
- Universally Loved3
- Crowd Pleaser8
- Broadly Agreed1
- Mixed7
Reviewers score the acting 76/100 in their films, across 16 reviewed titles; fans 83, detractors 56. The element that speaks to their work as an actor.
Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.
Is Sandy Dennis' work okay for kids?
Across up to 7 MovieCove titles with content scores, 1 of the 4 categories sits near the median of all films.
Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted. The band's colour is the severity of their median, named beside it.
Who does Sandy Dennis work with?
People who share at least 2 of Sandy Dennis' MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Robert Altman shares the most, 2.
Directors
- Robert AltmanShared titles: Come Back to the 5 & Dime Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean (1982), That Cold Day in the Park (1969)See all 2 shared titles with Robert Altman
Actors
- Graham JarvisShared titles: Parents (1988), The Out of Towners (1970)See all 2 shared titles with Graham Jarvis
- Sandy BaronShared titles: The Out of Towners (1970), Sweet November (1968)See all 2 shared titles with Sandy Baron
Producers
- Edgar J. ScherickShared titles: The Man Who Wanted to Live Forever (1970), A Touch of Love (1969)See all 2 shared titles with Edgar J. Scherick