Before Anora, Mikey Madison's TV & Movie Roles Included a Modern Family Episode
The Oscar-winning actress and Saturday Night Live Host has been acting since she was 14 years old.
Mikey Madison had dreams of becoming an actress when she was just a teen — and she put the work in. After years of starring in a variety of TV shows and movies, all while learning about the profession on the job, Madison is now an Oscar-winning actress following her performance in Anora.
Madison, 26, adds Saturday Night Live to her resume with her debut as Host in Season 50’s March 29 episode.
Madison’s award-winning range as an actor will undoubtedly make her SNL hosting debut unforgettable. But how did Madison get her start in acting, and what roles have you seen her in before? Read on for all the details of her impressive career.
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When did Mikey Madison start acting? She says she was a "horse girl"
Born on March 25, 1999 in Los Angeles, Madison started to pursue acting when she was just 14 years old.
In an interview with The Cut, Madison shared that she grew up riding horses and dedicated most of her time to the sport. “I literally homeschooled myself so I could be at the barn all day with my pony,” she said. “I loved the ritual of getting to the barn and taking care of my horse, but it’s kind of an isolating sport.”
By the time she was 14, however, Madison told The Cut she “felt called in another direction” and wanted to try acting. Her mom signed her up for an acting class, she got a manager, and it wasn’t long before she started booking jobs. Madison then landed her first acting roles in 2013, in the short films Retirement and Pani's Box.
What TV shows has Mikey Madison been in?
Madison starred as Max Fox in the comedy-drama series Better Things, alongside Pamela Adlon, from 2016 to 2022. In an interview with Deadline, Madison said she shot the pilot before she was 16. “It was seven years of filming … It was a lot of my life. My entire career as an actress was really on that show up until it ended,” she said about working on Better Things. “I learned a lot on that show … I never went to college or film school, so that’s my college, it’s my acting school, my film school.”
While she starred on Better Things, Madison also landed guest roles in television series including Bravo’s Imposters and the Season 7 premiere episode of Modern Family. While there’s a photo of Madison’s guest role as a character named Becca on Modern Family (check out the photo above), her scene in Cameron and Mitchell’s home appears to have been cut from the final episode.
Madison also starred in the 2024 drama thriller miniseries Lady in the Lake as Judith Weinstein.
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Mikey Madison’s movie roles include her Oscar-winning role in Anora
Before Madison won her first Oscar for Best Actress at the 97th Academy Awards for her role as a sex worker in 2024’s Anora, she also received recognition for her performances in several other films.
Between 2017 and 2018, she starred in Liza, Liza, Skies Are Grey before landing roles in Nostalgia and Monster. Madison then played Susan Atkins in Quentin Tarantino's Once Upon a Time in Hollywood in 2019 and lent her voice to The Addams Family animated film that same year. In 2022, she starred in Scream, the fifth installation in the horror movie franchise, and went on to play the leading role as a single mother in the thriller drama film, All Souls.
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“I’ve played so many wonderful characters, I’ve been very lucky, but [Anora] … it’s changed my life in so many different ways,” Madison told GQ in February 2025 while looking back at her acting career so far.
How to watch Mikey Madison’s Saturday Night Live debut
Madison will make her SNL debut as Host on March 29, with Morgan Wallen as the episode’s Musical Guest. The “You Proof” country singer previously performed on the SNL stage on December 5, 2020.
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To watch the Oscar-winning actress’ SNL debut, tune into NBC on Saturday, March 29 at 11:30/10:30c. If you miss it live, the new episode will be available to stream the next day on Peacock.
