Gillian Leigh Anderson is an Emmy- and Golden Globe Award-winning American actress, best known for her roles as FBI Special Agent Dana Scully in the American TV series The X-Files.
Anderson was born in Chicago, Illinois, USA, the daughter of Rosemary Anderson, a computer analyst, and Edward Anderson, who owned a film post-production company. Anderson attended The Theatre School at DePaul University in Chicago (formerly the Goodman School of Drama), where she earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in 1990.
Anderson moved to New York when she was 22 years old. She began her career in Alan Ayckbourn's play, Absent Friends, at the Manhattan Theatre Club in which Anderson played alongside Brenda Blethyn; she won the 1990-91 Theatre World "Newcomer" Award for her role.
Anderson debuted on TV in Home Fires Burning for a cable station, as well as the audio book version of Exit to Eden. She broke into mainstream television in 1993, with a guest appearance on the collegiate drama, Class of '96, on the fledgling Fox Network.
As a result of her guest appearance in Class of 96, At the age of 24, Anderson was cast as Special Agent Dana Scully in the science fiction series X-Files. The series became a huge hit and would run for nine seasons, and included one film (1998), and a second film scheduled for release on July 25, 2008. During her time on The X Files, Anderson won several awards for her portrayal of Special Agent Scully, including an Emmy Award, Golden Globe and two Screen Actors Guild awards for "Best Actress in a Drama Series." While filming, Anderson met assistant art director Clyde Klotz, whom she would eventually marry.
Anderson had roles in a handful of films during the run of The X-Files and starred in The House of Mirth, an adaptation of the Edith Wharton novel of the same name.
When The X-Files ended, Anderson performed in several stage productions and worked on various film projects. She has participated in narrative work for documentaries on scientific topics. In 2005, she appeared as Lady Dedlock in the BBC television adaptation of Charles Dickens' novel Bleak House, had a starring role in the Irish film The Mighty Celt (for which she won an IFTA award for Best International Actress) and performed in A Cock and Bull Story, a film version of the novel Tristram Shandy.
During 2006 and 2007, Anderson appeared in two British films: The Last King of Scotland (2006) and Straightheads (2007).
On New Year's Day 1994, Anderson married Clyde Klotz, The X-Files series assistant art director. Daughter Piper Maru was born by caesarean section on September 25, 1994. Anderson divorced Klotz in 1997.
In December 2004, Anderson married Julian Ozanne, a documentary filmmaker. Anderson and Ozanne announced their separation on April 21, 2006, after 16 months of
marriage. On November 1, 2006, Anderson and boyfriend Mark Griffiths welcomed a son named Oscar. As of June 2008, Gillian and Mark are expecting their third child together.