Karen Pittman
Karen Pittman | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1975 or 1976 (age 49–50) |
| Education | Northwestern University (BA) New York University (MFA) |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 2009–present |
| Children | 2[1] |
Karen Pittman(born c. 1975 or 1976)[2] is an American actress. She began her career with small appearances on television shows such as 30 Rock, Law & Order and House of Cards. She went on to land recurring roles in The Americans (2014–2016) and Luke Cage (2016–2018). Pittman rose to prominence starring as Mia Jordan in the Apple TV+ drama series The Morning Show (2019–present) and as Dr. Nya Wallace in the HBO Max comedy-drama, And Just Like That... (2021–2023).[3] Her performance in the third season of The Morning Show earned her a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series.
Early life, family and education
Pittman earned a Bachelor of Arts in Voice and Opera at Northwestern University and a Masters of Fine Arts from New York University's Graduate Acting Program.[4][5] Prior to entering acting as a profession, Pittman worked in finance, pivoting to acting after realizing "money isn't everything."[6]
Career
Pittman has portrayed the character of Jory in the 2012 Lincoln Center production of Disgraced and has performed in FX Network's The Americans and Netflix's Luke Cage, as Lisa and Inspector Priscilla Ridley, respectively.[7][8]
Since 2019, Pittman has starred as Mia Jordan in the Apple TV+ drama series The Morning Show for which she was nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series, along with the cast in 2022 and 2024.[9][10] For its third season, she was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series and the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series.[11][12] In 2021, she began starring as Dr. Nya Wallace in the HBO Max comedy-drama, And Just Like That.... She acted in both series in the same time.[13] In 2022, she played her first leading role, in the romantic drama film, Unthinkably Good Things directed by Terri J. Vaughn.[14][15] She later starred alongside Corey Stoll in the crime drama film, What We Do Next.[16]
Personal life
Pittman is the mother of two children, Jake and Lena. She has spoken in several interviews about the challenges of raising children as a single mother.[2]
In 2024, Pittman announced her engagement to Ade Richardson on Today with Jenna and Hoda. Pittman's The Morning Show costar Greta Lee (alongside other cast and crew on the show) threw an engagement party on set in celebration.[17]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Last Night | Caroline | |
| 2012 | The Bourne Legacy | Landy Reporter | |
| 2013 | Begin Again | Business Woman | |
| 2014 | The Rewrite | Naomi Watkins | |
| 2016 | Custody | Elaine Dunbar | |
| 2017 | Was It Rape Then? | Fury | Short |
| Detroit | Mrs. Dismukes | ||
| Benji the Dove | Laura | ||
| 2022 | Toy Phone | Sofia | Short, also executive producer |
| What We Do Next | Sandy James |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Great Performances | Mom - Understudy | Episode: "Passing Strange" |
| 30 Rock | Nurse | Episode: "St. Valentine's Day" | |
| Law & Order | Amanda Rendina | Episode: "Bailout" | |
| Kings | TV Reporter | Episode: "Prosperity" | |
| Medium | Nurse #3 | Episode: "The Man in the Mirror" | |
| 2010 | White Collar | Press Secretary | Episode: "Need to Know" |
| Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | FBI Agent Wilcox | Episode: "Locum" | |
| 2011 | One Life to Live | Nurse #1 | Guest role (4 episodes) |
| 2013 | The Good Wife | Dr. Patricia Serling | Episode: "A Precious Commodity" |
| 2014 | House of Cards | Elizabeth Ward | Episode: "Chapter 19" |
| 2014, 2019 | The Blacklist | Interrogator #2, Miss Holt | Episodes: "Berlin (No. 8)", "The Corsican (No. 20)" |
| 2014–2016 | The Americans | Lisa | Recurring role (seasons 2–4) |
| 2016 | Horace and Pete | Rhonda | Episodes: "1.7", "1.8" |
| Person of Interest | Tracey Phillips | Episode: "Synecdoche" | |
| Blindspot | Elizabeth Gubara | Episode: "If Beth" | |
| Madam Secretary | Taylor Wilson | Episode: "The Race" | |
| 2016–2018 | Luke Cage | Priscilla Ridley | |
| 2017 | Elementary | Daria Wyngold | Episode: "Moving Targets" |
| Love You More | Raquel | TV short | |
| 2018 | Girlfriends' Guide to Divorce | Patricia | Episode: "It Takes Two to Stab Yourself in the Butt" |
| 2019 | Live from Lincoln Center | Nya | Episode: "Pipeline" |
| NOS4A2 | Angela Brewster | Episodes: "The Shorter Way", "The Graveyard of What Might Be" | |
| 2019–present | The Morning Show | Mia Jordan | Main role |
| 2019 | Living with Yourself | Lenore Pool | |
| Evil | Caroline Hopkins | Episodes: ″October 31″, ″Exorcism Part 2″ | |
| 2020 | Yellowstone | Willa Hays | Recurring role (season 3) |
| 2021–2023 | And Just Like That... | Dr. Nya Wallace | Main role |
| 2022 | Unthinkably Good Things | TV film | |
| 2025 | Forever | Dawn | Main role |
Theater
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012-2014 | Disgraced | Jory | Theater World Award[18] |
| 2015 | King Liz | Liz Rico | [4][19][20][21][22] |
| 2017 | Pipeline | Nya | Broadcast on PBS in 2019[23] |
References
- ^ Myers, Victoria (August 8, 2017). "An Interview With Karen Pittman". The Interval. Retrieved November 12, 2023.
- ^ a b Sarkar, Ishani (October 4, 2025). "Meet Karen Pittman, who plays the tenacious Mia Jordan on Apple TV+'s The Morning Show". South China Morning Post. Retrieved November 10, 2025.
- ^ Cordero/Andreeva, Rosy/Nellie (March 22, 2024). "Karen Pittman Exits 'And Just Like That…' Ahead Of Season 3 Of Max Series". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved April 29, 2024.
- ^ a b Soloski, Alexis (15 July 2015). "Karen Pittman on What It Takes to Be 'King Liz'". The New York Times.
- ^ Blank, Matthew (November 11, 2014). "CUE & A: Disgraced Star Karen Pittman on the Challenges of the Project, Her Cooking Skills and Beyonce". Playbill. Retrieved 2017-02-10.
- ^ "Reese Witherspoon Is Shocked to Learn 'The Morning Show' Costar Karen Pittman Had This Surprising Career Before Acting". People.com. Retrieved 2025-11-10.
- ^ "Karen Pittman Joins 'The Americans'; Gloria Reuben In 'Mr. Robot'". Deadline. 2014-10-23. Retrieved 2017-02-10.
- ^ "Why Marvel & Netflix's 'Luke Cage' Feels Like Such A Missed Opportunity". The Playlist. 2016-10-03. Retrieved 2017-02-10.
- ^ Agard, Chancellor (February 27, 2022). "Brian Cox pays tribute to Ukrainian and Russian actors after 'Succession' SAG Awards win". EW.com. Retrieved 2022-04-01.
- ^ "Nominations Announced for the 30th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards®". sagawards.org (Press release). Screen Actors Guild. January 10, 2024. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
- ^ Lewis, Hilary; Nordyke, Kimberly (July 17, 2024). "Emmys 2024: List of Nominees". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on July 17, 2024. Retrieved July 17, 2024.
- ^ Verhoeven, Beatrice (December 5, 2023). "'The Morning Show' Leads 2024 Critics Choice TV Nominations". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on January 21, 2024. Retrieved January 21, 2024.
- ^ Winston, Fran (August 9, 2023). "And Just Like That season 2 star speaks out having less screen time". Express.co.uk.
- ^ Halterman, Jim (August 26, 2022). "The 'Unthinkably Good Things' Star Previews Hallmark's First Mahogany Film". TV Insider.
- ^ McNamara, Bre. "'Unthinkably Good Things' Trailer: Karen Pittman, Erica Ash, Lance Gross And More In First Film Under Hallmark's Mahogany Banner". ShadowandAct.com.
- ^ Kay, Jeremy (2023-02-13). "Blue Fox boards EFM sales on Corey Stoll crime thriller 'What We Do Next' (exclusive)". ScreenDaily.com.
- ^ Speakman, Kimberlee; Moore, Julia (2025-09-10). "Karen Pittman Reveals Greta Lee Threw Her a 'Surprise Engagement Party' While Filming 'The Morning Show' Season 4 (Exclusive)". People.com. Retrieved 2025-11-10.
- ^ VIAGAS, ROBERT (May 5, 2015). "Broadway Siblings Megan and Robert Fairchild Among 71st Annual Theatre World Award Winners". Playbill. Retrieved 2017-02-10.
- ^ Isherwood, Charles (2015-07-27). "Review: 'King Liz,' at the Top of Her Game and Wanting More". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-02-10.
- ^ Obenson, Tambay A. "Showtime Is Developing a TV Series Adaptation of Fernanda Coppel's Off-Broadway Play, 'King Liz'". IndieWire. Retrieved 2017-02-10.
- ^ "Karen Pittman commands basketball soap 'King Liz'". NY Daily News. Retrieved 2017-02-10.
- ^ Reed, Rex (2015-07-29). "'King Liz' Zeroes in Brilliantly on the Internecine World of Sports". Observer. Retrieved 2017-02-10.
- ^ Theater, Lincoln Center. "Pipeline". Lincoln Center Theater. Retrieved 2019-02-09.