Laura Dern’s New Movie & The Promise She Kept to Her Mom ❤️🎬

January 28, 2026
Image Source :: Courtesy of Laura Dern

You know her face. You definitely know her scream from Jurassic Park. And if you have been on the internet lately, you probably know her as the fierce, pointing power-woman from Big Little Lies. Laura Dern is one of those rare actresses who has been famous forever but somehow feels more relevant right now in 2026 than she did thirty years ago.

She is Hollywood royalty, sure. Her parents are Bruce Dern and Diane Ladd. But Laura didn’t just ride their coattails. she carved out her own weird, wonderful path. From David Lynch’s surreal dreamscapes to huge blockbusters with dinosaurs, she does it all. And right now, she is making headlines for a heartbreakingly personal campaign and a brand-new comedy that is getting everyone talking.

Let’s dive into the world of Laura Dern. We will look at her latest projects, her wild career, and how she went from an "oddball" indie darling to an Oscar winner and certified Hollywood star.

New Year, New Roles: Laura Dern in 2026

The year 2026 is kicking off with a bang for Laura. Just when you think you have her figured out as the intense dramatic actress, she flips the script.

Is This Thing On? – The Divorce Comedy We Didn't Know We Needed

If you are looking for Laura Dern celebrity news 2025 and into 2026, this is the big story. Laura is starring alongside Will Arnett in a new movie called Is This Thing On?, directed by none other than Bradley Cooper. It is hitting theaters right around now, late January 2026.

The movie is a comedy-drama, but it’s got teeth. It is based on a true story about a guy (played by Arnett) whose marriage falls apart, so he starts doing stand-up comedy to cope. Laura plays his wife, Tess. It sounds like a heavy topic, but reviews say it is actually full of laughs and "knowing sighs."

Laura isn’t just the "angry ex-wife" here. Critics are saying she brings a lot of layers to Tess. She is not a villain; she is a real person dealing with the messiness of a long relationship ending. It is the kind of movie roles Laura excels at—finding the humanity in a tough situation. Plus, seeing her bounce off Will Arnett’s comedy energy is something totally new.

A Promise Kept: The "Beyond the Scars" Campaign

While her movie career is buzzing, Laura is also doing something deeply personal off-screen. In late 2025, we lost the legendary actress Diane Ladd, Laura’s mom. It was a huge blow to Hollywood and, of course, to Laura.

But Laura isn't just grieving quietly. She is on a mission. She recently launched a campaign called "Beyond the Scars." It is all about raising awareness for Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF). This is the lung disease her mom fought for years.

Diane was diagnosed back in 2018. Doctors gave her months to live, but she fought hard and lived another seven years. Laura was right there by her side. They even wrote a book together during that time called Honey, Baby, Mine. Now, Laura is fulfilling a promise she made to her mom to help other families facing this scary diagnosis. It is raw, real stuff. It shows that being a celebrity bio subject doesn't protect you from real-life pain.

Born into the Business: Laura Dern’s Early Life

It is hard to talk about Laura Dern without mentioning where she came from. She was born on February 10, 1967, in Los Angeles. Her parents, Bruce Dern and Diane Ladd, were both serious, working actors.

But it wasn't a fairytale childhood. Her parents split up when she was just a toddler. Laura was raised mostly by her mom and grandma. She grew up on movie sets. There is actually a clip of her as a little kid eating an ice cream cone in the background of Martin Scorsese’s movie Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (which her mom was in).

She caught the acting bug early. But her parents were worried. They knew how hard the business could be. Laura didn't care. She studied acting, even suing for emancipation as a teenager so she could work deeper hours on film sets. She was determined to be more than just "Bruce and Diane's kid."

The David Lynch Muse and Indie Darling

In the mid-80s, Laura found her creative soulmate: director David Lynch.

He cast her in Blue Velvet (1986) as Sandy, the girl next door. It was a dark, strange movie, and Laura was the beacon of light in it. That role put her on the map. She wasn't playing the typical "hot girl" in a teen comedy. She was playing complex, interesting people.

She teamed up with Lynch again for Wild at Heart (1990), playing Lula Fortune opposite Nicolas Cage. That movie was a wild ride—violent, sexy, and weird. It cemented her status as a fearless actress. She wasn't afraid to look ugly or act crazy if the role called for it.

Making History with Rambling Rose

In 1991, Laura and her mom did something incredible. They starred together in a movie called Rambling Rose. Laura played a free-spirited girl named Rose who comes to live with a Southern family. Diane Ladd played the mother of the family.

The performances were so good that both of them got Oscar nominations. It was the first time a mother and daughter were nominated for Academy Awards for the same film. Laura was just in her early 20s, and she was already standing toe-to-toe with the greats.

The Blockbuster Era: Jurassic Park

Then came the dinosaurs.

In 1993, Steven Spielberg cast Laura Dern as Dr. Ellie Sattler in Jurassic Park. This changed everything. Suddenly, the indie darling was the star of the biggest movie in the world.

Why Ellie Sattler Matters

Ellie wasn't a damsel in distress. She was a paleobotanist. She was smart. She wore hiking boots and khaki shorts, not heels. She ran from T-Rexes and restarted the power in a raptor-infested shed.

Laura made Ellie a feminist icon for a whole generation of girls. She showed that you could be the hero of an action movie without being a superhero. You just had to be smart and brave.

She reprised the role in Jurassic Park III (2001) and came back for a big reunion in Jurassic World Dominion (2022). Seeing her back on screen with Sam Neill and Jeff Goldblum was a huge nostalgia trip for fans. It is definitely the highlight of her filmography.

The TV Renaissance: From Enlightened to Big Little Lies

For a while, movie stars didn't do TV. Laura Dern didn't get that memo. She helped lead the charge of big actors moving to the small screen.

Enlightened

In 2011, she co-created and starred in an HBO show called Enlightened. She played Amy Jellicoe, a woman who has a nervous breakdown and tries to live a more spiritual life, but usually just annoys everyone around her.

It was cringe-comedy at its best. Laura was so good at playing someone who is trying so hard to be "good" but is actually full of rage. She won a Golden Globe for it, and although the show didn't last long, critics loved it.

Renata Klein in Big Little Lies

Then came Big Little Lies in 2017. Laura played Renata Klein, a high-powered tech CEO and mom who takes no prisoners.

Renata became an instant meme. The way she screamed "I will not not be rich!" became legendary. Laura took a character that could have been just a villain and made her hilarious, terrifying, and sympathetic all at once. She won her first Primetime Emmy and another Golden Globe for this role. It proved she was a top-tier TV actress.

Finally, The Oscar Winner

Laura had been nominated for Oscars twice before (Rambling Rose and Wild). But in 2020, it was finally her time.

She starred in Noah Baumbach’s Marriage Story as Nora Fanshaw, a high-end divorce lawyer. Nora was stylish, smart, and absolutely ruthless. She gives a famous monologue in the movie about how society accepts imperfect fathers but demands perfection from mothers.

That speech went viral. Laura’s performance was undeniable. She swept the awards season, winning the BAFTA, the Golden Globe, the SAG Award, and finally, the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.

It felt like Hollywood was finally saying, "Okay, Laura, you’re the best."

Laura Dern Filmography with Years

If you are looking for a list of movies starring Laura Dern, it is a long one. Here are the absolute essentials you should watch to understand her Hollywood career:

  • Blue Velvet (1986) – The surreal breakthrough.

  • Wild at Heart (1990) – The rebel road trip.

  • Rambling Rose (1991) – The first Oscar nomination.

  • Jurassic Park (1993) – The blockbuster hit.

  • Citizen Ruth (1996) – A dark comedy where she plays a glue-sniffing addict.

  • October Sky (1999) – She plays a sweet, supportive teacher.

  • I Am Sam (2001) – A touching role as a foster mother.

  • The Master (2012) – A small but intense role in a cult drama.

  • Wild (2014) – Playing Reese Witherspoon’s mom (in flashbacks). Earned her an Oscar nom.

  • Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017) – Vice Admiral Holdo. (Yes, the purple hair!)

  • The Tale (2018) – A very tough, brave movie about abuse survivor stories.

  • Marriage Story (2019) – The Oscar winner.

  • Little Women (2019) – She plays the beloved Marmee.

  • Jurassic World Dominion (2022) – The return of Ellie Sattler.

  • The Son (2022) – A heavy drama with Hugh Jackman.

  • Lonely Planet (2024) – A romance on Netflix.

  • Is This Thing On? (2026) – The new divorce comedy.

Awards and Achievements

So, what awards has Laura Dern won? A lot.

  • Academy Awards: 1 Win (Best Supporting Actress), 3 Nominations.

  • Golden Globe Awards: 5 Wins (She is a favorite of the Hollywood Foreign Press).

  • Primetime Emmy Awards: 1 Win (For Big Little Lies).

  • BAFTA Awards: 1 Win.

She also has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Interestingly, she received her star alongside her mom, Diane Ladd, and her dad, Bruce Dern. It was the first time three family members got stars at the same ceremony.

Personal Life and Activism

Laura keeps her private life fairly private, but she is open about her family. She was married to musician Ben Harper for several years. They have two children together, a son named Ellery and a daughter named Jaya.

She is also very active on social media. Her Laura Dern Instagram account (@lauradern) is a mix of glamorous red carpet photos, cute throwbacks with her dad, and posts about her activism. She cares a lot about the environment and health issues (like the new lung disease campaign).

She is known in Hollywood for being one of the "nice ones." Despite being an award-winning actor, she doesn't act like a diva. She has a reputation for being kind, funny, and very supportive of other women in the industry.

Conclusion

Laura Dern is a shapeshifter. She can be the sweet teacher, the ferocious lawyer, the quirky rebel, or the dinosaur expert. She has survived growing up in Hollywood, navigated the weird world of indie films, and conquered the blockbuster machine.

Now, in 2026, she is using her fame to tell important stories—whether that is making us laugh about divorce in Is This Thing On? or making us care about lung health in honor of her mom. She is 58 years old (turning 59 soon) and somehow feels like she is just getting started. She is a true Hollywood star in every sense of the word.

FAQs

1. How old is Laura Dern? Laura Dern was born on February 10, 1967. As of early 2026, she is 58 years old and about to turn 59.

2. What is the Laura Dern Jurassic Park role? She played Dr. Ellie Sattler, a brilliant paleobotanist. It is one of her most famous roles, and she first played it in the 1993 original movie.

3. Did Laura Dern win an Oscar? Yes, she is an Oscar winner. She won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in 2020 for her role as the lawyer Nora Fanshaw in the movie Marriage Story.

4. Who are Laura Dern's famous parents? Her parents are actors Bruce Dern and Diane Ladd. Both of them are also Oscar nominees, making them a very talented acting family.

5. Is Laura Dern in a new movie in 2026? Yes, she stars in the comedy-drama Is This Thing On? directed by Bradley Cooper and co-starring Will Arnett. It was released in January 2026.

6. What is Laura Dern's Instagram? You can follow her on Instagram at @lauradern. She posts often about her movies, her family, and her advocacy work.

7. How many Golden Globes has Laura Dern won? Laura has won 5 Golden Globe awards throughout her career. She has won for both her television roles and her movie performances.

References

 

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