Driver first came to the attention of audiences and critics alike for her critically-acclaimed performance in Circle of Friends, in which she starred with Chris O’Donnell. She went on to earn Oscar® and Screen Actors Guild nominations, both in the category of Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role for her performance in Miramax’s award-winning feature Good Will Hunting, directed by Gus Van Sant. In March 1998, Driver was honored with the prestigious Female Star of Tomorrow Award at ShoWest. Recently Driver has been nominated for an Emmy® Award and a Golden Globe® Award for her role as ‘Dahlia Malloy’ on the critically acclaimed FX series The Riches. In July 2007, she released her second album SEA STORIES. In addition to Driver’s ethereal vocals and lush guitars, the album features performances from Ryan Adams and his backing band The Cardinals, indie queen Liz Phair, keyboardist Rami Jaffe (The Wallflowers/Foo Fighters), and Zack Ray (Gnarls Barkley). SEA STORIES was mixed by recent Grammy® winner Jim Scott (Dixie Chicks, Lucinda Williams, Tom Petty).
In 2005, Driver was seen in the feature film version of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical, The Phantom of the Opera, and received critical praise for her performance including a nomination by the London Critics Circle in the category Best British Actress in a Supporting Role. The Warner Bros. film was nominated for a Golden Globe for Outstanding Film: Musical or Comedy. In addition to acting in the film, Driver sang the original title track “Learn to be Lonely” written by Andrew Lloyd Webber. The song, which plays over the end credits of the film, was nominated for a Golden Globe and an Oscar in the Best Original Song category.
Driver, who has been a singer and songwriter for years, released her debut album Everything in My Pocket in 2004. The atmospheric pop album gained critical praise from the music community. Said Daryl Morden at The Hollywood Reporter, “Driver comes off more honest— a singer-songwriter with a genuine, organic sound ...” Driver toured with the Finn Brothers in the UK in 2004 and recently headlined her own sold out tour in the US and the UK.
In the 2003-2004 television season she made several guest appearances on NBC’s Will & Grace as ‘Lorraine Finster,’ and became a favorite of critics and fans. In 2003, Driver appeared on stage at London’s Comedy Theatre with Matthew Perry and Hank Azaria in David Mamet’s Sexual Perversity in Chicago. The play broke the record for the largest box-office advance for a West End show. The same year Driver also was seen co-starring with Phillip Seymour Hoffman in Owning Mahowny, which debuted at the Sundance Film Festival and was also screened at the Berlin Film Festival. She also appeared in Buena Vista International’s Hope Springs, with Heather Graham and Colin Firth.
Building her career on diverse roles, Driver’s additional film credits include the critically praised dark comedy Grosse Pointe Blank; the love story Return To Me; the feature version of Oscar Wilde’s play An Ideal Husband; the Walt Disney animated feature Tarzan, providing the voice of ‘Jane’; Beautiful, directed by Sally Field and co-produced by Two Drivers Productions (the company Minnie formed with her sister Kate); Sleepers, alongside Robert De Niro, Brad Pitt and Dustin Hoffman and directed by Barry Levinson; and the James Bond thriller Goldeneye.
The British actress has amassed an impressive list of television and theater credentials, including numerous projects for the BBC and theatrical productions of The Comedy of Errors, The Married Man, School for Scandal and Camino Real. Driver is a spokesperson for the international aid agency OXFAM. In 2004, she traveled to Cambodia and Thailand to bring attention to how backward practices of the garment industry affect the poverty stricken workforce. Driver currently resides in Los Angeles.
