Lena Dunham
Actress · Director
40 years (May 13, 1986)New York, New York, USA
Lena Dunham, born in New York in 1986, is the writer, director and actress who defined a generation of American independent television. She emerged with her self-financed indie feature Tiny Furniture (2010), and then created, wrote and starred in the HBO series Girls (2012-2017), which chronicled the messy young lives of a group of women in Brooklyn and earned her Emmy and Golden Globe recognition. She has continued to work behind and in front of the camera with the semi-autobiographical film Sharp Stick (2022) and the medieval coming-of-age story Catherine, Called Birdy (2022). Also a prolific essayist and memoirist, she remains a distinctive if often debated voice in contemporary American culture.
Lena Dunham
Actress · Director
Lena Dunham, born in New York in 1986, is the writer, director and actress who defined a generation of American independent television. She emerged with her self-financed indie feature Tiny Furniture (2010), and then created, wrote and starred in the HBO series Girls (2012-2017), which chronicled the messy young lives of a group of women in Brooklyn and earned her Emmy and Golden Globe recognition. She has continued to work behind and in front of the camera with the semi-autobiographical film Sharp Stick (2022) and the medieval coming-of-age story Catherine, Called Birdy (2022). Also a prolific essayist and memoirist, she remains a distinctive if often debated voice in contemporary American culture.
21 Movies
Plays 'Gypsy'
Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood
2019
Plays Cat
This Is 40
2012
Plays Administrator on Phone with Zu (voice)
Music
2021
Plays Barista
The Innkeepers
2012
Director
Plays Heather
Sharp Stick
2022
Plays 911 Operator (voice)
The House of the Devil
2009
Plays Carson
Happy Christmas
2014
Plays Lisa
The Stand In
2020
Plays Ms. Lyons
I Wish You All the Best
2025
Plays Lanny Denver
7 Days in Hell
2015
Producer
Plays Ruth
Treasure
2024
Director
Plays Aura
Tiny Furniture
2010
Plays Meryl
My Art
2016
Plays Mary (voice)
My Entire High School Sinking Into the Sea
2016
Plays Billie
Sky
2016
Plays Alexa
Supporting Characters
2013
Plays Colby
Gabi on the Roof in July
2010
Plays Delilah
Honeydew
2021
Director
Plays Ella
Creative Nonfiction
2009
Latest Trailers
Watch Trailer
I Wish You All the Best
Full Filmography
I Wish You All the Best
Ms. Lyons
2025
Too Much
Nora South · 10 episodes
2025–
Treasure
Ruth
2024
Sharp Stick
Heather
2022
Honeydew
Delilah
2021
Music
Administrator on Phone with Zu (voice)
2021
The Stand In
Lisa
2020
Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood
'Gypsy'
2019
American Horror Story
Valerie Solanas
2017Season 7
Photos
Frequently Asked Questions
How old is Lena Dunham and where are they from?
Lena Dunham is 40 years old, born on May 13, 1986 in New York, New York, USA.
What are the most famous roles of Lena Dunham?
Lena Dunham is best known for roles in Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood, This Is 40, The House of the Devil.
How many movies has Lena Dunham been in?
Over a 20-year career (since 2006), Lena Dunham has appeared in 20 movies and 6 TV shows.
What was Lena Dunham's first movie?
The career of Lena Dunham began with Pressure (2006).
What is Lena Dunham's most recent movie or series?
Lena Dunham's most recent release is It Gets Worse, which premiered on October 22, 2026.
What TV shows has Lena Dunham appeared in?
On television, Lena Dunham has appeared in The Simpsons, American Horror Story, The Daily Show, Scandal.
Lena Dunham
1986-05-13 · New York, New York, USA
Lena Dunham (/ˈliːnə ˈdʌnəm/; born May 13, 1986) is an American writer, director, actress, and producer. She is the creator, writer, and star of the HBO television series Girls (2012–2017), for which she received several Emmy Award nominations and two Golden Globe Awards. Dunham also directed several episodes of Girls and became the first woman to win the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Comedy Series. She started her career writing, directing, and starring in her semi-autobiographical independent film Tiny Furniture (2010), for which she won an Independent Spirit Award for Best First Screenplay. She has since written and directed the 2022 films Sharp Stick and Catherine Called Birdy.
In 2013, Dunham was included in the annual Time100 list of the most influential people in the world. In 2014, Dunham released her first book, Not That Kind of Girl: A Young Woman Tells You What She's "Learned". In 2015, along with Girls showrunner Jenni Konner, Dunham created the publication Lenny Letter, a feminist online newsletter. The publication ran for three years before its discontinuation in late 2018. In 2026, she released her second book Famesick, which is described as a deeply personal memoir tracking Dunham's rise to fame, health struggles, and the costs of ambition.
Dunham briefly appeared in films such as Supporting Characters, This Is 40 (2012), and Happy Christmas (2014). She voiced Mary in the 2016 film My Entire High School Sinking Into the Sea, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival. Aside from Girls, she has played guest roles on television in Scandal and The Simpsons (both 2015). In 2017, she portrayed Valerie Solanas in American Horror Story: Cult.
In 2025, her Netflix show Too Much starring Meg Stalter was released, which she co-created with husband Luis Felber. In September 2026 she welcomed a daughter via surrogacy with her husband. In October 2026 Dunham announced the return of the series Girls through a mock Zoom video call alongside original cast members Allison Williams, Jemima Kirke, Zosia Mamet, and Andrew Rannells.
Dunham's work and her outspoken presence on social media and in interviews have attracted significant controversy, praise, criticism, and media scrutiny throughout her career.