American women television directors

Jennifer Love Hewitt (born February 21, 1979) is an American actress and singer. Hewitt began her career as a child actress and singer, appearing in national television commercials before joining the cast of the Disney Channel series Kids Incorporated (1989–1991). She had her breakthrough as Sarah Reeves Merrin on the Fox teen drama Party of Five (1995–1999) and rose to fame as a teen star for her role as Julie James in the horror films I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997) and its 1998 sequel, as well as her role as Amanda Beckett in the teen comedy film Can't Hardly Wait (1998).

Eva Jacqueline Bastón (née Longoria; born March 15, 1975) is an American actress, producer, director, activist, and businesswoman. After a number of guest roles on several television series, Longoria was recognized for her portrayal of Isabella Braña on the CBS daytime soap opera The Young and the Restless, on which she starred from 2001 to 2003. She is most known for her role as Gabrielle Solis on the television series Desperate Housewives, which ran from 2004 to 2012 and for which she received Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild Award nominations. She has also appeared in The Sentinel (2006), Over Her Dead Body (2008), For Greater Glory (2012), Frontera (2014), Lowriders (2016), and Overboard (2018). From 2015 to 2016, Longoria starred as Ana Sofia Calderón on the short-lived NBC sitcom Telenovela, and served as an executive producer for the Lifetime television series Devious Maids. She has also served as an executive producer of social issue documentaries, including Food Chains and The Harvest.

Drew Blythe Barrymore (born February 22, 1975) is an American actress, producer, talk show host, author and businesswoman. A member of the Barrymore family of actors, she has received several awards and nominations, including a Golden Globe Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award, in addition to nominations for seven Emmy Awards and a British Academy Film Award. She received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2004.

Shannen Doherty (, born April 12, 1971) is an American actress. She is known for her many roles of television and film, including as Jenny Wilder in Little House on the Prairie (1982–1983); Maggie Malene in Girls Just Want to Have Fun (1985); Kris Witherspoon in Our House (1986–1988); Heather Duke in Heathers (1989); Brenda Walsh in Beverly Hills, 90210 (1990–94), 90210 (2008–2009) and again in BH90210 (2019); Prue Halliwell in Charmed (1998–2001); and Dobbs in Fortress (2021).

Melissa Joan Hart (born April 18, 1976) is an American actress, producer and director. She had starring roles as the titular characters in the sitcoms Clarissa Explains It All (1991–1994), Sabrina the Teenage Witch (1996–2003), and Melissa & Joey (2010–2015). She has also appeared in films Drive Me Crazy (1999), Nine Dead (2009) and God's Not Dead 2 (2016).

Mariska Magdolna Hargitay (born January 23, 1964) is an American actress best known for her role as New York Police Department Captain Olivia Benson on the NBC drama series Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. Hargitay has starred on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit since 1999. For her role on the show, Hargitay has received multiple awards and nominations, including a Primetime Emmy and a Golden Globe. The daughter of bodybuilder and actor Mickey Hargitay and actress Jayne Mansfield, Hargitay made her film debut in the 1985 horror comedy film Ghoulies and her major television debut in the 1986 adventure drama series Downtown. She appeared in numerous roles in film and on television throughout the late 1980s and 1990s before being cast on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. Hargitay’s work on that show led her to found the Joyful Heart Foundation, an organization that provides support to people who have been sexually abused.

Kerry Marisa Washington (born January 31, 1977) is an American actress, producer, and director. She gained wide public recognition for starring as crisis management expert Olivia Pope in the ABC drama series Scandal (2012–2018). For her role, she was twice nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series and once for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Drama. Her portrayal of Anita Hill in the HBO television political thriller film, Confirmation (2016), earned her a nomination for both the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie and the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Miniseries or Television Film. And for her role as Mia Warren in the Hulu miniseries Little Fires Everywhere (2020) she was again nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie.

Alicia Christian "Jodie" Foster (born November 19, 1962) is an American actress, director, and producer. She has received two Academy Awards, three British Academy Film Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, and the Cecil B. DeMille Award. For her work as a director, she has been nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award.

Gillian Leigh Anderson OBE ( JIL-ee-ən; born August 9, 1968) is an American-British actress. Her credits include the roles of FBI Special Agent Dana Scully in the series The X-Files, ill-fated socialite Lily Bart in Terence Davies's film The House of Mirth (2000), DSU Stella Gibson in the BBC/RTÉ crime drama television series The Fall, sex therapist Jean Milburn in the Netflix comedy drama Sex Education, and British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in the fourth season of Netflix drama series The Crown. Among other honors, she has won two Primetime Emmy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, and four Screen Actors Guild Awards.

Francine Joy Drescher (born September 30, 1957) is an American actress, comedian, writer, and activist. She is best known for her role as Fran Fine in the hit TV series The Nanny (1993–1999), and for her nasal voice and thick New York accent.