Mary Beth Hurt, a Tony Award nominee who also starred in movies such as “The World According to Garp,” “Interiors” and “Chilly Scenes of Winter,” died on Saturday. She was 79.

Hurt’s death was confirmed through a joint Facebook post from her daughter, Molly Schrader, and her husband, writer-director Paul Schrader, according to Variety.

“She was an actress, a wife, a sister, a mother, an aunt, a friend, and she took on all those roles with grace and kind ferocity,” the Facebook post read. “Although we’re all grieving there is some comfort in knowing she is no longer suffering and reunited with her sisters in peace.”

Paul Schrader told The Hollywood Reporter that Hurt died at an assisted living facility in Jersey City, New Jersey. The actress had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2015, according to the entertainment news website.

Hurt also performed in “Slaves of New York,” “Parents” and “Six Degrees of Separation.”

On stage, Hurt appeared 15 times on Broadway from 1974 to 2011, according to The Hollywood Reporter. She received three Tony Award nominations -- in 1976 for “Trelawny of the ‘Wells’” and 1982 for “Crimes of the Heart” (Best Actress in a Feature Role, Play); and in 1986 for “Benefactors” (Best Actress in a Lead Role, Play).

Born Mary Beth Supinger in Marshalltown, Iowa, the actress was married to actor William Hurt from 1971 to 1981, Variety reported. She studied acting at the University of Iowa and then at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, graduating from the latter school in 1969. She debuted on the stage in New York City in 1974, according to the entertainment news website.

On television, Mary Beth Hurt had guest star roles on “Law & Order,” “Thirtysomething” and “Kojak,” Variety reported.

While Hurt rarely received top billing during her career, she preferred to play supporting roles, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

“I’ve never been extremely comfortable playing the lead,” she said in a 2010 interview. “I don’t like the responsibility; there’s a feeling that I have to be good. Besides, I found secondary parts much more interesting, especially when I was younger and the ingénue roles were pretty bland.

“I never felt very beautiful, or incredibly smart or witty, so I was always looking for something about [roles] that intrigued me. And I would sort of twist that character in a way because I remember thinking that an ingénue character doesn’t ever think they’re an ingénue. They think they’re a person, and they have idiosyncrasies. Those idiosyncrasies interested me.”

The actress married Paul Schrader in August 1983 in Chicago, according to The Hollywood Reporter. She appeared in four films he directed: “Light Sleeper” (1992), “Affliction” (1997), “The Walker” (2007) and “Adam Resurrected” (2008).

©2026 Cox Media Group