Anne Celeste Heche (/heɪtʃ/ ⓘ HAYTCH; May 25, 1969 – August 11, 2022) was an American actress, known for her roles in a variety of genres in film, television, and theater. She received numerous accolades, including a Daytime Emmy Award and a National Board of Review Award.
Heche's professional acting career began on the soap opera Another World (1987–1991) portraying the twins Vicky Hudson and Marley Love, for which she received a Daytime Emmy Award in 1991. She made her film debut in a supporting role in O Pioneers!, a 1992 American made-for-television drama film based on the 1913 novel by Willa Cather. Heche's acting profile rose during the 1990s, gaining particular attention for her co-starring role in the independent film Walking and Talking (1996) and for her standout supporting role in the crime drama Donnie Brasco (1997). Further high-profile roles followed in 1997, including Volcano, I Know What You Did Last Summer and Wag the Dog. In 1998, Heche further rose to prominence with her leading role in the romantic comedy Six Days, Seven Nights opposite Harrison Ford. Also in 1998, she starred in Gus Van Sant's shot-for-shot remake of Psycho.
From 1999 to 2001, Heche took fewer acting roles and concentrated on directing projects, most notably a segment of the HBO anthology film If These Walls Could Talk 2 (2000). Her acting roles from the 2000s onward focused on independent films, television series and some stage roles. In 2004, she was nominated for a Tony Award for her role in the Broadway revival of the play Twentieth Century and a Primetime Emmy Award for the television film Gracie's Choice, also starring in an acclaimed supporting role in the supernatural drama Birth. Other film roles included Cedar Rapids (2011), Catfight (2016), and My Friend Dahmer (2017). Heche also starred in a number of dramatic television series, including Men in Trees (2006–2008) In 2020, she appeared as a contestant in the 29th season of Dancing with the Stars.
Events in Heche's personal life often upstaged her acting career. From 1997 to 2000, she was in a high-profile relationship with comedian Ellen DeGeneres, sometimes described as "the first gay supercouple". Immediately following her split with DeGeneres in 2000, she had a highly publicized psychotic breakdown in which she appeared at a rural ranch house outside of Fresno, California, claiming to be an entity named "Celestia" who would take humanity to heaven in a spaceship. In 2001, Heche published a memoir titled Call Me Crazy that alleged extensive childhood sexual abuse by her father.
On August 5, 2022, Heche was critically injured when she crashed her car into a house at high speed. She died at a hospital in Los Angeles on August 11, 2022, at the age of 53.
