Amy Davis Irving, a naturally brunette and blue-eyed beauty, was born in Palo Alto, California. She is the youngest of three children to influential theatrical and television director/producer Jules Irving and actress Priscilla Pointer. Her father was of Russian Jewish descent, and her mother's ancestry includes English, Scots-Irish, Welsh, Jewish, and German.
Amy was brought up in the world of theater, with her parents not wanting babysitters for their children. She was put on stage from the time she was nine months old, with her father directing and mother acting. Before she was 10 years old, she had already worked in several plays. She was trained at the American Conservatory Theater and Britain's London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts (L.A.M.A.D.A.).
Amy made her off-Broadway debut at the age of 17 and went on to receive critical acclaim, appearing in plays such as "Heartbreak House" (1983),"The Road to Mecca" (1988),"Broken Glass" (1994),"The Three Sisters" (1997),"The Guys" (2002),"Ghosts" (2002),and "Celadine" (2004),among others.
In 1976, Amy made her film debut in Stephen King's "Carrie" (1976),playing one of her most unforgettable characters, "Sue Snell". She continued working in important films, including "The Fury" (1978),"Voices" (1979),and "The Competition" (1980). She gave a fine performance as "Hadass" in Barbra Streisand's "Yentl" (1983),earning an Oscar nomination.
Amy was married to director Steven Spielberg from 1985 to 1989 and has a son with him, Max Spielberg. After her divorce, she met Brazilian director Bruno Barreto and they have a son, Gabriel. She made a guest appearance on Woody Allen's "Deconstructing Harry" (1997) and came back in the sequel of "Carrie" (1976),"The Rage: Carrie 2" (1999).
In the year 2000, she surprised the whole world again with her performance as "Mary Ann Simpson", a very funny and sensual, English teacher in the film "Bossa Nova" (2000). She managed to capture this peculiar character very well. After this romantic comedy, Amy had a great opportunity, playing "Barbara Wakefield", Michael Douglas' wife in "Traffic" (2000),the film was a huge success and she won an Actor Award, shared with the rest of the cast.
Amy Irving continues working on stage in Broadway productions and spends most of her time with her friends and family, especially with her two children.
