When it comes to memorable films of the 1990s, this actress was once everywhere. She appeared in several major movies during the decade and worked alongside some of Hollywood’s biggest names.
Now 67, she later found a whole new generation of fans thanks to a hugely successful TV show in the 2000s — but would you recognise her today?
The actress is Margaret Colin, whose career has spanned decades across both film and television. While many viewers now remember her best as Eleanor Waldorf, the elegant and demanding mother of Blair Waldorf on Gossip Girl, her résumé stretches far beyond the Upper East Side.
Before her CW fame, Margaret was a familiar face on the big screen throughout the 80s and 90s. She starred opposite Will Smith and Bill Pullman in the 1996 blockbuster Independence Day, one of the defining films of the era.
This week, Margaret was spotted out and about in New York City, bundled up against the winter cold and looking almost unrecognisable. She stayed warm in a long black coat paired with a red fur hat, finishing the look with a grey scarf and sturdy black boots as she navigated the snowy streets.
A Career Built Over Decades
Margaret decided to pursue acting at just 22 years old and landed her first major TV role on the soap As the World Turns in the early 1980s. That breakthrough opened the door to film roles, including Pretty in Pink alongside Molly Ringwald in 1986.
Her career quickly gathered momentum with appearances in Something Wild with Melanie Griffith, Three Men and a Baby opposite Tom Selleck and Ted Danson, and The Butcher’s Wife with Demi Moore. After Independence Day, she went on to star with Brad Pitt and Harrison Ford in The Devil’s Own in 1997.
Reinventing Herself on TV
In the mid-2000s, Margaret made a successful return to television by joining Gossip Girl. The series became one of the defining shows of the decade, running for six seasons and cementing her role as fashion designer Eleanor Waldorf.
Margaret has spoken fondly of the character and her on-screen daughter, Leighton Meester, praising her talent and professionalism.
Off screen, Margaret has enjoyed a long and happy marriage to actor Justin Deas. The couple met on As the World Turns, married in 1988, and share two sons, Sam and Joe.
