Linda Cardellini going to Loch Christa with an Emmy on her resume! The actress won her first Emmy on September 6, 2026, for her supporting role in DTF St. Louis. Now, she takes on Pam Voorhees, the mother of infamy Friday the 13th killer Jason Voorhees. Fans already know Linda from Freaks and geeks, Scooby-Doo and Dead to mebut there is plenty more to learn about her off screen.
From her starting career to her family life and long-term romance with Steven Rodriguez, Hollywood life have collected five things about Linda below.
Linda Cardellini was born and raised in California
Born on June 25, 1975, in Redwood City, California, Linda is the youngest of four children. She began performing in local theater as a child and continued acting while attending St. Mary’s High School. Francis in Mountain View. She later earned a theater degree from Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles and completed a summer study program at London’s National Theatre.
Her role was in ‘Freaks and Geeks’
Linda came to prominence as Lindsay Weir on Freaks and geekswhich first appeared in 1999. She played an academically gifted teenager who begins spending time with a group of outsiders as they question her identity. Although the series only lasted one season, it developed a devoted following. Linda also dated her costar Jason Segelwho played Lindsay’s love interest Nick Andopolis, for five years.
She went on to play Velma Dinkley in the live series Scooby-Doo movies and nurse Samantha Taggart on IS. Her other credits include Brokeback Mountain, Legally Blonde and Bloodlineas well as her role as Laura Barton, Hawkeye’s wife, in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Linda earned Emmy nominations for ‘Mad Men’ and ‘Dead to Me’
Linda earned a 2013 Emmy nomination for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series for her portrayal of Sylvia Rosen, Don Draper’s married mistress, on Mad Men. In 2020, she received an Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series nomination for playing Judy Hale on Dead to me. She also worked behind the camera as a co-executive producer, sharing the Outstanding Comedy Series nomination for the Netflix show that year.
She welcomed her daughter Lilah Rose in 2012
Linda and Steven welcomed their first child, their daughter Lilah Roseon February 29, 2012. Born on Leap Day, Lilah has a birthday that appears on the calendar only once every four years. Before her daughter arrived, Linda talked about the anticipation and responsibility of being a parent. “It’s a wonderful, exciting event,” she told PEOPLE in December 2011, while acknowledging that the experience also brought on some understandable nerves.
Linda got engaged to Steven Rodriguez in 2013
Linda’s love story with Steven goes back to high school. She was 10 when they met, and she later recalled being impressed by the 11-year-old’s bike stunts. The longtime friends reconnected romantically years later, and Steven proposed in New York City in June 2013. Linda announced the news on The Viewreveals that her sister, cousins and friend Maura Tierney they were there for the special occasion. “It was very beautiful,” she said of the proposal.