1962-present
Latest News: Demi Moore Wins Golden Globe for The Substance
Demi Moore was at a “low point” when she received the script for her horror movie The Substance. It turned into one of the biggest honors of her career.
Moore, 62, won her first major acting award on January 5, taking home the Golden Globe for Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Motion Picture—Musical or Comedy. Taking the stage, she shared an emotional speech reflecting on her own struggles with self-worth— similar to Elisabeth Sparkle, her character in the 2024 film directed by Coralie Fargeat.
She recalled when a producer once told her she was a “popcorn actress,” leading her to question her ability. “That corroded me over time, to the point where I thought a few years ago that maybe this was it, maybe I was complete, maybe I had done what I was supposed to do... and the universe told me that you’re not done,” Moore told the crowd.
“Today, I celebrate this as a marker of my wholeness, and of the love that is driving me, and for the gift of doing something I love and being reminded that I do belong.”
Moore’s last Golden Globe nomination was in 1997 for If These Walls Could Talk, the anthology television film starring Cher and Sissy Spacek. She has never been nominated for an Academy Award, though Sunday’s win bodes well for that changing this year.
Who Is Demi Moore?
Actor Demi Moore has starred in St. Elmo’s Fire, Ghost, Disclosure, and The Substance, for which she won a 2025 Golden Globe Award. As a teenager, Moore found her way onto the soap opera General Hospital before becoming part of the Brat Pack. She hit the jackpot in the 1990s with the hit movies Ghost and Disclosure, but her continued success was hampered by flops like Striptease and G.I. Jane amid projects such as Charlie’s Angels 2 and Margin Call. Moore is also known for her past marriages to fellow actors Bruce Willis and Ashton Kutcher. Her most recent roles include Feud: Capote vs. The Swans and the body horror The Substance, both from 2024.
Quick Facts
FULL NAME: Demetria Gene Moore
BORN: November 11, 1962
BIRTHPLACE: Roswell, New Mexico
SPOUSES: Freddy Moore (1981-1985), Bruce Willis (1987-2000), and Ashton Kutcher (2005-2013)
CHILDREN: Rumer, Tallulah, and Scout
ASTROLOGICAL SIGN: Scorpio
Early Life
Demi Moore was born Demetria Gene Guynes on November 11, 1962, in Roswell, New Mexico. Her parents split up before she was born, and she was raised by her mother and stepfather, Virginia and Danny Guynes, both of whom drank heavily.
Demi had moved more than 30 times by the time she turned 14, eventually settling in Los Angeles. “By moving around a lot, I learned to assimilate into whatever new surroundings I had and to become very comfortable with people quickly,” she later explained in Interview magazine. “I think that was one of the strongest contributing factors to my becoming an actor.” Dropping out of high school at 16, Demi worked as a debt collector for a time and tried modeling. She also developed an interest in acting.
Movies and TV Shows
In 1981, Moore landed a role on the popular television soap opera General Hospital. She played journalist Jackie Templeton for two years. That same year, Moore made her movie debut in the independent drama Choices.
During her stint on General Hospital, Moore found time for a few film projects. Following her marriage to musician Freddy Moore in 1981, she appeared with him in the 3D science-fiction horror flick Parasite (1982). Moore also had a bit part in the soap opera spoof Young Doctors in Love (1982).
St. Elmo’s Fire
After leaving her soap opera role, Moore struggled to build a career in film. She played Michael Caine’s daughter in Blame it on Rio (1984), which attracted little attention from critics or moviegoers. Taking on a leading role, Moore played Jon Cryer’s love interest in No Small Affair (1984).
It wasn’t until her performance in St. Elmo’s Fire (1985) that Moore captured the public’s attention. The movie told the story of a group of friends as they confront post-college life. The cast also included a number of other young stars on the rise, such as Rob Lowe, Andrew McCarthy, Judd Nelson, Ally Sheedy, and Emilio Estevez. Many of these performers were becoming equally famous for their offscreen antics and partying lifestyle, with the media dubbing them the “Brat Pack.”
About Last Night
In 1986, Moore starred opposite Rob Lowe in About Last Night, a look at young singles in Chicago. Critic Roger Ebert praised both of their performances, saying the film “gives them the best acting opportunities either one has ever had, and they make the most of them.” He also singled out Moore as “especially impressive. There isn’t a romantic note she isn’t required to play in this movie, and she plays them all flawlessly.”
The Seventh Sign
Again playing the love interest, Moore co-starred with John Cusack in the popular comedy One Crazy Summer (1986). She was working steadily but had yet to score a major box-office hit. In 1988, Moore returned to the big screen with The Seventh Sign, an apocalyptic thriller. She played a pregnant woman trying to stop the end of the world. Despite a few positive reviews for her performance, the movie only earned about $16 million in ticket sales. Moore took on lighter fare with her next effort, 1989’s We’re No Angels, which starred Robert De Niro and Sean Penn. Despite its impressive cast, the film didn’t fare well with audiences.
Ghost
Moore’s biggest career breakthrough came in 1990 with the romantic drama Ghost. She played Molly, a young woman whose husband Sam (played by Patrick Swayze) was murdered. His spirit works with a psychic (Whoopi Goldberg) to avenge his death and to protect Molly from those involved. Showing impressive vulnerability onscreen, Moore earned praise for her work on the movie, which became a huge hit. Ghost brought in approximately $218 million at the box office and earned five Academy Award nominations.
Moore’s next two films, Nothing But Trouble (1991) and The Butcher’s Wife (1991), showed off her comedic side. They both, however, failed to attract much of an audience.
A Few Good Men and Indecent Proposal
Co-starring with Tom Cruise, Moore played a tough Navy lawyer in the smash hit A Few Good Men (1992). She continued to prosper commercially with Indecent Proposal (1993), teaming with Woody Harrelson to play a married couple in financial trouble who travel to Las Vegas to gamble their way back to solvency. They end up losing their money and befriending a lonely billionaire (played by Robert Redford), who offers the desperate couple $1 million for the opportunity to sleep with Moore’s character. While reviews were mixed, the film brought in a respectable $104 million at the box office.
Disclosure and Striptease
In 1994, she starred opposite Michael Douglas in the box office hit Disclosure. Moore played a top executive who sexually harasses Douglas’ character. In an interview for Entertainment Weekly, she explained why she took the controversial role: “I’d never played a villain before so that was attractive to me.” She adding that she was a “wreck” during filming: “I’ve never showed up for a show where I literally started shaking before every scene. I’ve never stepped into someone who’s so cunning—she’s just really scary.”
In 1995, Moore made movie history when she became the highest paid female actor at the time—netting a $12.5 million payday for Striptease (1996). The movie follows a single mother who works as a stripper to earn money to fight her ex-husband for custody of their daughter (played by Moore’s real-life daughter Rumer). The film proved to be a commercial and critical disappointment.
G.I. Jane and Austin Powers
Moore starred in 1997’s G.I. Jane as the first woman to attempt to join the elite Navy Seals military unit. For the role, Moore trained vigorously, lifting weights for two hours a day and going for six-mile runs. She even shaved off her hair for one scene. All of this dedication, however, translated into a middling showing at the box office. Moore later said that the media reports “killed G.I. Jane before it ever even had a moment,” according to Entertainment Weekly.
However, she did find success during this time through her production company, Moving Pictures. She signed on to produce the hit comedy Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997) and its sequels, Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999) and Austin Powers in Goldmember (2002).
Charlie’s Angels
Moore’s next big-screen venture was heralded as her comeback. In Charlie’s Angels 2: Full Throttle (2003), she played a villain named Madison Lee. Moore appeared opposite the eponymous angels Drew Barrymore, Lucy Liu, and Cameron Diaz. “She’s so lovely and so powerful,” said the film’s director, McG, about Moore. “Here’s a woman who has three children—she goes toe-to-toe with Cameron Diaz in a bikini. She’s awesome. I just enjoy her performances and her gutsiness.”
Moore went on to take a small but dramatic role playing an alcoholic lounge singer in Emilio Estevez’s Bobby (2006), which imagined the final hours of Robert Kennedy through the eyes of different people at the Los Angeles Ambassador Hotel. Her strong performance earned a share of critical praise. Moore followed up this success with the thriller Mr. Brooks (2007), playing a detective pursuing a serial killer (Kevin Costner). She then co-starred in the heist caper Flawless (2008), with Michael Caine.
Moore continued to tackle an interesting mix of projects. She had a role in the independent family drama Happy Tears—with Parker Posey, Rip Torn, and Ellen Barkin—that screened at the Berlin Film Festival in February 2009. In the 2010 noir action film, Bunraku, Moore appeared with Josh Hartnett and Ron Perlman. She also co-starred with David Duchovny in the offbeat drama The Joneses.
Margin Call
In 2011, Moore gave another impressive performance in the drama Margin Call, which starred Jeremy Irons, Kevin Spacey, and Paul Bettany. She also expanded her work behind the camera that same year, signing a deal with the Lifetime cable network for several new projects. The actor had prominent roles in Very Good Girls (2014), Forsaken (2015), and Wild Oats (2016), and starred as the female lead of Blind (2016), alongside Alec Baldwin. Moore also enjoyed a positive reception with her return to television in 2017, nabbing a recurring role on Season 4 of the popular Fox drama Empire.
Back on the big screen, Moore enjoyed a supporting part in the dark comedy Rough Night (2017), before appearing in the drama Love Sonia (2018) and co-starring in the comedy-horror Corporate Animals (2019). Additionally, she prepared for another TV gig by landing a role in USA Network’s adaptation of Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World.
Golden Globe Win for The Substance
Moore appeared in a pair of prominent 2024 projects, starting with her role as socialite Ann Woodward in the FX television drama Feud: Capote vs. The Swans, about author Truman Capote stoking scandal among New York City’s social elite. She also starred as fitness star Elisabeth Sparkle in the body horror movie The Substance. The latter earned Moore the first major acting award of her career, a Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy.
Ex-Husbands
Currently single, Moore has been married and divorced three times. She has three children with fellow actor Bruce Willis, her second husband.
Freddy Moore
Demi married her first husband, rock musician Freddy Moore, in 1981 and adopted his last name. Their marriage didn’t last long, with the couple divorcing just three years later in 1984, but cemented Demi’s identity as we know her today.
Around the time of her first divorce, she started dating Emilio Estevez, and the two became engaged in 1985. The couple starred together in 1986’s Wisdom, which Estevez also wrote and directed. However, wedding bells weren’t in the couple’s future, with she and Estevez breaking up the following year.
Bruce Willis
Moore soon met actor Bruce Willis, who was then on the popular television show Moonlighting, with Cybill Shepherd. She and Willis began dating and were married in November 1987 in Las Vegas.
In 1988, they welcomed their first child together, Rumer, who they named after the British writer Rumer Godden. In 1991, Moore became the talk of the nation with her controversial Vanity Fair cover. She was in the midst of her second pregnancy when she posed in the nude for the magazine’s cover. While surprised by the dramatic response to the image, Moore also saw the cover as a chance to challenge perceptions about women and pregnancy. “People in this country don’t want to embrace motherhood and sensuality,” she told Interview magazine. “You’re either sexy, or you’re a mother. I didn’t want to have to choose.” Not too long after that issue appeared on newsstands, Moore and Willis celebrated the birth of their second daughter, Scout. Their third daughter, Tallulah, was born, in 1994.
Moore faced more personal challenges when her estranged mother was diagnosed with brain cancer in 1997, and the mother and daughter finally reunited. Moore stayed with her mother for the final months of her life, before Virginia died in July 1998. At the same time, Moore had to cope with another loss. She and Willis announced their separation after more than 10 years of marriage, just days before Guynes’ death.
Retreating from the Hollywood scene in 1998, Moore and her three daughters moved to Hailey, Idaho, where she and Willis had previously purchased a home. During her time in Hailey, Moore mostly focused on raising her daughters.
Ashton Kutcher
In 2003, Moore began attracting a lot of media attention when she began dating 25-year-old actor Ashton Kutcher, 15 years her junior. The tabloids couldn’t seem to get enough of this May-December romance, with some speculating whether their relationship was merely a publicity stunt. Moore and Kutcher proved their critics wrong when they married in September 2005 at their Beverly Hills home. Kutcher became very close with Moore’s daughters, who sometimes called him “MOD,” for “My Other Dad.”
In November 2011, Moore filed for divorce from Kutcher in the wake of numerous reports that he had been unfaithful to her. At the time, she released a statement, saying “As a woman, a mother and a wife there are certain values and vows that I hold sacred, and it is in this spirit that I have chosen to move forward with my life.” Their divorce was finalized in 2013.
Memoir and More
Beyond the screen, Moore drew attention with the September 2019 publication of her memoir, Inside Out, which delves into her turbulent childhood, Hollywood stardom, and battles with substance abuse.
In January 2012, Moore seemed to experiencing a personal crisis. She was taken to a Los Angeles hospital early in the year after suffering a seizure from inhaling nitrous oxide, according to TMZ. Moore didn’t publicly acknowledge the incident, but she did decide to seek help for some health issues. A spokesperson for the actor said that planned to get “professional assistance to treat her exhaustion and improve her overall health.” She also dropped out of the film Lovelace, about the famed porn star Linda Lovelace. Moore had signed on to play feminist Gloria Steinem.
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