Piper Laurie was an American actress who appeared in Twin Peaks as Catherine Martell, a role which earned her a Golden Globe. She appeared in the 2017 series through the use of archive footage. When portraying Mr. Tojamura prior to his reveal as Catherine, Laurie was credited as Fumio Yamaguchi. She is best known for her roles in the films The Hustler (1961), Carrie (1976), and Children of a Lesser God (1986).
Laurie agreed to play Catherine because she had seen all of David Lynch's work and wanted to have a chance to work with him. She thought the pilot would be a fun one-off film to do since she didn't know that it would be picked up to series.[1] For her performance as Catherine, Laurie won a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress in a Series, Miniseries or television film (for which Sherilyn Fenn was also nominated for her performance as Audrey Horne) and was nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series.
At one point, Lynch considered asking Laurie to reprise her role in The Return, but he never did because he couldn't come up with a believable way for Catherine to be a part of the storyline. She did, however, appear through the use of archive footage. Nevertheless, Laurie would have been happy to return.[2]
Aside from Twin Peaks, Laurie was known for her roles in the films The Hustler (1961), Carrie (1976), and Children of a Lesser God (1986), and the miniseries The Thorn Birds (1983), and was also known for her performance as Kirsten Arnesen in the original TV production of Days of Wine and Roses. Laurie received various accolades, including a Primetime Emmy Award for Twin Peaks, as well as a Golden Globe Award.
