Susan Kellermann: Beetlejuice Actress — Career, Movies & Life

Who Is Susan Kellermann?

Susan Kellermann is an American actress and voice actress who’s built a career spanning more than five decades across Broadway, film, and television. She’s best recognized by mainstream audiences for her appearance in Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice (1988) and Robert Zemeckis’s dark comedy Death Becomes Her (1992).

But her roots run deeper than Hollywood. Kellermann earned a Tony Award nomination for Best Featured Actress in a Play for Last of the Red Hot Lovers in 1970 — just a few years into her professional career. That early recognition on Broadway set the tone for decades of consistent work in theater, film, TV, and voice acting.

Born on July 4, 1944, she’s now 81 years old and has one of those careers that doesn’t grab tabloid headlines but quietly fills out the credits of some of the most memorable productions of the late 20th century.

Early Life and Education

Susan Kellermann was born on July 4, 1944, in the United States. She’s the daughter of Dr. Heinz Josef Kellermann and Mignon Lunt Pauli. Growing up in an intellectual household, she developed an early interest in literature and performance.

She attended Randolph-Macon Woman’s College (now Randolph College) in Lynchburg, Virginia, where she studied English Literature. That academic grounding gave her a strong command of language and text — skills that would later serve her well in both classical theater and screenwriting-heavy film roles.

After graduating, Kellermann trained at the Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre in New York City, studying under Sanford Meisner. Meisner’s technique — focused on truthful, instinctive behavior in imaginary circumstances — became the foundation of her acting approach. Many of the 20th century’s strongest character actors came through that same program, and Kellermann was no exception.

Theater Career and Tony Nomination

Kellermann made her mark on the New York theater scene in the late 1960s and earned recognition fast. Her performance in Neil Simon’s Last of the Red Hot Lovers (1969-1970) earned her a Tony Award nomination for Best Featured Actress in a Play. She was still in her mid-twenties at the time, and a Tony nod at that age — in a Neil Simon production, no less — signaled serious talent.

She also earned a Theatre World Award for her Broadway debut in Last Licks, a recognition given annually to outstanding new performers on the New York stage.

Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Kellermann continued working in both Broadway and off-Broadway productions. Her training under Meisner made her especially effective in ensemble casts, where her presence could anchor a scene without dominating it. She appeared in productions like Equus, playing the role of Dora, and took on a range of parts that moved between comedy and drama.

Theater remained a constant thread throughout her career, even as film and TV roles increased. For Kellermann, the stage wasn’t a stepping stone — it was the core of her craft.

Film Career: Beetlejuice, Death Becomes Her, and More

Kellermann’s film career took off in the 1980s. Her most widely recognized screen role came in Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice (1988), the supernatural comedy starring Michael Keaton, Alec Baldwin, and Geena Davis. The film grossed over $73 million at the box office and became a cult classic. Kellermann’s presence in the cast added to the film’s ensemble of strong character actors.

Four years later, she appeared in Death Becomes Her (1992), directed by Robert Zemeckis and starring Meryl Streep, Goldie Hawn, and Bruce Willis. The dark comedy about vanity and immortality won the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects and has since gained a cult following of its own.

Her other film credits include:

• Last Holiday (2006) — a comedy-drama starring Queen Latifah
• In the Family (2011) — an independent drama about family and custody
• Sweet, Sweet Lonely Girl (2016) — a psychological horror film that served as her most recent known film credit

Kellermann didn’t chase blockbuster leads. She picked roles that let her do what she does best: bring grounded, specific performances to supporting and character parts that make the film stronger as a whole.

Television Career

Kellermann’s television work spans from the mid-1970s through the 2000s. She made her TV debut with an appearance on Laverne & Shirley (1976), one of the top-rated sitcoms of that era.

She went on to guest star in a number of well-known series, including:

• Cheers — the beloved Boston bar sitcom
• Dear John — the NBC sitcom starring Judd Hirsch
• L.A. Law — the Emmy-winning legal drama
• Monk — the USA Network detective series starring Tony Shalhoub

Her TV appearances were typically guest roles and recurring parts rather than series-regular positions. That’s consistent with the career of a working character actress who splits time between stage, screen, and voice work — she wasn’t tied down to any single production for years at a stretch, which gave her the freedom to keep taking theater roles in New York.

Voice Acting Work

In addition to her on-screen and stage work, Kellermann has lent her voice to animated productions. Voice acting was a natural fit for an actress trained in the Meisner technique, where vocal expression and emotional honesty are central to the method.

While her voice acting credits aren’t as extensively documented as her film and stage work, this side of her career adds another dimension to an already varied body of work. Many stage-trained actors of her generation moved into voice work as animation expanded through the 1990s and 2000s, and Kellermann was among them.

Personal Life

Susan Kellermann has kept her personal life largely out of the public eye. There’s very little publicly available information about her relationships, marital status, or family life outside of her parents.

What is known: she was born on July 4, 1944, making her a Cancer by zodiac sign. At 178 cm (5’10”), she’s notably tall, which gave her a distinctive physical presence on stage and screen.

Her approach to privacy is consistent with many theater-trained actors of her generation — the work speaks, and the personal stays personal. She hasn’t maintained a visible social media presence, and interviews with her are uncommon in recent years.

Susan Kellermann Net Worth

Susan Kellermann’s estimated net worth is approximately $2.5 million. That figure reflects over 50 years of steady work across multiple entertainment disciplines — Broadway, off-Broadway theater, feature films, television guest spots, and voice acting.

Her income wasn’t built on a single blockbuster paycheck but on decades of consistent employment in an industry where most actors struggle to stay working year after year. Roles in commercially successful films like Beetlejuice and Death Becomes Her contributed to her earnings, alongside her extensive theater work and TV guest appearances.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Susan Kellermann best known for?

Susan Kellermann is best known for her roles in Beetlejuice (1988) and Death Becomes Her (1992), as well as her Tony-nominated performance in Last of the Red Hot Lovers on Broadway in 1970.

How old is Susan Kellermann?

Susan Kellermann was born on July 4, 1944, making her 81 years old as of 2026.

Was Susan Kellermann nominated for a Tony Award?

Yes. She received a Tony Award nomination for Best Featured Actress in a Play for her role in Neil Simon’s Last of the Red Hot Lovers in 1970.

What is Susan Kellermann’s net worth?

Her estimated net worth is approximately $2.5 million, accumulated through over five decades of work in theater, film, television, and voice acting.

What was Susan Kellermann’s last movie?

Her most recent known film credit is Sweet, Sweet Lonely Girl (2016), a psychological horror film. She hasn’t had a publicly listed credit since that production.