Biography - Lin Shaye

Who is Lin Shaye?

Lin Shaye is an actress by profession and American by nationality. Having acted in theater and TV series, she is well known for starring in films Dumb and Dumber, There's Something About Mary, Grudge, and A Nightmare on Elm Street.

Lin Shaye – Birth, Parents, Siblings

Lin Shaye’s birth took place on October 12, 1943, in Detroit, Michigan, USA. She was born to her mother, Dorothy Shaye, a homemaker, and her father, Max Mendle Shaye, a painter and supermarket owner. 

She is not the only child of her parents and has a sibling, older brother Robert Shaye, who is a film executive.

Education, Ethnicity

For education, Lin Shaye went to Mumford High School. She then attended the University of Michigan to study acting and moved to New York to appear in Off-Broadway productions in 1977. 

Her ethnicity is Ashkenazi-Jewish.

Lin Shaye – Boyfriend, Husband, Children, Divorce

Lin Shaye married her boyfriend, Marshall Rubinoff, a writer and musician. The couple was married until his death on 7 July 1968 at the age of 24. 

Her second husband is actor Clayton Landey, whom she married on 1 January 1988. She and her husband have one child together, a son, Lee J. Landey, who was born in 1989. However, this relationship did not last, and they divorced in 2003.

She is currently belived to be single.

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Lin Shaye – Career

Early Career

Shaye began her professional career as an actress in 1971. Her debut role was in Hester Street, followed by small roles in films The Triangle Factory Fire Scandal (1979), The Long Riders (1980), A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984), Critters (1986), and Pump Up the Volume (1990).

In the TV series, Lin Shaye has starred in Eight Is Enough (1977), Who's the Boss? (1987), Sisters (1993).

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Films, Series

Over the last 4 decades, Shaye has starred in over 3 dozen films and over a dozen TV series.

The films in which she has portrayed characters include Even Cowgirls Get the Blues (1993), Dumb & Dumber (1994), Kingpin (1996), There's Something About Mary (1998), Dumb and Dumberer: When Harry Met Lloyd (2003), Dead End (2003), Driftwood (2006), Insidious (2011), Ouija (2014), The Grudge (2020), Frank and Penelope (2022), Insidious (2023), The Last Stand of Ellen Cole (2024), House of Abraham (2025), among many others.

In the TV series, Lin Shaye has had roles in Dirty Sexy Money (2007), Things You Shouldn't Say Past Midnight (2015), and Grip and Electric (2016).

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Co-stars

Lin Shaye’s fellow Grudge co-stars include Andrea Riseborough, John Cho, Betty Gilpin, etc.

Lin Shaye – Awards, Nominations

Lin Shaye has had nominations and has won numerous awards, including Method Fest Independent Film Festival (2002), Fangoria Chainsaw Awards (2012), and Right Meter Awards (2011, 2014, 2016), among others.

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Lin Shaye – Net Worth, Salary

Her net worth has been estimated at around $3 million, while the figure on her annual salary has not been shared with the public.

Lin Shaye – Instagram, Twitter, Facebook

On social media handles such as Instagram and Twitter, Lin Shaye is active with thousands of followers, but is absent from other handles such as Facebook.

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