Sutton Foster’s On-Screen Evolution: Her Best TV and Film Roles, From Stage to Screen
Learn about the star’s roles you might have forgotten—plus her surprising fave TV show we also love!

She’s a two-time Tony Award-winning actress and is known best for her career as a triple threat — acting, singing and dancing. Sutton Foster has stolen hearts on Broadway as the leading lady in The Drowsy Chaperone, Thoroughly Modern Millie, The Music Man and Anything Goes.
But the actress has had a successful career on-screen as well, portraying Michelle Simms in Bunheads from 2012 to 2013, as well as Liza Miller in Younger from 2015 to 2021. Catch up with Sutton Foster and learn more about her television and film career.
Sutton Foster’s Broadway roots & early screen roles

Nearly a decade after scoring her first role on Broadway in a 1996 production of Grease, Foster began dabbling in a television career. She booked her first role in 2007, appearing in an episode of Johnny and the Sprites. Soon after, she landed a few more small roles in Flight of the Conchords (2007), Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (2010) and Royal Pains (2012).
In 2012, Foster also booked the lead role in the short-lived comedy series, Bunheads, which only lasted for one season and a total of 18 episodes. The show was created by Gilmore Girls’ Amy Sherman-Palladino and starred an alum from the show, Kelly Bishop.
“My favorite show of all time is Gilmore Girls,” Foster shared at the time. “Amy contacted my agents and wanted to take a meeting, and I kind of freaked out…So it kinda came out of nowhere, but I read the script and it just seemed like such a perfect fit for me and for what I wanted to do next. The opportunity to get to work with her and to say her words — I couldn’t believe it.”
Sutton Foster gets ‘Younger’: her breakout TV success

Over the next few years, Foster continued to be cast in smaller parts in films and TV series. She starred as Fiona in Shrek: The Musical (2013), followed by parts in Psych (2014), Gravy (2015), The Good Wife (2016) and Gilmore Girls: A Year In The Life (2016).
In 2015, the actress booked her biggest TV role yet in the Darren Star drama series, Younger. Foster acted alongside Hilary Duff, Peter Hermann, Debi Mazar and Nico Tortorella. The series follows Foster’s character, Liza Miller, a 40-year-old divorced mom who is mistaken as a 26-year-old, which encourages her to lie about her age to get a job in the publishing industry. Liza goes on to live as a 26-year-old in New York City, experiencing love and a flourishing career once more.
Younger was a very successful show from the creator of Beverly Hills, 90210, Melrose Place and Sex and the City. The series lasted for seven seasons, from 2015 to 2021.

“I remember reading the script in my kitchen, and I think I was 39,” Foster said. “I was on the verge of turning 40 and I was, like, ‘Oh my gosh! I could do this!’ Because it was about a woman trying to pretend she was much younger than she was.”
Foster also shared that she learned so much while working on Younger. As a theater native, she had to learn to adjust to this different medium.
“Every season, I learned more and more about how to be on a set, how to be on camera, how to learn lines and how to handle a character that grows,” Foster explained.
Sutton Foster’s thoughts on transitioning from theater to TV
Following the end of Younger, Foster dabbled in bringing Broadway to the big screen. In 2021, the actress starred in the film adaptation of Anything Goes. She later booked voice roles in Ridley Jones (2021-2023), Solar Opposites (2022-2023) and another role in an Amy Sherman-Palladino series, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.
In her transition from Broadway to television, Foster had to adjust the way she approached her roles, and offered up a comparison of working on Broadway and in television.
“You know, [on stage] we play characters that do the same thing every single night, and then [on TV] suddenly I’m on a journey,” Foster said.
Conversation
All comments are subject to our Community Guidelines. First For Women does not endorse the opinions and views shared by our readers in our comment sections. Our comments section is a place where readers can engage in healthy, productive, lively, and respectful discussions. Offensive language, hate speech, personal attacks, and/or defamatory statements are not permitted. Advertising or spam is also prohibited.