Marlee Matlin discusses her abusive relationship with her ex-boyfriend and 'Children of a Lesser God' costar William Hurt in the new documentary 'Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore', which the Oscar winner premiered at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival on Jan.

Academy-Award-winning actress Marlee Matlin has delivered several memorable performances in a career spanning nearly four decades. She is the first-ever deaf performer to win an Oscar after receiving the Best Actress accolade for her performance as Sarah Norman in the romantic drama movie Children of a Lesser God.

Marlee Matlin won the 1987 Oscar for best actress, but was afraid to take the award from William Hurt, who she knew ‘wasn’t happy’

Not Alone Anymore,” the star continues to explore the at times lonesome space she has occupied since bursting on the scene in 1986: that of being a representative for deaf people, and being herself. For more than three decades,

“I was afraid as I walked up the stairs to get the Oscar,” Matlin recalled about the moment in an interview with filmmaker Shoshannah Stern. “I was afraid because I knew in my gut that he wasn’t happy. Because I saw the look on his face and my thought was, ‘S–t!'”