Born in Wilkes-Barre, PA; educated at the SUNY, Fredonia. Brunette leading lady with considerable stage experience. McDonnell made her New York theater debut in Sam Shepard's Pulitzer Prize-winning Buried Child and played in New York and regional productions of A Doll's House, Savage in Limbo, Oh Pioneers! and Black Angel. Her breakthrough film role came as the boardinghouse owner in John Sayles' acclaimed MATEWAN (1987). McDonnell has since played the requisite romantic lead in such films as TIGER WARSAW (1988) and SNEAKERS (1992), but received more critical attention in DANCES WITH WOLVES (1990) as Stands with a Fist, a white woman raised by a tribe of Sioux Indians and charmed by disgruntled Civil War veteran Kevin Costner. She received further acclaim for another Sayles film, PASSION FISH (1992), in which she played a paralyzed former TV soap star opposite live-in nurse Alfre Woodard. Other notable screen credits include GRAND CANYON (1991), BLUE CHIPS (1994), INDEPENDENCE DAY (1996), YOU CAN THANK ME LATER (1998), MUMFORD (1999), DONNIE DARKO (2001), NOLA (2003), CRAZY LIKE A FOX (2004), and JIMMY NOLAN (scheduled for 2008). From 2004, McDonnell has played President Laura Roslin in the TV series "Battlestar Galactica".    Nominated for Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role 1990: DANCES WITH WOLVES    Nominated for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role 1992: PASSION FISH 2 nominations