Jennifer Grey found herself at the pinnacle of Hollywood during the 1980s, captivating audiences as a rising young star.

Her breakout role came as the endearing Frances ‘Baby’ Houseman in the iconic 1987 film Dirty Dancing, where she starred alongside Patrick Swayze.

Before this, Grey had already made her mark by playing the role of Matthew Broderick’s irritated sister in the 1986 hit comedy Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. She also showcased her talent in films like Red Dawn and The Cotton Club, both released in 1984.

Her career continued with roles in Bloodhounds of Broadway in 1989 and later Bounce in 2000.

She extended her filmography with appearances in Redbelt (2008), The Wind Rises (2013), In Your Eyes (2014), and Bittersweet Symphony (2019). Most recently, Grey graced the screen in A Real Pain, released in 2024.

The Hollywood actress made a rare sighting at Kathy Hilton’s Beverly Hills home on Monday to celebrate a new documentary from Cindy Eckert.

The star looked youthful as she mingled with Jennie Garth and Bijou Phillips in photos obtained by Daily Mail.

See what the Hollywood icon looks like now at age 65. 

Jennifer Grey had a massive movie career in the 1980s when she was a young adult; seen in Dirty Dancing

The New Yorker pictured as a teenager in an image she shared to Instagram

She was born in New York City to former actress Jo Wilder and Academy Award-winning screen actor Joel Grey.

Grey attended NYC’s Dalton School where studied dance and acting, and where she met her best friend, actress Tracy Pollan who is wed to Michael J Fox.

Next Grey enrolled at Manhattan’s Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre for two years.

Grey made her commercial debut at age 19 in an ad for Dr Pepper, then made her film debut in a small role in Reckless (1984), followed by another small role, in Francis Ford Coppola’s The Cotton Club in 1984. 

That year she starred in the war film Red Dawn, then went on to the 1985 John Badham flick American Flyers.

In 1986 she played the role of jealous sister Jeannie Bueller in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.

The following year she reunited with Swayze, her Red Dawn co-star for Dirty Dancing, her most famous movie on her resume.

When she got a nose job in the early 90s she became unrecognizable.

‘I went in the operating room a celebrity—and came out anonymous,’ she said.

The actress was the cute teenager Frances ‘Baby’ Houseman in the hit Patrick Swayze movie Dirty Dancing in 1987

They had incredible chemistry in the coming of age story set in the Catskills

Fans loved that she was the quirky teenager who landed the hunk

There was a love scene in the movie that was memorable

Here she is seen practicing her dance moves while at a resort

Grey was a contestant on season 11 of Dancing With the Stars with professional dancer Derek Hough and they won.

In September 2011 Grey appeared in the Lifetime movie Bling Ring as Iris Garvey, the mother of Zack Garvey.

From 2014 to 2017, Grey portrayed Judy Meyers on Red Oaks.

Last year Grey talked her comeback to Red Online. ‘Sometimes it’s really easy to become jaded in the business,’ she said. 

‘It’s not like I ever had the fantasy of like, “Oh, I’ll move to Hollywood and I’ll become a star, and my life will be fantastic.”

‘I always knew that it was tough, and I also saw that it was possible.’ 

She resolved to ‘be really good’, and took dance classes and singing lessons.

Ferris Bueller’s Day Off with Grey as Jeanie Bueller and Charlie Sheen as Boy in Police Station

Grey, Lea Thompson in Red Dawn from 1984

Grey in Lifetime’s The Road to Christmas

‘It really showed me craft,’ she said.

‘Because sometimes you don’t need techniques; sometimes it’s just easy. But sometimes you need it. 

‘And so the more prepared you are, and the more confident you are, and the more tools you have, the better your chances of surviving.’ 

Her love life has also been high-profile involving big Hollywood actors.

One was her Ferris Bueller’s Day Off costar Broderick. 

Sadly in 1987, Grey was in a car collision in Northern Ireland with Broderick. 

Broderick crossed into the wrong lane and collided head-on with a car driven by a mother and daughter who were killed instantly. 

The Hollywood actress made a rare sighting at Kathy Hilton’s Beverly Hills home on Monday to celebrate a new documentary from Cindy Eckert

The star looked youthful as she mingled with Katherine LaNasa

Grey, Sharon Lawrence and LaNasa

Grey, Cindy Eckert and Hilary Shor 

Broderick was convicted of careless driving. She later said she had survivor’s guilt over the crash.

Grey dated Michael J. Fox, Johnny Depp, and William Baldwin, and George Stephanopoulos.

She married actor and director Clark Gregg in 2001. They have a daughter named Stella Gregg who was is 24-years-old.

The couple co-starred in the Lifetime movie The Road to Christmas in 2006.

On July 3, 2020, Grey and Gregg announced they had separated amicably in January, and had filed for divorce. Their divorce became final on February 16, 2021.