Woman Crush Wednesday: ‘That ‘90s Show’ Star Debra Jo Rupp is a Timeless Talent

Happy Hump Day, everybody! With the middle of the week also comes our regular Woman Crush Wednesday column that seeks to celebrate the laudable ladies delivering memorable, entertaining, and moving performances in all of the best new titles on your favorite streaming platforms. This time, we’re talking about an amazing actress who has long since established herself as an enduring talent on both stage and screen, and who we are always ecstatic to see and hear more from. So, without further ado, give it up for your WCW, the remarkable Debra Jo Rupp!

WHO’S THAT GAL: Debra Jo Rupp

WHY WE’RE CRUSHING: Rupp reprises her That ’70s Show role as Kitty Forman in the show’s highly-anticipated upcoming Netflix Original reboot That ’90s Show, which premieres on the platform this Thursday, January 19. The teen sitcom takes place in 1995 and follows Leia Forman (Callie Haverda), the daughter of Eric Forman (Topher Grace) and Donna Pinciotti (Laura Prepon), as she spends the summer with her grandparents, Kitty (Rupp) and Red (Kurtwood Smith) in Point Place, Wisconsin. There, the 15-year-old will make friends, have fun, and try to find herself under the watchful gazes of her grandparents.

In addition to Rupp, Haverda, Smith, Grace, and Prepon, the show also features new faces in Ashley Aufderheide, Mace Coronel, Maxwell Acee Donovan, Reyn Doi, and Sam Morelos, as well as familiar ones from the original series in Mila Kunis, Ashton Kutcher, Wilmer Valderrama, Tommy Chong, and Don Stark. Be sure to catch all of their great work in the delightful new title that is That ’90s Show the moment it drops this week, only on Netflix.

WHERE YOU’VE SEEN HER BEFORE: Rupp’s professional onscreen career began in 1980, when she appeared as Sheila in an episode of popular daytime soap opera All My Children. She earned additional TV credits in 1987, with one-episode guest appearances in Kate & Allie and Spenser: For Hire, and then just one year later, she had her feature film debut, playing Miss Patterson in Tom Hanks-led comedy-drama film Big, opening the door for even more roles on screens big and small. From there, Rupp continued to build up her filmography with work in shows like Newhart, Davis Rules, Empty Nest, Blossom, Family Matters, Evening Shade, Phenom, L.A. Law, Hearts Afire, ER, Seinfeld, The Jeff Foxworthy Show, and Friends, as well as in films like 1992 satirical black comedy Death Becomes Her, 1996 military comedy Sgt. Bilko, and 1997 comedy-drama Clockwatchers. Then in 1998, Rupp’s career was taken to the next level when she started playing Kitty Forman in Fox period teen sitcom That ’70s Show, on which she acted for 200 episodes, from then until the show’s 2006 finale.

In the years following her start on That ’70s Show, Rupp only continued to put in the work, cementing herself as a household name by acting in TV series like The Tracy Morgan Show, Robot Chicken, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, As the World Turns, Better With You, Hart of Dixie, Elementary, NCIS: Los Angeles, The Ranch, This Is Us, I Feel Bad, and Grey’s Anatomy. At the same time, she was appearing on the silver screen in films like 2004 animated musical comedy Teacher’s Pet, 2004 comedy Garfield, 2005 romantic-comedy Lucky 13, 2006 sports comedy Air Buddies, 2007 comedy Kickin’ It Old Skool, 2010 romantic-comedy She’s Out of My League, 2012 comedy She Wants Me, 2019 comedy The Social Ones, and 2019 romantic-comedy Fair Market Value.

Most recently, Rupp has been featured in shows like At Home with Amy Sedaris, WandaVision, and Marvel Studios: Assembled. Clearly, Rupp is a skilled and extremely driven actress who has been serving up consistently incredible performances for over 40 years now, and who we can’t wait to see kill it in whatever projects and passions she pursues in the years to come.

WHERE YOU’LL SEE HER AGAIN: Luckily, you won’t have to wait too much longer to see more from Rupp. Look out for her to reprise her WandaVision role as Sharon Davis/”Mrs. Hart” in Disney+ Original action adventure-comedy series Agatha: Coven of Chaos, which is expected to premiere on the platform later this year. For even more from Rupp in the meantime, be sure to follow her now on Twitter and Instagram so that you never miss a moment from your wonderful WCW!