Brenda Lee Strong was born on March 25, 1960, in Portland, Oregon, and she was crowned Miss Arizona in 1980. She earned a Bachelor of Music degree from Arizona State University, where she graduated magna cum laude.

Her career began with a spot in Billy Crystal's 1984 music video "You Look Marvelous." She made her television debut in 1985 with brief stints on shows like "St. Elsewhere," "MacGyver," and "Cheers."

She also appeared in "Shadow Chasers," "Hotel," "Star Trek: The Next Generation," "Matlock," "Murphy Brown," "Herman's Head," and "Blossom." In 1990, she had a recurring role in the ABC series "Twin Peaks." Her film debut came in 1986 with the comedy "Weekend Warriors," and she had a supporting part in "Spaceballs" in 1987.

From 1996 to 1998, she appeared as Elaine's nemesis Sue Ellen Mischke, the "bra-less wonder" and "Oh Henry!" candy bar heiress, on several episodes of NBC sitcom "Seinfeld." She also had recurring roles on "Party of Five," "7th Heaven," and "Everwood," and guest-starred on "3rd Rock from the Sun," "ER," "Picket Fences," "Silk Stalkings," "Dawson's Creek," "Any Day Now," "Ally McBeal," "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation," and "Nip/Tuck."

From 1998 to 2000, she played Sally Sasser, the nemesis of Felicity Huffman's Dana Whitaker, in the ABC comedy-drama "Sports Night." In early 2004, she starred as wealthy Arlene Ridgeway in the WB short-lived sitcom "The Help."

Brenda Strong is best known for her role as Mary Alice Young in the ABC television comedy-drama series "Desperate Housewives" (2004-2012), for which she was nominated for two Emmy Awards. She later starred as Ann Ewing in the TNT prime time soap opera "Dallas" (2012-2014).

In 2016, she guest-starred as Queen Nia in "The 100" and undertook a recurring role as Lillian Luthor on "Supergirl." She appeared as a recurring character in the second season of the Netflix Original "13 Reasons Why" and was promoted to series regular for its third season in September 2018. She directed two episodes in season four.

Brenda Strong is also a certified yoga instructor and fertility expert, having taught at UCLA's Mind/Body Institute and received an honorary Doctorate of Science for her work regarding yoga and fertility from Yo San University.

She married Tom Henri in July 1989, and they have a son, Zakery Henri. They divorced in 2011, and she later married John Farmanesh-Bocca in 2015. she is currently working on a series of books to empower women, both fiction and non-fiction.

Her career has been marked by her versatility and dedication to her craft. She has appeared in several films, including "Starship Troopers" (1997), "Black Dog" (1998), "The Deep End of the Ocean" (1999), "Starship Troopers 2: Hero of the Federation" (2004), and "The Work and the Glory" (2004).

She has also been involved in theater, playing roles in productions like "Titus Redux" and "Trevor."