A scene stealer par excellence, Lahti often found her film roles reduced in the cutting room, usually at the behest of nervous stars.
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In September 2011, Lahti starred with in the Broadway debut of 's play, —a reenactment of the that overturned California's ban on —as.
At the Governor's Ball held after the 49th Annual Emmy Awards, 1997 In 2001, her first directorial feature-length film, , was released.