Editing Heather Graham (section)

=== Wider industry and public recognition (1997–2003) ===
Graham's popularity significantly increased after playing a young [[porn star]] in the critically acclaimed film ''[[Boogie Nights]]'' (1997). The cast received a nomination for the [[Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture]]. The same year, she also starred in the [[Gregg Araki]] film ''[[Nowhere (1997 film)|Nowhere]]'', and had a cameo in the horror hit ''[[Scream 2]]'' as a fictionalised version of herself, portraying [[Casey Becker]] in the [[film within a film]] ''Stab''. She was subsequently cast in ''[[Two Girls and a Guy]]'' (1998), a film mainly based upon dialogue between the characters, shot in 11 days,<ref>{{cite news|last=McCarthy|first=Todd|title=Two Girls and A Guy|url=https://variety.com/1997/film/reviews/two-girls-and-a-guy-1117329520/|work=Variety|access-date=June 17, 2020|archive-date=December 2, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201202194033/https://variety.com/1997/film/reviews/two-girls-and-a-guy-1117329520/|url-status=live}}</ref> which co-starred [[Robert Downey Jr.]] and [[Natasha Gregson]]; and the sci-fi film ''[[Lost in Space (film)|Lost in Space]]'', which was met with mostly negative reviews, and grossed $69,117,629 domestically on a production budget of $80 million. The cast was signed on for sequels that remain unmade.<ref>{{cite web|title=Lost in Space|url=https://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=lostinspace.htm|website=BoxOfficeMojo.com|access-date=December 2, 2012|archive-date=December 5, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121205052150/http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=lostinspace.htm|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Lost in Space (1998)|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/lost_in_space/|website=Rotten Tomatoes|access-date=December 2, 2012|archive-date=January 2, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130102071743/http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/lost_in_space/|url-status=live}}</ref>

She starred as [[Felicity Shagwell]] in the sequel ''[[Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me]]'' (1999), which was a box-office hit. Shagwell is one of her best-known roles and became a fan favorite.<ref name="cineoutsider1">{{cite web|last=Raw|first=Timothy E.|title=The spy who misunderstood me|url=http://www.cineoutsider.com/articles/stories/h/heather_graham_interview.html|website=www.cineoutsider.com|access-date=December 2, 2012|archive-date=January 12, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130112034701/http://www.cineoutsider.com/articles/stories/h/heather_graham_interview.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Her turn as Shagwell also earned her a nomination for the [[Saturn Award for Best Actress]]. She appeared in the music video for [[Lenny Kravitz]]'s cover of "[[American Woman (song)|American Woman]]". Also in 1999, Graham co-starred as Daisy in the movie ''[[Bowfinger]]'', opposite [[Steve Martin]] and [[Eddie Murphy]].

The 2000 film ''[[Committed (2000 film)|Committed]]'' was her first starring vehicle. She played Joline, a devoted-beyond-reason young wife looking for the husband who left her. While the film itself received mixed reviews, the Rotten Tomatoes summary of critics felt that "Graham shows she can play a central character", but noted "she's not enough to make ''Committed'' successful".<ref>{{cite web|title=Committed (2000)|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1096844-committed/|website=Rotten Tomatoes|access-date=December 2, 2012|archive-date=April 25, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130425192553/http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1096844-committed/|url-status=live}}</ref> The following year, she co-starred as Annie Matthews, an unhappily married woman, in [[Edward Burns]]' ''[[Sidewalks of New York (2001 film)|Sidewalks of New York]]''. In 2002, she starred with [[Joseph Fiennes]] in [[Chen Kaige]]'s English-language debut film ''[[Killing Me Softly (film)|Killing Me Softly]]'', which received overwhelmingly negative response from critics and a 0% at [[Rotten Tomatoes]], with the consensus being: "Respected director Chen Kaige's first English-language film is a spectacularly misguided erotic thriller, with ludicrous plot twists and cringe-worthy dialogue".<ref>{{cite web|title=Killing Me Softly (2002)|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/killing_me_softly/|website=Rotten Tomatoes|access-date=December 2, 2012|archive-date=November 2, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121102230725/http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/killing_me_softly/|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2009, the site also rated it No.&nbsp;12 on the countdown of the worst films over the last ten years.

Graham's other appearances in mainstream fare include playing a fictionalized version of the [[Jack the Ripper]] murder victim [[Mary Jane Kelly|Mary Kelly]] in the film ''[[From Hell (film)|From Hell]]'' (2001), starring [[Johnny Depp]]; ''[[Anger Management (film)|Anger Management]]'' (2003), starring [[Adam Sandler]] and [[Jack Nicholson]]; the [[Farrelly Brothers]] comedy ''[[Say It Isn't So (film)|Say It Isn't So]]'' (2001), opposite [[Sally Field]]; ''[[The Guru (2002 film)|The Guru]]'', co-starring [[Jimi Mistry]], and ''[[Hope Springs (2003 film)|Hope Springs]]'' (2003), co-starring [[Colin Firth]].