- Hunt won four Emmys, four Golden Globes, a Blockbuster Award, two Screen Actors Guild awards, four American Comedy Awards, three Viewers for Quality Television Awards and an Oscar, along with other awards. She is only the second actress to win a Golden Globe, an Oscar, and an Emmy in the same calendar year. The first was Liza Minnelli in 1973.
- Witnessed the World Trade Center attacks from the roof of her brand new New York apartment and decided to leave the city right away, but could not get a flight out. She booked a private jet at considerable expense and flew herself and her staff out of Connecticut three days later, the first day they allowed private jets to fly. (September 2001)
- Celebrates Thanksgiving every year with Anthony Edwards.
- Frequents Hawaii, which she first visited when she was 14. Says, "It's where I feel right. I can write here, think, chill and get a clear head.".
- She and her Mad About You (1992) co-star, Paul Reiser, were both given $1,000,000 per episode salaries for the 1999 TV season.
- Despite playing their daughter in Peggy Sue Got Married (1986), Hunt is just 9 years younger than Kathleen Turner and 1 year older than Nicolas Cage.
- Asked novelist Robert B. Parker to create a female private detective for her to play. The result was Parker's series of novels featuring Sunny Randall.
- Got the lead in As Good as It Gets (1997) after Holly Hunter turned it down.
- She appeared in four movies released in the year 2000. Two of them were in theaters at the same time during the end-of-the-year holiday season, and grossed over $150 million each: Cast Away (2000) and What Women Want (2000).
- Beat Teri Hatcher for the role of Jamie Buchman in Mad About You (1992) at the final auditions.
- Her best friend is Helen Slater.
- Got the role in Twister (1996) based on her performance in The Waterdance (1992).
- Gave birth to her only child at age 40 (daughter Makena Lei Gordon Carnahan) on May 13, 2004. The child's father is Hunt's then-partner, Matthew Carnahan. Makena Lei Gordon Carnahan was conceived via IVF treatment. "Makena Lei" means "many flowers of heaven." The baby's middle name, Gordon, is in honor of Hunt's father, Gordon Hunt. Hunt returned to work in 2006 in order to begin filming and directing Then She Found Me (2007).
- After divorcing Hank Azaria, she moved to New York, intending to do theater work, especially William Shakespeare. (2000)
- Hunt did a guest voice role on Dumbbell Indemnity (1998) as Moe's girlfriend, Renee; the voice of Moe is Hank Azaria, Helen's real-life husband at that time.
- Was up for the role of Tabitha Stephens on Bewitched (1964).
- Was considered for the part of Carolyn Burnham in American Beauty (1999). However Annette Bening, who went on to receive a Best Actress Oscar nomination for her performance, was cast instead.
- Is one of 3 actresses to have won the Best Actress Oscar (hers being for As Good as It Gets (1997)) and the Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series Emmy (hers being for Mad About You (1992)). The other actresses are Loretta Young and Shirley Booth.
- One of People Magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People. (1998)
- Was the 113th actress to receive an Academy Award; she won the Best Actress Oscar for As Good as It Gets (1997) at The 70th Annual Academy Awards (1998) on March 23, 1998.
- Hunt was born and raised in Los Angeles County, graduated from Providence High School (Burbank, California), and, later, very briefly attended UCLA for one month before dropping out.
- Former partner of Matthew Carnahan (2001-2017); 1 child.
- Received the Maui Film Festival's Stella Award at the 'Wailea Marriott' Ballroom on June 18, 2005. (June 2005)
- She and her ex-husband, Hank Azaria, have both guest-starred on the TV show Friends (1994), though not in the same episode.
- Friends with Mindy Cohn.
- On October 16, 2019, Helen was in the backseat of an SUV in the Mid-City area of Los Angeles when her vehicle was T-boned after attempting to drive through an intersection. After being brought to the hospital and examined by doctors, the actress was released later that evening.
- The daughter of Gordon Hunt (b. 1929) and Jane Elizabeth Novis (b. 1938), Helen Hunt is the stepdaughter of B.J. Ward and niece of Peter H. Hunt and Barbette Tweed. Maternal niece of James Novis (b. 1941) and Catherine Fries (b. 1961), a dancer. Maternal granddaughter of Edward Novis (1902-1944) and Dorothy Novis (1915-2011).
Hunt's paternal great-grandparents were Gustav Rothenberg (1857-1910; born in Germany) and Florence Scholle (1863-1949; born in California). Her paternal grandparents were George Hunt (1895-1996) and Helen (Rothenberg) Roberts (1899-1935). Her paternal grandmother was from a German Jewish family, while her three other grandparents were of English descent. Her maternal grandfather, Edward Norman Novis, was from St. Leonards, Hastings, England. - She was responsible for suggesting Lou Richards to her father Gordon Hunt to voice Leader-1 in Challenge of the Gobots cartoon series.
- Appearing at the Circle in the Square Theatre's production of Yasmina Reza's play, "Life (x) 3". (March 2003)
- Is one of 15 Oscar-winning actresses to have been born in the state of California. The others are Fay Bainter, Gloria Grahame, Jo Van Fleet, Liza Minnelli, Tatum O'Neal, Diane Keaton, Sally Field, Anjelica Huston, Cher, Jodie Foster, Gwyneth Paltrow, Angelina Jolie, Marcia Gay Harden, and Brie Larson.
- Is one of 14 actresses to have won both the Best Actress Academy Award and the Best Actress in a Comedy/Musical Golden Globe for the same performance; hers being for As Good as It Gets (1997). The others, in chronological order, are: Judy Holliday for Born Yesterday (1950), Julie Andrews for Mary Poppins (1964), Barbra Streisand for Funny Girl (1968), Liza Minnelli for Cabaret (1972), Glenda Jackson for A Touch of Class (1973), Diane Keaton for Annie Hall (1977), Sissy Spacek for Coal Miner's Daughter (1980), Cher for Moonstruck (1987), Jessica Tandy for Driving Miss Daisy (1989), Gwyneth Paltrow for Shakespeare in Love (1998), Reese Witherspoon for Walk the Line (2005), Marion Cotillard for La Vie En Rose (2007), and Jennifer Lawrence for Silver Linings Playbook (2012).
- Is one of 25 actresses who have received an Academy Award for their performance in a comedy; hers being for As Good as It Gets (1997). The others in chronological order, are: Claudette Colbert (It Happened One Night (1934)), Loretta Young (The Farmer's Daughter (1947)), Josephine Hull (Harvey (1950)), Judy Holliday (Born Yesterday (1950)), Audrey Hepburn (Roman Holiday (1953)), Goldie Hawn (Cactus Flower (1969)), Glenda Jackson (A Touch of Class (1973)), Lee Grant (Shampoo (1975)), Diane Keaton (Annie Hall (1977)), Maggie Smith (California Suite (1978)), Mary Steenburgen (Melvin and Howard (1980)), Jessica Lange (Tootsie (1982)), Olympia Dukakis (Moonstruck (1987)), Cher (Moonstruck (1987)), Jessica Tandy (Driving Miss Daisy (1989)), Mercedes Ruehl (The Fisher King (1991)), Marisa Tomei (My Cousin Vinny (1992)), Dianne Wiest (Bullets Over Broadway (1994)), Mira Sorvino (Mighty Aphrodite (1995)), Frances McDormand (Fargo (1996)), Judi Dench (Shakespeare in Love (1998)), Gwyneth Paltrow (Shakespeare in Love (1998)), Penélope Cruz (Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008)), and Jennifer Lawrence (Silver Linings Playbook (2012)).
- Born at 12:55 PM (PDT).
- She was born in Culver City where her father, Gordon Hunt was a director and acting teacher who used to take her with him wherever he went, once she'd turned 5 years, which was mainly the theatres in New York, She loved that and knew that she wanted to be on on the stage.
- The only actress to get an Oscar nomination while starring in a tv series -,Mad About You.
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