1996–2018: Everybody Loves Raymond and The Middle
In 1996, Heaton landed the role of Debra Barone in the CBS sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond opposite Ray Romano. The series received positive reviews and has been on top ten television rankings and won Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series twice. She was nominated in each of the series' last seven seasons for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series, winning in 2000 and 2001. With her win in 2000, she became the first of the cast members on the show to win an Emmy. She has also collected two Viewers for Quality Television Awards for Best Actress in a Quality Comedy Series and a Screen Actors Guild trophy for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series and five Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series nominations for her work on the series. The series ended in 2005 after nine seasons.
While starring on Everybody Loves Raymond, Heaton played the leading roles in a number of made-for-television movies. In 1997 she starred alongside Meredith Baxter and Della Reese in the drama film Miracle in the Woods. In 2001, she starred in the Christmas drama A Town Without Christmas. In 2004, she starred in the comedy-drama The Goodbye Girl, a remake of the 1977 film of the same name. For her performance, Heaton received Screen Actors Guild Award nomination for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Miniseries or Television Movie. In 2005, she starred and produced the romantic comedy-drama film The Engagement Ring.
In 2003, Heaton appeared in a series of television and radio commercials as spokesperson for the various incarnations of the grocery chain Albertsons, such as Acme, Jewel and Shaw's. Heaton also was featured on the cover of the company's 2003 and 2004 annual reports. In 2007, Albertsons created the Crazy About Food slogan/campaign and Heaton's association with the company ended. She has also appeared in advertisements for Pantene hair-care products. Heaton was the producer for the 2005 documentary The Bituminous Coal Queens of Pennsylvania, which was directed by her husband, David Hunt. She was also one of the producers of the William Wilberforce drama Amazing Grace (2006).
In 2006, Heaton played United States Ambassador Barbara Bodine in the controversial miniseries The Path to 9/11 about the 1993 World Trade Center bombing in New York City and the events leading up to the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Also that year, she starred and produced the untitled ABC comedy pilot about a widowed mother who joins the P.T.A. where she befriends two women she initially dislikes. In January 2007, Heaton returned to the stage to co-star with Tony Shalhoub in the off-Broadway play The Scene at Second Stage Theatre in New York City. For this performance, Heaton was nominated in the Outstanding Lead Actress category for the 22nd Lucille Lortel Awards. From 2007 to 2008, she starred with Kelsey Grammer in the Fox comedy series, Back to You. The show about squabbling anchors of a news program was canceled in May 2008. For her performance, she was nominated for the Satellite Award for Best Actress – Television Series Musical or Comedy at the 10th Satellite Awards. In 2008, she starred in the Hallmark Hall of Fame movie Front of the Class, based on the real story of a mother, Ellen Cohen, raising a son, Brad Cohen, who has Tourette syndrome.
In 2009, Heaton began starring as Frankie Heck in the ABC comedy series, The Middle. The series received positive reviews from critics and lasted nine seasons with 215 produced episodes. She received Critics' Choice Television Award nomination for Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Actress in a Comedy Series in 2011. In 2011, Heaton was ranked at number 24 on the TV Guide Network special, Funniest Women on TV. She received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on May 22, 2012. Her production company is FourBoys Entertainment. She starred and produced the 2014 comedy film Moms' Night Out. The film was released by Sony Pictures Releasing on May 9, 2014, receiving mostly negative reviews from critics.
In October 2015, Heaton began hosting Patricia Heaton Parties, a cooking show on Food Network. The program showcases party-friendly foods and home-entertaining tips. The series won a Daytime Emmy Award in 2016 for Outstanding Culinary Program. The show ended after two seasons. She also did voice over work in the animated films The Star (2017) and Smallfoot (2018).
