She had small parts in Highlander II: The Quickening, Sleepwalkers and Candyman, before playing Joey B in Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday (1993).
[2] She went on to appear as Mrs. Thornton (Jo Harding's mother) in Twister (1996), Mrs Pendleton in Amistad (1997), Gridlock'd (1997), Alice in EDtv (1999), Irene "Big Red" Johnson in The Perfect Storm (2000), Millie Dupree in Runaway Jury (2003), Big Betty in North Country (2005), and as office worker Peggy Displasia in The Belko Experiment in 2016.
On television, Schwimmer had a starring role in the 2006 Western miniseries Broken Trail playing "Big Rump" Kate Becker.
Schwimmer has also appeared in guest starring roles in several television series, including Parker Lewis Can't Lose, In the Heat of the Night, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Tales from the Crypt, Married... with Children, ER, Chicago Hope, Ally McBeal, Judging Amy, The X-Files, Gilmore Girls, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Criminal Minds, Heroes, Desperate Housewives, Boston Legal, Private Practice, Six Feet Under, Drop Dead Diva, Louie, Lucifer, Grey's Anatomy, Bones and Better Call Saul.
Schwimmer also appeared in Paul Thomas Anderson’s teenage short film The Dirk Diggler Story, an early version of Boogie Nights.