Merritt Wever
| Merritt Wever | |
|---|---|
 Wever at Gotham Hall, New York City, March 18, 2010 | |
| Born |
Siobhán Merritt Wever August 11, 1980 Manhattan, New York City, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1995–present |
Merritt Carmen Wever[1] (born August 11, 1980), known professionally as Merritt Wever, is an American actress. She is best known for her role as the perennially upbeat young nurse Zoey Barkow in Nurse Jackie (2009-2015), for which she won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series in 2013. She is also known for her supporting roles as Suzanne in Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip (2006-2007), as Elizabeth in New Girl (2013), and as Denise Cloyd in The Walking Dead (2015-2016). Wever has also played supporting roles in such films as Michael Clayton (2007), Tiny Furniture (2010), and Birdman (2014).
Early life
Wever was born in the New York City borough of Manhattan. She was conceived via a sperm donor and raised by her mother, Georgia.[2][3] She graduated from Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School and Sarah Lawrence College,[4] and she trained in acting in New York.
Career
Wever began her career starring in low budget, independent short and feature films. She has also performed in theatre productions, including a performance in Brooke Berman's play, Smashing, and in Cavedweller with Deidre O'Connell, both off-Broadway.[3] Since she began her career, Wever has performed in numerous feature films, including: Into the Wild, Neal Cassady, Michael Clayton, Series 7: The Contenders, Signs, The Adventures of Sebastian Cole, Bringing Rain, Tiny Furniture and All I Wanna Do, among others.
She has guest starred on a number of hit TV shows including The Good Wife, Conviction, Law & Order: Criminal Intent and The Wire, among others. She also starred in Ed Zwick's ill-fated ABC pilot, Quarterlife, with Rachel Blanchard, Austin Nichols, and Shiri Appleby. She also had a notable recurring role on Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip as Suzanne.
Wever is best known for her role as Zoey Barkow in the dark comedy series Nurse Jackie, which premiered on Showtime in June 2009.[5] Zoey is described as "an irrepressibly bubbly trauma nurse, who serves as a comic foil to Edie Falco's hard-bitten (and prescription drug-addicted) titular character..." on the official Nurse Jackie website.[6] Wever received widespread critical acclaim for her role on the show.[7]
Wever was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for her role in Nurse Jackie in 2012 and 2013, winning the award in 2013 and delivering a memorable speech that consisted only of her stunned reaction: "Thanks so much. Thank you so much. I gotta go. Bye."[8]
In 2016, Wever had a recurring role on AMC's The Walking Dead as Denise Cloyd. Her character's death towards the end of the sixth season of the series was controversial and sparked outrage on social media with many fans, most notably members of the LGBT community.[9][10][11]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Blue River | Lottie | Television movie |
| 1997 | Alaska | April | Short film |
| 1998 | Hairy Bird, TheThe Hairy Bird | Maureen 'Momo' Haines | AKA, All I Wanna Do |
| 1998 | Adventures of Sebastian Cole, TheThe Adventures of Sebastian Cole | Susan | |
| 1998 | Arresting Gena | Tammy | |
| 2001 | Series 7: The Contenders | Lindsay | |
| 2002 | Signs | Tracey Abernathy | |
| 2003 | Season of Youth | ||
| 2003 | Bringing Rain | Monica Greenfield | |
| 2004 | Hole in One, AA Hole in One | Betty | |
| 2004 | Something the Lord Made | Mrs. Saxon | Television movie |
| 2005 | Quarterlife | Bailey | Television movie |
| 2005 | 12 and Holding | Debbie Poole | |
| 2007 | Michael Clayton | Anna | |
| 2007 | Into the Wild | Lori | |
| 2007 | Neal Cassady | Mountain Girl | |
| 2008 | Righteous Kill | Rape Victim | |
| 2009 | Mr. Softie | Gail | |
| 2009 | Missing Person, TheThe Missing Person | Mabel Page | |
| 2009 | Messenger, TheThe Messenger | Lara | |
| 2010 | Greenberg | Gina | |
| 2010 | Tiny Furniture | Frankie | Nominated—Gotham Award for Best Cast |
| 2011 | Strange Ones, TheThe Strange Ones | Girl | Short film |
| 2013 | Remember Sunday | Lucy | Television movie |
| 2014 | Birdman | Annie | Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Ensemble |
| 2015 | Meadowland | Kelly |
Television
References
- ↑ "5 Things to Know About Merritt Wever". Entertainment Tonight. September 23, 2013. Retrieved June 16, 2014.
- ↑ Maerz, Melissa (March 29, 2011). "Merritt Wever brings undoctored flair to 'Nurse Jackie'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 24, 2014.
- 1 2 "Merritt Wever: Biography". TV Guide. CBS Interactive Inc. Retrieved February 24, 2014.
- ↑ "Merritt Wever". The New York Times. The New York Times Company. Retrieved February 24, 2014.
- ↑ Maerz, Melissa (March 29, 2011). "Merritt Wever brings undoctored flair to 'Nurse Jackie'". Los Angeles Times.
- ↑ "Nurse Jackie: Official Site". Sho.com. Retrieved March 3, 2009.
- ↑ "'Nurse Jackie' sidekick Merritt Wever stays grounded". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2016-04-18.
- ↑ Chan, Robert (September 22, 2013). "Best. Emmys. Speech. EVER: An Underdog Takes Home an Emmy". Yahoo!.
- ↑ "The Walking Dead Actor Responds to Controversial Death on Last Night's Episode". www.themarysue.com. Retrieved 2016-04-18.
- ↑ "'The Walking Dead' Fans Outraged That Another Minority Character Has Died". The Inquisitr News. Retrieved 2016-04-18.
- ↑ Robinson, Joanna. "The Walking Dead's Latest Gruesome Death Is Part of a Troubling TV Trend". Vanity Fair. Retrieved 2016-04-18.