Essie Davis
| Essie Davis | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1970 (age 53–54) Hobart, Tasmania, Australia |
| Nationality | Australian |
| Occupation | Actress, singer |
| Spouse(s) | Justin Kurzel (m. 2002) |
| Children | 2 |
Esther "Essie" Davis (born 1970) is an Australian actress.
Contents
Early life
Davis was raised on the outskirts of Hobart, Tasmania, the daughter of a local artist, George Davis. She emerged from the Old Nick Company at the University of Tasmania in the late 1980s. In 1992, she graduated from the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) in Sydney.[1]
Career
Her acting career began with the Bell Shakespeare company when, straight out of NIDA, she was cast as Juliet in the 1993 production of Romeo and Juliet.[2]
Her film career started with her role in the all-Australian 1995 movie Dad and Dave: On Our Selection, which starred Geoffrey Rush, Leo McKern, and Joan Sutherland. Her biggest movie roles are in The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions, director Richard Flanagan's 1998 Tasmanian film The Sound of One Hand Clapping, and Girl with a Pearl Earring.[1]
In 2003 she won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Supporting Actress for her UK performance in the Tennessee Williams play A Streetcar Named Desire. In 2004 she starred in a Broadway production of Tom Stoppard's Jumpers, for which she earned a Tony Award nomination. In 2005 she appeared as Mrs. Nellie Lovett in the BBC production of Sweeney Todd with Ray Winstone.
In the 2008 film Hey, Hey, It's Esther Blueburger she plays Esther's controlling mother. Also in 2008, she appeared in the film Australia with Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman, directed by Baz Luhrmann. The same year, Davis played Maggie in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof for the Melbourne Theatre Company.[3]
Davis returned to Tasmania to launch the Tasmanian Theatre Company in 2008 and help support local theatre while encouraging youth to continue participating in the arts.[4] In 2011, she received a Logie Award nomination for her role as Anouk in The Slap. In 2012, 2013 and 2015, Davis played Phryne Fisher, the central character in ABC Television's high-rating costume drama, Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries.[1]
Davis starred in Jennifer Kent's 2014 debut feature The Babadook. For her work in the film Davis was nominated for an AACTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role, an AACTA International Award for Best Actress[5] and a Fangoria Chainsaw Award for Best Leading Actress.[6]
In 2016 she will join the HBO series Game of Thrones in Season 6.[7]
Personal life
Davis married Justin Kurzel in 2002; the couple have two children,[8] twin daughters, Stella and Ruby.[9]
Filmography
<templatestyles src="Div col/styles.css"/>
- The Custodian (1993) as Jilly
- Lilian's Story (1995) as Zara
- Dad and Dave: On Our Selection (1995) as Kate
- River Street (1996) as Wendy
- Blackrock (1997) as Det. Gilhooley
- Water Rats, "Dead or Alive" and "Blood Trail" (both 1997) as Senior Detective Nicola Bourke
- The Two-Wheeled Time Machine (1997) as Young Alice
- The Ripper (1997, TV) as Evelyn Bookman
- The Sound of One Hand Clapping (1998) as Jean
- Kings in Grass Castles (1998, TV miniseries) as Mary Costello
- Murder Call, "Deadfall" (1998) as Judy St. John
- Halifax f.p.: "The Spider and the Fly" (2000, TV) as Alison Blount
- Corridors of Power, episode #1.4 (2001) as Sophie
- Young Lions, 2 episodes in 2002 as Julie Morgan
- The Pact (2003) as Helene Davis
- Enter the Matrix (2003) (video game) as Maggie
- The Matrix Reloaded (2003) as Maggie
- After the Deluge (2003, TV miniseries) as Beth
- Temptation (2003, TV) as Julie
- Girl with a Pearl Earring (2003) as Catharina Vermeer
- Code 46 (2003) as Doctor
- The Matrix Revolutions (2003) as Maggie
- Isolation (2005) as Orla
- The Silence (2005) as Juliet Moore
- Sweeney Todd (2006, TV) as Mrs. Nellie Lovett
- Charlotte's Web (2006) as Mrs. Arable
- Hey, Hey, It's Esther Blueburger (2008) as Grace Blueburger
- Australia (2008) as Catherine Carney Fletcher
- Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole (2010) Voice only as Marella
- South Solitary (2010) as Alma Stanley
- Cloudstreet (2010) as Dolly Pickles
- Play School (2011) as herself
- The Slap (2011, TV) as Anouk
- Burning Man (2011) as Karen
- Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries (2012, 2013, 2015, TV) as Phryne Fisher
- The Babadook (2014) as Amelia Vannick
- A Poet in New York (2014) as Caitlin Thomas
- Game of Thrones (2016)
Awards and nominations
| Year | Ceremony | Category | Title | Work |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Australian Film Institute Awards | Best Actress in a Supporting Role | Dad and Dave: On Our Selection | Nominated |
| 2000 | Best Actress in a Telefeature or Mini-Series | The Spider and The Fly | Nominated | |
| 2003 | Best Actress in a Supporting or Guest Role in a Television Drama or Comedy | After The Deluge | Won | |
| 2006 | Screamfest Horror Film Festival | Festival Trophy | Isolation | Won |
| 2011 | Film Critics Circle of Australia | Best Supporting Actor- Female | South Solitary | Won |
| 2012 | AACTA Awards | Best Lead Actress in a Television Drama | Cloudstreet | Nominated |
| ASTRA Awards | Most Outstanding Performance by an Actor – Female | Nominated | ||
| Logie Awards | Most Outstanding Actress | The Slap | Nominated | |
| Film Critics Circle of Australia | Best Actress – Supporting Role | Burning Man | Nominated | |
| 2013 | AACTA Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Nominated | |
| Best Lead Actress in a Television Drama | Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries | Nominated | ||
| 2014 | Logie Awards | Most Popular Actress | Nominated | |
| Puchon International Fantastic Film Festival | Best Actress | The Babadook | Won | |
| Sitges Film Festival | Best Actress | Won | ||
| Toronto After Dark Film Festival | Best Actress | Won | ||
| AACTA Awards | Best Lead Actress | Nominated | ||
| Detroit Film Critics Society | Best Actress | Nominated | ||
| Houston Film Critics Society | Best Actress | Nominated | ||
| Online Film Critics Society | Best Actress | Nominated | ||
| San Francisco Film Critics Circle | Best Actress | Nominated | ||
| Alliance of Women Film Journalists | Best Breakthrough Performance | Nominated | ||
| Village Voice Film Poll | Best Actress | 3rd place | ||
| 2015 | Saturn Awards | Best Actress | Nominated | |
| Empire Awards | Best Newcomer- Female | Nominated | ||
| Fangoria Chainsaw Awards | Best Leading Actress | Won | ||
| AACTA International Awards | Best Actress | Nominated | ||
| Dorian Awards | Film Performance of The Year- Female | Nominated |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Essie Davis at the Internet Movie Database
- ↑ Peter Gotting,"Big screen dreaming", The Sydney Morning Herald, 17 March 2004.
- ↑ Production details for Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Melbourne Theatre Company website; accessed 10 October 2014.
- ↑ About The Tasmanian Theatre Company, tastheatre.com; accessed 10 October 2014.
- ↑ Mr. Babadook Speaks!
- ↑ For Your Consideration: The 2015 Chainsaw Award Nominees for Best Actress
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Karl Quinn,"Lunch with Essie Davis", The Sydney Morning Herald, 12 March 2012.
- ↑ "True crime as a spectator sport" by Bryce Hallett, The Sydney Morning Herald, 11 December 2009
External links
- Use dmy dates from December 2015
- Use Australian English from December 2015
- All Wikipedia articles written in Australian English
- Articles with hCards
- No local image but image on Wikidata
- 1970 births
- Living people
- Australian female singers
- Australian film actresses
- Australian musical theatre actresses
- Australian stage actresses
- Australian television actresses
- Actresses from Hobart
- University of Tasmania alumni
- National Institute of Dramatic Art alumni
- 20th-century Australian actresses
- 21st-century Australian actresses
- Laurence Olivier Award winners
- Date of birth missing (living people)
- Play School (Australian TV series) presenters
