Mackenzie Davis

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Mackenzie Davis
Mackenzie Davis by Gage Skidmore.jpg
Davis at the 2019 San Diego Comic-Con
Born
Mackenzie Rio Davis

(1987-04-01) April 1, 1987 (age 37)
Alma mater McGill University
Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre
OccupationActress
Years active2005–present

Mackenzie Rio Davis (born April 1, 1987) [1] is a Canadian actress. She made her feature film debut in the drama film Smashed (2012). In 2013, she appeared in the film The F Word , for which she received a Canadian Screen Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress. From 2014 to 2017, she starred as computer programmer Cameron Howe in the AMC period drama series Halt and Catch Fire . [2]

Contents

Davis starred in the Black Mirror episode "San Junipero" in 2016, for which she received critical acclaim. She appeared in the films The Martian (2015), Blade Runner 2049 (2017), and portrayed the title character in the comedy-drama film Tully (2018). She then starred as an augmented super-soldier in Terminator: Dark Fate (2019), and co-starred in the comedy film Happiest Season (2020). In 2021, she had a lead role in the miniseries Station Eleven , which earned her a Critics' Choice Super Award.

Early life

Davis was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, to Lotte, a graphic designer, and John Davis, a hairdresser from Liverpool, England. [3] Her parents own AG Hair. She graduated from Collingwood School in West Vancouver in 2005 and then attended McGill University in Montreal, Quebec. She went on to study acting at the Neighborhood Playhouse in New York City. [4] [5]

Career

Davis at TIFF 2015 'The Martian' World Premiere (NHQ201509110005) cropped.jpg
Davis at TIFF 2015

Davis's first feature film was Smashed . In 2015, she appeared in The Martian as NASA satellite communications engineer Mindy Park.

From 2014 to 2017, she played programming prodigy Cameron Howe in Halt and Catch Fire for the duration of its four-season run. [6] [7]

In 2016, she co-starred as Yorkie in "San Junipero", an episode of the anthology series Black Mirror , which received two Emmy Awards. [8] She was also cast as Mariette in Blade Runner 2049 . [9]

In 2019, she appeared in Terminator: Dark Fate as an augmented super soldier who is sent from the future to protect Dani Ramos. In October 2019, she was cast in the lead role in the HBO Max miniseries Station Eleven . [10]

In 2020, Davis starred as Kate in The Turning , opposite Finn Wolfhard and Brooklynn Prince. The film is a modern adaptation of the 1898 horror novella The Turn of the Screw by Henry James. She also starred as Diana Hastings in Irresistible , a film by Jon Stewart about the outsized influence of money on the American electoral system. She also starred in the 2020 romantic comedy Happiest Season co-starring Kristen Stewart. [11] [12] [13]

In June 2020, it was announced that Davis would be part of the ensemble cast of Zellner Brothers' science-fiction comedy Alpha Gang, which includes Jon Hamm, Andrea Riseborough, Nicholas Hoult, Sofia Boutella and Steven Yeun. [14]

In February to April 2023 she played the role of Isolde in Phaedra in an updated version by Simon Stone at the National Theatre in London.

Her short film WOACA, her directorial debut, screened in the Short Cuts program at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival. [15]

In May 2022, she signed to star in Justin Anderson’s directorial debut Swimming Home , an adaptation of the Booker Prize-nominated novel of the same name by Deborah Levy, alongside Christopher Abbott and Ariane Labed. [16]

Filmography

Film

YearTitleRoleNotes
2011AlexTerriShort film
2012 Smashed Millie
The Hat Goes WildCathyCredited as Mackenzie Rio Davis
2013 Breathe In Lauren Reynolds
The F Word NicoleAlternative title: What If?
Bad Turn Worse Sue
Plato's Reality MachineSophia
MoontownShaynaShort film
2014 That Awkward Moment Chelsea
EmptiedCharlotte LaurenceShort film
2015 Freaks of Nature Petra Lane
A Country Called Home Reno
Memory BoxIsabelleShort film
The Martian Mindy Park
2016 Always Shine Anna
2017 Izzy Gets the F*ck Across Town Izzy
Blade Runner 2049 Mariette
2018BoomerangJeniferShort film
Tully Tully
2019 Terminator: Dark Fate Grace Harper
2020 The Turning Kate Mandell
Irresistible Diana Hastings
Happiest Season Harper Caldwell
2023WOACAShort film; writer, director, producer
2024 Swimming Home Isabel [17]
Speak No Evil Louise Dalton

Television

YearTitleRoleNotes
2012 I Just Want My Pants Back LucieEpisode: "Safety Nets"
2014–2017 Halt and Catch Fire Cameron HoweMain role (40 episodes)
2016 Black Mirror YorkieEpisode: "San Junipero"
2017 No Activity Patricia / "Pat the Rat"Episode: "The Witness"
2020 Home Movie: The Princess Bride Princess ButtercupEpisode: "Chapter Two: The Shrieking Eels" [18]
2021–2022 Station Eleven Kirsten RaymondeMain role (10 episodes)
2022 Love, Death & Robots Martha Kivelson (voice)Episode: "The Very Pulse of the Machine"

Theatre

YearTitleRoleNotes
2023PhaedraIsolde National Theatre, London

Accolades

YearAwardCategoryNominated workResult
2014 Canadian Screen Awards Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role The F Word Nominated
2016 Monster Fest Best Performance in a Feature Film (Female) Always Shine Won [19]
Tribeca Film Festival Best Actress in a U.S. Narrative FeatureWon [20]
2017Napa Valley Film FestivalSpecial Jury Award – Best Breakout Performance Izzy Gets the F*ck Across Town Won
Tacoma Film FestivalBest Performance (shared with Jun Zhao)Won
International Online Cinema AwardsBest Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or TV Movie"San Junipero"Nominated
2018Best Supporting Actress Tully Nominated
Indiana Film Journalists AssociationNominated
2019 Women's Image Network Awards Supporting Actress Feature FilmNominated
CinemaCon Ensemble Award (shared with Linda Hamilton, Natalia Reyes and Gabriel Luna) Terminator: Dark Fate Won
2022 Critics' Choice Super Awards Best Actress in a Science Fiction/Fantasy Series Station Eleven Won

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References

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Further reading