Merritt Wever
{{short description|American actress (born 1980)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2020}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Merritt Wever
| image = Merritt Wever 2010 cropped.jpg
| imagesize =
| caption = Wever in 2010
| birth_name = Merritt Carmen Wever
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1980|08|11}}
| birth_place = New York City, U.S.
| alma_mater = Sarah Lawrence College
| occupation = Actress
| yearsactive = 1995–present
}}
Merritt Carmen Wever (born August 11, 1980) is an American actress. She had roles in the Showtime television series Nurse Jackie (2009–2015), The Walking Dead (2015–2016), Godless (2017), Welcome to Marwen (2018), Unbelievable (2019), and Severance (2025).
Wever won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for Nurse Jackie and the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or Movie for Godless. She was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Miniseries or Television Film for Unbelievable.
Wever starred in other television series, including Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip (2006–2007), New Girl (2013), The Walking Dead (2015–2016), and Severance (2025). She had supporting roles in films, such as Michael Clayton (2007), Birdman (2014), Welcome to Marwen (2018) and Marriage Story (2019).
Early life and education
Merritt Carmen Wever{{Cite web |last=Blank |first=Matthew|url=http://www.playbill.com/article/playbillcoms-cue-a-nurse-jackie-and-the-illusion-star-merritt-wever-com-180251|title=PLAYBILL.COM'S CUE & A: 'Nurse Jackie' and The Illusion Star Merritt Wever|date=June 21, 2011|website=Playbill|language=en|access-date=February 23, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190224173445/http://www.playbill.com/article/playbillcoms-cue-a-nurse-jackie-and-the-illusion-star-merritt-wever-com-180251|archive-date=February 24, 2019|url-status=live}} was born on August 11, 1980{{cite web |title=Merritt Wever |url=https://www.goldenglobes.com/person/merritt-wever |website=Golden Globe Awards |publisher=Hollywood Foreign Press Association |access-date=August 31, 2020 |archive-date= November 4, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201104171657/https://www.goldenglobes.com/person/merritt-wever |url-status=live }}{{cite web |title=Merritt Wever: Movies, TV, and Bio |url=https://www.amazon.com/prime-video/actor/Merritt-Wever/nm0923266/ |website=Prime Video |publisher=Amazon |access-date=August 31, 2020 |archive-date=November 4, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201104171734/https://www.amazon.com/prime-video/actor/Merritt-Wever/nm0923266/ |url-status=live }} in Manhattan, New York City. She was conceived using a sperm donor and raised by her mother, Georgia.{{cite news|last=Maerz|first=Melissa|title=Merritt Wever brings undoctored flair to 'Nurse Jackie' |url= https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/tv/la-xpm-2011-mar-29-la-et-merritt-wever-20110329-story.html|access-date=February 24, 2014| newspaper=Los Angeles Times|date=March 29, 2011|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20140222173232/http://articles.latimes.com/2011/mar/29/entertainment/la-et-merritt-wever-20110329 |archive-date= February 22, 2014|url-status=live}}{{cite web|title=Merritt Wever: Biography |url=https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/merritt-wever/bio/257518|work=TV Guide|publisher=CBS Interactive Inc.|access-date=February 24, 2014|archive-date=August 29, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180829152428/https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/merritt-wever/bio/257518/|url-status=live}} Her mother is from Texas, and is a feminist and political activist.{{Cite web| url= https://www.motionpictures.org/2018/06/merritt-wever-transitions-from-loopy-nurse-to-frontier-toughie-in-emgodless/|title=Merritt Wever Transitions From Loopy Nurse to Frontier Toughie in Godless | The Credits|first=Hugh|last=Hart|date=June 21, 2018|access-date=December 8, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191208204515/https://www.motionpictures.org/2018/06/merritt-wever-transitions-from-loopy-nurse-to-frontier-toughie-in-emgodless/|archive-date=December 8, 2019|url-status=live}}{{Cite web |last=Blake |first=Meredith |url= https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/tv/story/2020-04-09/merritt-wever-hbo-run-unbelievable-godless-Netflix |title= Merritt Wever knows showbiz can be 'poison' for women. But complaining now feels wrong |website=Los Angeles Times |date=April 9, 2020 |access-date=April 10, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200410065242/https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/tv/story/2020-04-09/merritt-wever-hbo-run-unbelievable-godless-netflix |archive-date=April 10, 2020 |url-status=live }}
Wever graduated from Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School and Sarah Lawrence College.{{cite web |title=Merritt Wever|url=https://www.nytimes.com/movies/person/242520/Merritt-Wever/biography |access-date= February 24, 2014 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20140311045040/http://www.nytimes.com/movies/person/242520/Merritt-Wever/biography|archive-date=March 11, 2014|department=Movies & TV Dept.|work=The New York Times|date=2014|url-status=dead}}
Career
File:Merritt Wever Portrait cropped.jpg
Wever began her career starring in low budget, independent short and feature films. She has performed in theater productions, including Brooke Berman's play Smashing and Cavedweller with Deidre O'Connell, both off-Broadway. Wever appeared in numerous films, including Into the Wild, Michael Clayton, Series 7: The Contenders, Signs, The Adventures of Sebastian Cole, Bringing Rain, Tiny Furniture, and All I Wanna Do.{{cite web |url=https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0923266/ |title=Merritt Wever |website=IMDB |access-date=December 8, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171127102951/http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0923266/ |archive-date=November 27, 2017 |url-status=live }}
She has guest-starred on a number of television series, including New Girl, The Good Wife, Conviction, Law & Order: Criminal Intent and The Wire. She also starred in Ed Zwick's ill-fated pilot Quarterlife, with Rachel Blanchard, Austin Nichols and Shiri Appleby. She also had a recurring role on Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip as Suzanne.
Wever is perhaps best known for her role as Zoey Barkow in the television series Nurse Jackie, which premiered on Showtime in June 2009.{{cite web|last=Maerz|first=Melissa|title=Merritt Wever brings undoctored flair to 'Nurse Jackie'|url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/tv/la-xpm-2011-mar-29-la-et-merritt-wever-20110329-story.html|work=Los Angeles Times|date=March 29, 2011|access-date=February 19, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160605022135/http://articles.latimes.com/2011/mar/29/entertainment/la-et-merritt-wever-20110329|archive-date=June 5, 2016|url-status=live}} Zoey is described on the official Nurse Jackie website as "an irrepressibly bubbly trauma nurse, who serves as a comic foil to Edie Falco's hard-bitten (and prescription drug-addicted) titular character".{{cite web|url=http://www.sho.com/site/nursejackie/home.do |title=Nurse Jackie: Official Site |publisher=Sho.com |access-date=March 3, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090228215909/http://www.sho.com/site/nursejackie/home.do |archive-date=February 28, 2009 }} Wever received widespread critical acclaim for her role on the show.{{Cite web|last=Oldenburg|first=Ann|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/tv/2014/04/13/merritt-wever-feature/7471947/|title='Nurse Jackie' sidekick Merritt Wever stays grounded|website=USA TODAY|date=April 13, 2014|access-date=April 18, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160415105551/http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/tv/2014/04/13/merritt-wever-feature/7471947/|archive-date=April 15, 2016|url-status=live}}
Wever was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series in 2012 and 2013 for her role in Nurse Jackie, 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."{{cite web|last=Chan|first=Robert|title=Best. Emmys. Speech. EVER: An Underdog Takes Home an Emmy|url=https://tv.yahoo.com/blogs/emmys/best--emmy--speech--ever--an-underdog-takes-home-an-emmy-005522912.html|publisher=Yahoo!|date=September 22, 2013|access-date=January 18, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130927213925/http://tv.yahoo.com/blogs/emmys/best--emmy--speech--ever--an-underdog-takes-home-an-emmy-005522912.html|archive-date=September 27, 2013|url-status=live}}
In 2016, Wever had a recurring role on AMC's The Walking Dead as Denise Cloyd. Her character's death toward 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.{{Cite web|last=Cox|first=Carolyn|url=http://www.themarysue.com/the-walking-dead-reactions-twic-as-far/|title=The Walking Dead Actor Responds to Controversial Death on Last Night's Episode|website=The Mary Sue|date=March 21, 2016|access-date=April 18, 2016|archive-date=May 13, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210513063002/https://www.themarysue.com/the-walking-dead-reactions-twic-as-far/|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|last=Tsoumbakos|first=Rachel|url=http://www.inquisitr.com/2913170/the-walking-dead-fans-outraged-that-another-minority-character-has-died/|title='The Walking Dead' Fans Outraged That Another Minority Character Has Died|website=The Inquisitr News|date=March 22, 2016|access-date=April 18, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160421005132/http://www.inquisitr.com/2913170/the-walking-dead-fans-outraged-that-another-minority-character-has-died/|archive-date=April 21, 2016|url-status=live}}{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2016/03/walking-dead-denise-dead-lesbian-trope-the-100|title=The Walking Dead's Latest Gruesome Death Is Part of a Troubling TV Trend|last=Robinson|first=Joanna|magazine=Vanity Fair|date=March 21, 2016 |access-date=April 18, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160416210824/http://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2016/03/walking-dead-denise-dead-lesbian-trope-the-100|archive-date=April 16, 2016|url-status=live}}
Wever played a lead role in the miniseries Godless (2017) as Mary Agnes McNue, a tough leader of a female-dominated town. She said in interviews that she had been intimidated by the role: "I spent so much of this shoot thinking I would come off as a fool, that nobody would buy me as this and it wouldn't be believable."{{cite web |url=https://www.vulture.com/2017/11/godless-merritt-wever-interview-on-playing-mary-agnes-mcnue.html |title=How Merritt Wever Found Vulnerability in Godless's Toughest Character |last=McHenry |first=Jackson |date=November 30, 2017 |website=Vulture |access-date=December 8, 2017 |archive-date=May 14, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210514200604/https://www.vulture.com/2017/11/godless-merritt-wever-interview-on-playing-mary-agnes-mcnue.html |url-status=live }} Many critics nonetheless noted her character as a highlight of the show. Entertainment Weekly titled its review of Godless "Merritt Wever rides tall in Netflix's Godless" and wrote that "no one is more electric than the always extraordinary Merritt Wever".{{cite magazine |url=https://ew.com/tv/2017/11/16/netflixs-godless-ew-review/ |title=Merritt Wever rides tall in Netflix's Godless |last=Shaw |first=Jessica |date=November 16, 2017 |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |access-date=December 8, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171209044032/http://ew.com/tv/2017/11/16/netflixs-godless-ew-review/ |archive-date=December 9, 2017 |url-status=live }} In 2018, she won an Emmy for the role.
In 2019, Wever starred in another Netflix miniseries, Unbelievable, which was released on September 13, 2019.{{cite web |last1=Petski |first1=Denise |title='Unbelievable': Toni Collette, Merritt Wever & Kaitlyn Dever To Star In Netflix Limited Series |url=https://deadline.com/2018/06/unbelievable-toni-collette-merritt-wever-kaitlyn-dever-netflix-limited-series-lisa-cholodenko-direct-1202416722/ |website=Deadline Hollywood |access-date=June 25, 2018 |date=September 16, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180625185549/https://deadline.com/2018/06/unbelievable-toni-collette-merritt-wever-kaitlyn-dever-netflix-limited-series-lisa-cholodenko-direct-1202416722/ |archive-date=June 25, 2018 |url-status=live }} The series received critical acclaim, with Wever receiving her first Golden Globe Awards nomination for Best Actress – Miniseries or Television Film.{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/unbelievable/s01|title=Unbelieveable|website=Rotten Tomatoes|access-date=May 27, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200322050804/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/unbelievable/s01|archive-date=March 22, 2020|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2019/12/golden-globes-nominations-announced-updating-live-1202804135/|title=Golden Globes Nominations: 'Marriage Story', Netflix, 'Once Upon A Time In Hollywood' Lead Way In Film—Full List Of Nominations|website=Deadline Hollywood|first=Patrick|last=Hipes|date=December 9, 2019|access-date=May 27, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191211174953/https://deadline.com/2019/12/golden-globes-nominations-announced-updating-live-1202804135/|archive-date=December 11, 2019|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|title=Unbelievable|url=http://www.peabodyawards.com/award-profile/unbelievable|access-date=2021-02-09|website=www.peabodyawards.com|language=en|archive-date=May 8, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200508154424/http://www.peabodyawards.com/award-profile/unbelievable|url-status=live}}
In 2020, Wever starred opposite Domhnall Gleeson in the HBO comedy thriller series Run.{{cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2019/03/run-hbo-picks-up-comedic-thriller-to-series-fleabag-duo-eone-1202570738/|title='Run': HBO Gives Series Order To Comedic Thriller Starring Domhnall Gleeson & Merritt Wever From 'Fleabag' Duo & eOne|website=Deadline Hollywood|first1=Nellie|last1=Andreeva|first2=Mike, Jr.|last2=Fleming|date=March 6, 2019|access-date=May 27, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190830021653/https://deadline.com/2019/03/run-hbo-picks-up-comedic-thriller-to-series-fleabag-duo-eone-1202570738/|archive-date=August 30, 2019|url-status=live}} It was cancelled after one season.{{cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2020/07/run-canceled-hbo-one-season-vicky-jones-1202983018/|title='Run' Canceled By HBO After One Season|website=Deadline Hollywood|first=Nellie|last=Andreeva|date=July 10, 2020|access-date=July 10, 2020|archive-date=October 18, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231018052131/https://deadline.com/2020/07/run-canceled-hbo-one-season-vicky-jones-1202983018/|url-status=live}}
Filmography
=Film=
{{Pending films key}}
=Television=
| class="wikitable sortable" |
| Year
! Title ! scope="col" width="150px" | Role ! class="unsortable" | Notes |
|---|
| 1995
| Lottie Howland |
| 1997
| Myra | Episode: "Mad Dog" |
| rowspan="2" | 2002
| Jennifer Taylor | Episode: "American Jihad" |
| Law & Order: Criminal Intent
| Hannah Price | Episode: "Tomorrow" |
| 2003
| The Wire | Prissy | 2 episodes: "Storm Warnings" and "Bad Dreams" |
| 2004
| Mrs. Francis Saxon | Television film |
| rowspan="3" | 2005
| Bailey | Television film |
| Law & Order
| Sunshine Porter | Episode: "Sects" |
| NCIS
| Wendy Smith | Episode: "Switch" |
| 2006
| Bridget Kellner | Episode: "Pilot" |
| 2006–2007
| Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip | Suzanne | 12 episodes |
| 2009–2015
| Zoey Barkow | Main role |
| 2012
| Aubrey Gardner | Episode: "After the Fall" |
| rowspan="2" | 2013
| New Girl | Elizabeth | 7 episodes |
| Remember Sunday
| Lucy Gillenwater | Television film |
| 2015–2016
| Dr. Denise Cloyd | 9 episodes |
| 2017
| Godless | Mary Agnes McNue | Main role |
| 2019
| Detective Karen Duvall | Main role |
| 2020
| Run | Ruby Richardson | Main role |
| 2021
| Mandy, Susan the Tauntaun (voices) | Episode: "May Cause the Exact Thing You're Taking This to Avoid" |
| 2022
| Roar | Elisa | Episode: "The Woman Who Was Fed by a Duck" |
| 2023
| Frances "Frankie" Pierce | 7 episodes |
| 2025
| Gretchen George | 5 episodes |
| 2025
| Kathryn Turman |
| TBA
| Monica O'Brien | Season 3 |
Awards and nominations
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{commonscatinline}}
- {{IMDb name|923266}}
{{Navboxes
| title = Awards for Merritt Wever
| list =
{{EmmyAward ComedySupportingActress 2001-2025}}
{{EmmyAward MiniseriesSupportingActress}}
}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wever, Merritt}}
Category:20th-century American actresses
Category:21st-century American actresses
Category:American child actresses
Category:American film actresses
Category:American television actresses
Category:American stage actresses
Category:Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School alumni