Hope Davis gives clever people a comic edge without losing sympathy for them. We rate her especially highly in awkward families, though the steady supply of wealthy supporting roles risks making a distinctive actor too familiar.
Fi1m perspective
In Furious (2026), Hope Davis and Peter McRobbie make the Eastons a couple who regard a good lawyer as proof of a clear conscience. We found them unpleasantly plausible, because neither actor makes that complacency seem exceptional. Davis's Emma Easton belongs to the supporting cast that gives this revenge thriller much of its strength. The series runs two episodes too long, but the people around its central story give us reasons to stay.
Her route to these well-heeled supporting parts ran through independent films including The Daytrippers (1996) and Next Stop Wonderland (1998). Wider notice came with About Schmidt (2002), in which she plays Jeannie Schmidt opposite Jack Nicholson. Alexander Payne's retirement comedy is uneven and too ready to make easy jokes about the people around its protagonist. Davis brings care to the family relationships, a useful quality in a film sometimes tempted to settle for caricature. Nicholson remains the chief reason to watch; Davis helps make the family worth attending to as well.
Davis is sweet, silly and defiant as Joyce Brabner in American Splendor (2003). The silliness is worth remembering when later roles so often ask her to play people with money and standing. Her television work includes Sandi Furness in Succession (2021–2023), and the danger is that this sort of casting becomes an expectation. We would welcome more parts that draw on her sweetness as well as her sharpness.
In Asteroid City (2023), she plays Sandy Borden in Wes Anderson's meticulously built desert town. We like the film's humour, with a caveat about how slowly it lets us care for the people inside it. It is a less useful starting point for Davis than About Schmidt, where the family relationships draw on one of her particular strengths. Try that first, provided Payne's fondness for an easy target does not spoil the evening.
Biography
Hope Davis is an American actress. Born on 23 March 1964 in Englewood, New Jersey, she graduated from Vassar College and began her career in theatre, including work in Chicago.
She made her film debut in Flatliners (1990) and has appeared in films including About Schmidt (2002), American Splendor (2003), Captain America: Civil War (2016) and Asteroid City (2023), in which she played Sandy Borden. On television she has played roles in Succession (2018–2023) as Sandi Furness and Your Honor (2020–2023) as Gina Baxter, and portrayed Emma Easton in the series Furious (2026). Davis has received nominations for three Primetime Emmy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards and a Tony Award.
