Morgan Saylor is persuasive as young women who make little effort to be liked. We value her refusal to soften them, though she is also useful in an ensemble and not always well served by the writing.
Fi1m perspective
Morgan Saylor lets a teenager be irritating without appearing to apologise for her. As Dana Brody in Homeland (2011–2013), she brings recognisable adolescent behaviour to a character who is not always easy company. Dana can be wearing, and the writing is partly responsible. Saylor’s move towards independent features included Carter Smith’s Jamie Marks Is Dead (2014). It was a sensible direction for an actor prepared to risk being disliked.
McFarland, USA (2015) gives us a quieter measure of her usefulness. As Julie White in Niki Caro’s running-team drama, she fits an ensemble whose warmth matters more than any individual flourish. We warmed to the film because Caro pays attention to the team’s community and Kevin Costner keeps the drama grounded. The storytelling needs a brisker pace, but Saylor’s naturalistic presence belongs in this familiar, decent film. It is a supporting turn, and we would not inflate it into proof of everything she can do.
Elizabeth Wood’s White Girl (2016) asks more of her as its lead, Leah. Saylor brings physical and emotional intensity to a character she declines to soften, and the choice of role marks a clear move towards more provocative material. That makes it a better place to start with her acting than the agreeable family drama, provided an unsympathetic central character is not a reason to switch off.
She has not confined herself to those leads. Maggie Betts’s Novitiate (2017), in which she plays Sister Evelyn, and Blow the Man Down (2019) also make use of her in ensembles. The caution lies with material such as Spoonful of Sugar (2022), where strong performances sit inside uneven plotting. For the less abrasive introduction, choose McFarland, USA; save White Girl for an evening when likeable company is not the priority.
Biography
Morgan Saylor is an American actress. She is best known for portraying Dana Brody in the Showtime series Homeland (2011–2013).
Born in Chicago, Illinois, in 1994, Saylor grew up in Georgia. She began acting in theatre as a child and made early screen appearances in The Sopranos (2006) and the film Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant (2009). After high school she moved to New York and has worked in both film and stage productions.
Her film roles include McFarland, USA (2015), White Girl (2016), Novitiate (2017) and Blow the Man Down (2019). With the Homeland cast she received Screen Actors Guild Award nominations for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series in 2013 and 2014.
