Rachel Brosnahan

Rachel Elizabeth Brosnahan (born December 15,[2] 1990) is an American actress. She made her film debut in the supernatural horror film The Unborn(2009). She subsequently appeared in the films Beautiful Creatures (2013), Louder Than Bombs (2015), The Finest Hours (2016), and Patriots Day (2016). Brosnahan had a starring role on the Netflix series House of Cards, for which she received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination.[3]

In 2017, she received wider recognition and acclaim for playing the title role of an aspiring stand-up comedian in the Amazon comedy-drama series The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. The following year she was awarded both the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Musical or Comedy and the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for her work in the series.[4]

Early life
Brosnahan was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the daughter of Carol and Earl Brosnahan.[5][6] Her father worked in children's publishing. Her mother is British.[7] From the age of four, Brosnahan was raised in Highland Park, Illinois.[5][8] She has a younger brother and sister.[9] She is the niece of the late handbag designer Kate Spade.[10] Her father is of Irish descent.[11]

Brosnahan has said she grew up in a non-religious household but was "happily immersed" in the Jewish culture because of Highland Park's Jewish community; she attended many Passover Seders, Bar and Bat Mitzvahs, and Hanukkahobservances in Chicago's North Shore.[12]

Brosnahan attended Wayne Thomas Elementary School, and then Northwood Junior High School.[9][5] She performed in musical theater during junior high school and high school.[9][5] At Highland Park High School, she was on the wrestling team for two years and was a snowboarding instructor.[9][7] When Brosnahan was 16, she took a class with Carole Dibo,[13] director of Wilmette's Actors Training Center and now Brosnahan's manager. She graduated from there in 2008, and graduated from the Tisch School of the Arts in 2012.[9][14]

Career
Brosnahan was cast in her first movie role as Lisa in the Michael Bay-produced horror movie The Unborn while she was still in high school. During college, she performed in single episodes of television series such as Gossip Girl, The Good Wife, Grey's Anatomy,[9] and In Treatment.

After college, she began landing recurring roles in series such as The Blacklist(2014), the short-lived Black Box (2014), and House of Cards (2013–15) which brought her career prominence, including a Primetime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series in 2015. Initially booked for two episodes and five lines, she caught the eye of showrunner Beau Willimon,[15]and was soon developed into a major character. Brosnahan also played Abby Isaacs for two seasons on the television drama Manhattan.[10]

She first appeared on stage in 2009 in Up at Steppenwolf Theatre[5] followed by her Broadway debut in The Big Knife with Roundabout Theatre Company in 2013.[16] In 2016 she played Desdemona in Othello at New York Theatre Workshop opposite David Oyelowo and Daniel Craig.[17]

She was cast as the lead role and title character of the Amazon series, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, which debuted in 2017. Brosnahan said her exposure to Jewish culture growing up helped prepare her for the role of Midge Maisel, a 1950s Jewish housewife who pursues a career in stand-up comedy after her marriage falls apart.[12] Her performance earned her a Critics' Choice Television Award and Golden Globe Award for Best Actress, and the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series.[18][19][20][21]

After her Emmy win, Brosnahan stated that Maisel resonated with viewers because "the show is equal parts fantasy and reality. It has beautiful clothes, beautiful sets. I think in some ways it's aspirational too. It's about a woman who's reinventing herself after completing the dream she had laid out for herself. Everything falls apart; she finds herself anew. It's never too late to do that. And it's funny and, I think, filled with joy at its core, and that's something we need a lot more of in the world right now."[22]

Activism
Brosnahan has twice completed the "Live Below the Line" challenge.[23]