Alison Wright (born 12 July 1976) is an English actress. She is best known for her starring role as Martha Hanson on the FX period spy drama series ''

The Americans ''The Americans'' is an American historical drama, period spy fiction, spy drama television series created by Joe Weisberg for FX (TV channel), FX. It aired for six seasons from 2013 to 2018. Weisberg and Joel Fields also served as showrunners ...

'' (2013–2017), for which she received critical acclaim and a

Primetime Emmy Award The Primetime Emmy Awards, or Primetime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Owned and operated by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), the P ...

nomination in 2017. She has also acted in the Ryan Murphy limited series '' Feud: Bette and Joan'' (2017) and ''

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

'' (2020). Wright's other notable roles were as Marjorie in the

Amazon Prime Video Amazon Prime Video, known simply as Prime Video, is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming television service owned by Amazon. The service primarily distributes films and television series produced or co-produced by ...

crime drama series ''

Sneaky Pete ''Sneaky Pete'' is an American black comedy crime drama television series created by David Shore and Bryan Cranston. The series follows Marius Josipović ( Giovanni Ribisi), a released convict who adopts the identity of his cellmate, Pete Murph ...

'' (2015–2019) and as Ruth Wardell in the

TNT Troponin T (shortened TnT or TropT) is a part of the troponin complex, which are proteins integral to the contraction of skeletal and heart muscles. They are expressed in skeletal and cardiac myocytes. Troponin T binds to tropomyosin and helps ...

dystopian thriller series ''

Snowpiercer ''Snowpiercer'' () is a 2013 Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction, post-apocalyptic action thriller film based on the French climate fiction graphic novel ''Le Transperceneige'' by Jacques Lob, Benjamin Legrand and Jean-Marc Rochette. The f ...

'' (2020–2024). She has also appeared in various films, including '' The Nanny Diaries'' (2007), '' The Accountant'' (2016), and '' Ask for Jane'' (2018).

Early life

Wright was born on 12 July 1976, in

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is a port at the mouth of the River Wear on the North Sea, approximately south-east of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is the most p ...

Tyne and Wear Tyne and Wear () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North East England. It borders Northumberland to the north and County Durham to the south, and the largest settlement is the city of Newcastle upon Tyne. The county is ...

, where she was raised by her adoptive parents. She began dancing and acting at a young age. She studied at the prestigious Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute and The Barrow Group in New York City. She worked as a waitress while auditioning for roles.

Career

Wright made her acting debut in the comedy-drama film '' The Nanny Diaries'', released in 2007. This was followed by appearances in various short films. She made her stage debut as Molly Bhatt in the comedy play '' Rafta, Rafta...'' (2008), followed by a role in the play '' Marie and Bruce'' (2011), both at the Acorn Theatre. In 2013, Wright made her television debut in the FX period spy drama series ''

''. Her performance as Martha Hanson, a lonely

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...

secretary who is manipulated into spying for the Russians, earned high critical praise. She was promoted to a series regular for the second season, which premiered in January 2014. In 2017, she received a

nomination for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series for her guest appearance in ''The Americans'' fifth season. The series ended after six seasons in 2018. From 2015 to 2019, Wright starred as Marjorie in the

crime drama series ''

'', receiving positive reviews. In 2016, she starred as Justine in the action thriller film '' The Accountant'' and as Virginia Thomas in the

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American pay television service, which is the flagship property of namesake parent-subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is based a ...

political thriller film ''

Confirmation In Christian denominations that practice infant baptism, confirmation is seen as the sealing of the covenant (religion), covenant created in baptism. Those being confirmed are known as confirmands. The ceremony typically involves laying on o ...

''. In 2017, she starred as Pauline Jameson, the assistant to

Robert Aldrich Robert Burgess Aldrich (August 9, 1918 – December 5, 1983) was an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. An iconoclastic and maverick '' auteur'' working in many genres during the Golden Age of Hollywood, he directed main ...

, in the FX docudrama series '' Feud: Bette and Joan,'' which chronicles the rivalry between

actresses

Bette Davis Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis (; April 5, 1908 – October 6, 1989) was an American actress of film, television, and theater. Regarded as one of the greatest actresses in Hollywood history, she was noted for her willingness to play unsympatheti ...

and

Joan Crawford Joan Crawford (born Lucille Fay LeSueur; March 23, 190? was an American actress. She started her career as a dancer in traveling theatrical companies before debuting on Broadway theatre, Broadway. Crawford was signed to a motion-picture cont ...

during and after the production of the 1962 film '' What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?''. She also made her Broadway debut as Jessie in the play ''

Sweat Perspiration, also known as sweat, is the fluid secreted by sweat glands in the skin of mammals. Two types of sweat glands can be found in humans: eccrine glands and Apocrine sweat gland, apocrine glands. The eccrine sweat glands are distribu ...

'' at

Studio 54 Studio 54 is a Broadway theatre, Broadway theater and former nightclub at 254 West 54th Street (Manhattan), 54th Street in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City, New York, U.S. Opened as the Gallo Opera House in 1927, it served ...

. In 2018, she had a starring role as Ada in the historical drama film '' Ask for Jane'' and as Emilia in a stage production of the

Shakespearean tragedy Shakespearean tragedy is the designation given to most tragedies written by William Shakespeare. Many of his history plays share the qualifiers of a Shakespearean tragedy, but because they are based on real figures throughout the history of Eng ...

play ''

Othello ''The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice'', often shortened to ''Othello'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare around 1603. Set in Venice and Cyprus, the play depicts the Moorish military commander Othello as he is manipulat ...

'' at

Delacorte Theater The Delacorte Theater is a 1,800-seat open-air theater in Central Park, in the New York City borough of Manhattan. It is home to the Public Theater's free Shakespeare in the Park productions. As of September 2023, it has been closed for renov ...

. In 2019, she had a recurring role in the second season of psychological horror

anthology In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs, or related fiction/non-fiction excerpts by different authors. There are also thematic and g ...

series '' Castle Rock''. She starred as Valerie, a "kind-hearted local who explores the town’s evil history". In 2020, Wright began a starring role in the

post-apocalyptic dystopian thriller series ''

'' (2020–2022), based on the 2013 film of the same name by

Bong Joon-ho Bong Joon Ho (, ; born September 14, 1969) is a South Korean filmmaker. Bong Joon Ho filmography, His work is characterized by emphasis on social and class themes, genre fiction, genre-mixing, black comedy, dark comedy, and sudden tone shifts. ...

. She played Ruth Wardell, a hospitality worker aboard the train who helps look after First Class passengers. Also that year, she made a guest appearance as Ms. Roswell, the gatekeeper to Ace Studios, in the

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

period drama miniseries ''

''.

Acting roles

Film

Television

Theater

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wright, Alison 1976 births Living people Actresses from Sunderland Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute alumni 21st-century English actresses English adoptees English film actresses English television actresses English stage actresses