Why Simone's Mom From Mrs. Davis Looks So Familiar
Spoilers for "Mrs. Davis" Season 1, Episode 2 "Zwei Sie Piel mit Seitung Sie Wirtschaftung"
If one's mother every tells you to stay out of a particular room, and goes so far to put a sign on the door promising punishment, it's probably a good idea to listen — even if one's father is pushing one to check it out! "Mrs. Davis" wastes no time in showing audiences that the series is absolutely bonkers, and the family history of its main character is also rife with all sorts of twists and turns. When viewers are first given a look into the life of a young Simone (Stella Grace Fitzgerald), they can begin to understand why adult Simone (Betty Gilpin) isn't the biggest fan of magicians.
This is because her parents Monty (David Arquette) and Celeste (Elizabeth Marvel) are stage magicians themselves, and she used to be part of their show. Celeste is the brains who engineers the tricks, while Monty is the main performer. Inside their house, Celeste has a room that both Simone and her father are expressly forbidden from entering. Unfortunately, Monty convinces Simone to venture in, and she is immediately injured by a crossbow trap. But Celeste isn't done with either Monty or Simone, and astute viewers will meanwhile recognize Marvel from some truly epic movies.
Marvel narrated and played the main character in True Grit
Elizabeth Marvel has over 60 acting credits, starting in 1997 with a single episode of "As the World Turns" as an unnamed photographer. From there, she continued to pop up in shows like "Law and Order: Criminal Intent," "30 Rock," and "The District," but most people may recognize Marvel from 2010's remake of "True Grit." In the film, directed by Joel and Ethan Coen, Marvel actually plays an older version of Mattie (Hailee Steinfeld), who recounts her exploits in avenging her father with the guidance and protection of Rooster Cogburn (Jeff Bridges). Also starring are Matt Damon and Josh Brolin,
Asked by the A.V. Club what it was like to work with Coen brothers, Marvel said, "It's awesome. I've had the good fortune to call Ethan a good friend ... I did a couple of their movies, and then I did a couple of Ethan's plays, so I got to know Ethan much more than Joel. But it's so wonderful, because the way they work is, they have storyboarded their whole movie before they shoot it."
Marvel inspires Abraham Lincoln in Steven Spielberg's film
Elizabeth Marvel's next majjor endeavor arrived in 2012 with legendary director Steven Spielberg's epic biopic "Lincoln." Marvel stars alongside some truly impressive talent like Sally Field, Daniel Day-Lewis, Adam Driver, Lee Pace, and Tommy Lee Jones, among many others. "Lincoln" recounts the final days of the Civil War and the decisions that Abraham Lincoln (Day-Lewis) must make in order to bring the country back together. But Lincoln faces an uphill battle from multiple entrenched political forces.
Marvel plays Mrs. Jolly alongside her real-life husband Bill Camp, who plays Mr. Jolly. These two characters definitely don't hide their racism and have some unintended influence on Lincoln's decision to pass the Emancipation Proclamation. Since "Lincoln" is just one of their many shared efforts, Camp told Theater Mania what it was like to often work with his wife. "It's hard to articulate whatever that bond is that happens in a marriage," Camp explained. "But I can just sort of watch her and trust her and know what's going on. You have the symbiotic understanding that doesn't require the spoken word. It can come with our eyes or our physical body language. I'm always on safe grounds."
Marvel is not to be trusted in The Bourne Legacy
In the same year as "Lincoln," Elizabeth Marvel also appeared in another major studio film: "The Bourne Legacy." This action-packed movie exists within the "Bourne" franchise, but instead of starring Matt Damon as Bourne, it instead follows Aaron Cross (Jeremy Renner), who has also been augmented with powerful chemicals that push his physical and mental prowess to the absolute limit of human capabilities. Marvel gets a chance to lean into something a bit more villainous here, playing an assassin named Dr. Connie Dowd. Her target is Dr. Marta Shearing (Rachel Weisz), a scientist who helped develop the means by which to create super soldiers like Aaron Cross and Jason Bourne.
Marvel spoke with the A.V. Club about how both she and her husband Bill Camp consider themselves character actors, noting, "We like doing all kinds of things. We don't really have a commodity, like, 'This is what we do,' and so we just wait to be hired to do that thing ... But I love that about my profession — that I can, uh, wander into any building."
Marvel think she knows what is best for Mary in Gifted
Shifting gears in 2017, Elizabeth Marvel played an educator in "Gifted." Directed by Marc Webb of "500 Days of Summer" fame, "Gifted" follows Frank Adler (Chris Evans) and his ersatz adoptive daughter and niece, Mary Adler (Mckenna Grace). "Gifted" revolves around Mary and her genius level intellect when it comes to mathematics, which causes quite a few issues for Frank and his other family members who wish for Mary to go to a private school. However, Frank is fairly adamant that Mary receives a normal childhood. Marvel plays Principal Gloria Davis, who is one of the first people to suggest to Frank that he takes Mary out of public school. Principal Davis even goes so far as to contact Frank's mother and Mary's grandmother Evelyn (Lindsay Duncan) in order to challenge Frank's guardianship of the little girl.
From an assassin to a political operative to an educator, Elizabeth Marvel continues to play a wide range of characters, and her work as Celeste on "Mrs. Davis" will surely add another sterling credit to a diverse, eclectic career.