Why The Carmax Commercial Actress Looks So Familiar
Not everything in life comes with any sort of guarantee — a sad fact that actress Jessica Williams discovers in her Carmax commercial, which premiered earlier this year. Throughout the commercial, Williams tries to test-drive a bathtub in a department store (leaving an employee baffled as to where she got water and, for that matter, bubbles), find out the exact cost of "market price" fish in a restaurant (deeply irritating the server), and get a 30-day refund on her brand-new tattoo (she asked for a "beagle" and got a "bagel"). Obviously, these situations are heightened. Real Carmax customers aren't taking public baths or pestering restaurant staffers, and tattoo artists typically double (or triple) check before beginning their work. Still, the commercial is funny thanks to Williams' comedic chops ... so where have you seen her before?
A Los Angeles native who got her start on a Nickelodeon series, Williams is best known for her work on late-night staples, movies in the greater "Harry Potter" universe, a short stint on an oft-discussed HBO series, and a buzzy Apple TV+ original. Here's why Jessica Williams from the "Unsettle" Carmax commercials looks so familiar.
The Daily Show with Jon Stewart (2012-2016)
From 1999 to 2015, Jon Stewart hosted the Comedy Central institution "The Daily Show" — which became a major source of news, much to Stewart's chagrin, thanks to his straightforward yet hilarious reporting on current events — and in doing so, he raised a generation of comedy legends. Samantha Bee, John Oliver, Steve Carell, Stephen Colbert, Olivia Munn, Ed Helms, Nate & Rob Corddry, Hasan Minhaj, and Rob Riggle, just to name a few, all served as "correspondents" in the field during Stewart's telecasts, whether they were visiting actual places (like when John Oliver broke his nose running across a field with Civil War re-enactors) or just standing in front of a green screen. One of those comedy legends? Jessica Williams, who became the youngest-ever correspondent when she joined the show in 2012.
Williams often covered issues about systemic racism, young trends, and other specific beats on "The Daily Show" — at one point she earned the title of "Senior Beyoncé Correspondent" — but she ultimately left the late-night staple in 2016. In 2024, she returned to joke about Donald Trump's New York trial with Stewart (who retired in 2015 but hosts the show on Monday nights), earning raucous applause from the audience when she reappeared on set.
Girls (2014)
Lena Dunham's HBO series "Girls" was always a lightning rod for controversy, whether people were angry that all four of the lead actresses come from wealth and status (Allison Williams and Zosia Mamet are both certified "nepo babies") or criticizing Dunham's point of view in general. A much more serious critique of the show came due to the fact that it was largely centered around white characters, despite being set in New York, one of the most diverse cities in the world. So what did Jessica Williams have to say about the show's lack of diversity when she joined it briefly in Season 3 as Karen, a coworker of Hannah Horvath (Dunham) when she briefly works at GQ?
As the actress told Mother Jones at the time, she felt as if Dunham was presenting her point of view, and was happy to join the project. "Her show has always been put through a magnifying glass, and I always take it with a grain of salt, because it's her art and it's her voice," Williams told the outlet. "It's not her responsibility to write from my experience." Williams is, obviously, hilarious on the show, making a mark in just four episodes (before Hannah decides she's "above" GQ and gets herself fired in a blaze of glory).
Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (2018) & Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore (2022)
After the eight original "Harry Potter" movies concluded with "Deathly Hallows — Part 2" in 2011, the franchise laid dormant for just a few years before Joanne Rowling revived it with the "Fantastic Beasts" films. Centered around magical zoologist Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne), the first film, "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them," is a pretty fun romp ... but as they delve into the backstory of a major wizarding world, things get much, much, darker. Jessica Williams joined the franchise in its second outing, "Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald" in 2018 as Eulalie "Lally" Hicks, a Charms professor at the American magic school Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry; she reprised the role in the 2022 sequel "Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore."
In "The Crimes of Grindelwald," Lally joins Newt, a young Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law), and wizarding legend Nicolas Flamel (Brontis Jodorowsky) to help fight evil wizard Gellert Grindelwald (Johnny Depp), and in "The Secrets of Dumbledore," she plays an even bigger role. Often teaming up with Muggle (or, in the American parlance, "No-Maj") Jacob Kowalski (Dan Folger) on missions, Lally is a smart, capable witch who can easily get her cohorts out of major scrapes, and she's a great friend to them as well, even encouraging Jacob to believe in his strength despite the fact that he's not a wizard.
Booksmart (2019)
In 2019, actress Olivia Wilde stepped behind the camera for her high school comedy "Booksmart" featuring Beanie Feldstein and Kaitlyn Dever as Molly and Amy, two high school seniors who realize that they've completely sacrificed having any fun in a quest for perfect grades and college acceptance letters. (This realization stings all the more when they realize that their classmates, who did party, also got into amazing schools.) The cast in this film is stacked — Will Forte, Lisa Kudrow, Molly Gordon, Jason Sudeikis, and Billie Lourd all play supporting roles — and Jessica Williams is also on hand as Miss Fine, an extremely cool teacher who's an object of fascination for both Molly and Amy.
During their epic night out on the town — where the two girls frantically try to find a graduation party and go to the wrong gathering several times — Molly and Amy end up calling Miss Fine, who drives them to the real party and even lends them some pretty incredible outfits to wear. While there, Miss Fine does something weird ... and honestly, it's the movie's only misstep. She goes to the party (full of graduating high school students) and pours herself a drink only for one of her students, Theo (Eduardo Franco, "Stranger Things") to start chatting her up. He repeated a few grades, so no laws are broken, but the two definitely hook up that night, which is definitely sketchy — but still, Williams manages to sell her short time onscreen, dubious plotline aside.
Shrinking (2023-present)
In 2023, Jason Segel — a veteran of the beloved sitcom "How I Met Your Mother" and creator of mystery box series "Dispatches from Elsewhere" — returned to the small screen thanks to "Ted Lasso" head honcho Bill Lawrence, and the two crafted the touching, sharply funny Apple TV+ series "Shrinking." Starring Segel as Jimmy Laird, a therapist, the show tells the story of a mental health professional experiencing a personal crisis — the loss of his wife and single parenthood — opening with Jimmy's revelation that he should just ... start telling his patients what to do. (Most mental health professionals wouldn't advise doing that; this show isn't an instruction manual.) Alongside Segel and Harrison Ford as Dr. Paul Rhoades, an older therapist who serves as Jimmy's reluctant mentor, Jessica Williams plays Gaby, who works alongside Paul and Jimmy at the practice.
When the show begins, Jimmy and Gaby are just friends, and he's there for her after she ends her marriage to artist Nico (Adam Foster Ballad). As Jimmy tries to move on from his wife's death, the two get closer and end up forming a romantic bond, sleeping together a handful of times during Season 1 without defining their relationship. Williams, alongside Segel, earned an Emmy nomination for her role — her first, for outstanding supporting actress in a comedy series.
Road House (2024)
Everything gets remade these days, and the action flick "Road House" is no exception. The original was released in 1989 with the late Patrick Swayze at the helm, and the 2024 version features an insanely ripped Jake Gyllenhaal as protagonist Elwood Dalton, a former MMA fighter who's had a string of bad luck as of late. Fortunately, he ends up meeting roadhouse proprietor Frankie, played by Jessica Williams, who takes an interest in him and hires him as her head bouncer. To say Elton does an excellent job is an understatement; he beats the ever-loving snot out of anyone unlucky enough to cause trouble at The Road House and even forms a romantic connection with local nurse Ellie (Daniela Melchior), but is nearly run out of town thanks to his disturbing past.
As Frankie, Williams is a steady, almost comforting presence in a film that can only be described as hectic; though the actress usually plays larger comedic roles, Frankie is funny, but a bit more subdued. The "Road House" remake also outpaced the original's reviews, so it looks like the project was yet another win for Williams.