Why Bee From The Babysitter Looks So Familiar
If you're one of the many who has recently discovered the completely bonkers 2017 horror-comedy The Babysitter on Netflix, then you probably still feel like you've just stepped off a rollercoaster ride during which you were constantly being soaked with buckets of blood and gore. The flick is an odd outlier in the filmography of director McG, better known for cheesy action flicks like Charlie's Angels and Terminator Salvation. In it, a young boy named Cole (Judah Lewis) who gets along smashingly with his smart, funny, beautiful babysitter, Bee, is a tad bit shocked to discover that the young woman and her friends are part of a Satanic cult — and they're not too keen on having their cover blown.
The flick somehow manages to be equal parts hilarious, sweet, and jaw-droppingly gory, and the actress who portrays Bee goes a long way toward helping it achieve that seemingly impossible tonal balance. If her face seems a little familiar, it's because you've almost certainly seen Samara Weaving before, whether on the small screen or in the theater — and with her classic, movie star good looks and absolute mountain of talent, we'd be willing to bet you're going to see a lot more of her in the future. Here's why Bee from The Babysitter looks so familiar.
Samara Weaving got her start on British and Australian TV
Weaving is an Aussie, and in case you're wondering, we'll go ahead and answer the obvious question: Yes, acting talent apparently runs in her family. She is the niece of Hugo Weaving, a massively skilled actor was has entertained audiences as Agent Smith in The Matrix and its sequels, Elrond in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, and the Red Skull in Captain America: The First Avenger, to name just a few of his best-known roles.
Samara Weaving made her screen debut in the BBC series Out of the Blue, and while it only ran for one season, it was a doozy. It consisted of an unbelievable 129 episodes, and Weaving appeared as Kirsten Mulroney in over a third of them. That role quickly led to an even longer-term gig as Indi Walker on Home and Away, a long-running Australian soap opera that has been on the air since 1988. Weaving starred on the series for four years between 2009 and 2013, appearing in an incredible 336 episodes. After that run, however, the actress seemed to make a determination that she was better suited for scares than soaps.
Samara Weaving discovered an affinity for genre projects
In 2013, Weaving landed a role in the intense Aussie crime thriller Mystery Road (opposite dear old uncle Hugo), and this pretty much seems to mark the point at which she decided that genre projects suited her — and if the genre in question happened to be horror, so much the better. Her first appearance on American screens came in 2015, with a guest spot on the awesome Starz series Ash vs. the Evil Dead; she portrayed Heather, an unlucky hiker sucked into the war with the Deadites when she and her hiking companions ventured just a little bit too close to a certain cabin.
Weaving made her big-screen debut in 2016 in the Australian thriller Bad Girl, but her spot on Ash vs. the Evil Dead apparently clued in American casting directors to her unique adeptness at handling comedy-horror, which is a difficult blend for any actor. In 2017, she pulled off a trifecta of comedic craziness, appearing in the spoofy thriller Monster Trucks alongside Jane Levy, Rob Lowe, and Danny Glover; in the comedy-horror flick Mayhem opposite The Walking Dead's Steven Yeun; and in The Babysitter, which supplied her with her first stateside co-lead role and really allowed her to show off her chops.
Samara Weaving has continued to land high-profile TV roles
Weaving may have made a couple of inroads on the big screen by this point in her career, but she's also continued to make regular appearances on television. In 2017, she picked up a recurring role on the Showtime dramedy SMILF. Unfortunately, her tenure on that series ended when she abruptly left over a conflict with series creator and star Frankie Shaw over the filming of a sex scene. Shaw was subsequently investigated over numerous alleged violations of misconduct on the set of the series, which was canceled by Showtime after two seasons.
Weaving, though, didn't let the experience slow her down. She next appeared as Irma in the Amazon miniseries Picnic at Hanging Rock (which was adapted from a 1975 film by her countryman, director Peter Weir) opposite Game of Thrones' Natalie Dormer, The Other Guys' Lily Sullivan, and In the Tall Grass' Harrison Gilbertson. She was most recently seen in another miniseries for a rival streamer: Hollywood, which has been making waves on Netflix. The series, from red-hot American Horror Story creator Ryan Murphy, details the trials and tribulations of actors, producers, writers, and executives trying to carve out places for themselves in post-World War II Tinseltown. In it, Weaving stars as Claire Wood, an ambitious young actress who just happens to be the daughter of the head of a successful movie studio.
Weaving is certainly more than capable of making a splash on the small screen, but her skill set just screams "movie star," and if you don't know what we mean, we're pretty sure you soon will. Also, you must not have caught one of 2019's most awesome, ridiculously entertaining movies, and this is a situation you should remedy as soon as possible.
Samara Weaving was in one of 2019's most underrated horror flicks
Weaving's star turn came in 2019's Ready or Not, which was as perfect a vehicle for her talents as anyone could have dreamed up. She starred as Grace le Domas, a blushing bride who discovers on her wedding day that her new hubby's family takes part in a peculiar ritual whenever adding a new member. They are all to gather at the family estate, where a card drawn from a box will dictate a friendly game to be played. As Grace soon finds out, however, drawing Hide and Seek results in a game night that is anything but friendly. As she gamely hides, her new "family" break out a cache of antique weapons, intending to hunt her down and murder her — only Grace turns out to be a great deal more resourceful than any of them had any reason to think.
The flick performed respectably for studio Fox Searchlight, and it scored excellent reviews, with plenty of praise being reserved for Weaving's central performance. It's probably no coincidence that the feature film offers have come pouring in since. You can catch her right now on VOD platforms in the (also totally bonkers) Guns Akimbo opposite Daniel Radcliffe, and in the lead role in the thriller Last Moment of Clarity alongside veteran actors Brian Cox and Udo Kier.
Next up in the pipeline for Weaving: She'll portray Thea "Little Ted" Preston, the daughter of Bill S. Preston, Esq., in the hotly-anticipated Bill & Ted Face the Music. Oh, and she's also getting a shot at tentpole glory as Scarlett in Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins. Both of those flicks are currently in post-production, and slated for release later this year.