Emily Watson
Known for: Acting
Emily Margaret Watson (born 14 January 1967) is an English actress. She began her career on stage and joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1992. In 2002, she starred in productions of Twelfth Night and Uncle Vanya at the Donmar Warehouse. She was nominated for the Olivier Award for Best Actress for the latter. She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress for her debut film role as a newlywed in Lars von Trier's Breaking the Waves (1996) and for her portrayal of Jacqueline du Pré in Anand Tucker's Hilary and Jackie (1998). Watson's other films include The Boxer (1997), Angela's Ashes (1999), Gosford Park (2001), Punch-Drunk Love (2002), Red Dragon (2002), The Life and Death of Peter Sellers (2004), Corpse Bride (2005), Miss Potter (2006), Synecdoche, New York (2008), Oranges and Sunshine (2010), War Horse (2011), The Theory of Everything (2014), Kingsman: The Golden Circle (2017), God's Creatures (2022), and Small Things like These (2024). and A Pariare Farm Girl ( 2026). She was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award and a Golden Globe Award for her role in the HBO miniseries Chernobyl. She won the British Academy Television Award for Best Actress for playing Janet Leach in the 2011 ITV television biopic Appropriate Adult. She was nominated for the International Emmy Award for Best Actress for the 2017 BBC miniseries Apple Tree Yard. In 2024, she portrayed the lead role of Valya Harkonnen in the HBO science fiction series Dune: Prophecy. Watson is a supporter of the children's charity the NSPCC. In 2004, she was inducted into the society's hall of fame for spearheading the successful campaign to appoint a Children's Commissioner for England. Receiving her award in the crowded House of Commons, she spoke out against the possibility that the Children's Commissioner become a figurehead with little real power.
Filmography
Series
Chernobyl
Ulana Khomyuk
2019
Film
Corpse Bride
Victoria Everglot (voice)
2005
Film
Hamnet
Mary
2025
Series
Dune: Prophecy
Mother Superior Valya Harkonnen
2024
Series
The Oscars
Self
1953
Series
Genius
Elsa Einstein
2017
Film
Kingsman: The Golden Circle
Chief of Staff Fox
2017
Series
The Third Day
Mrs. Martin
2020
Series
Performance
Rosalie
1991
Film
War Horse
Rose Narracott
2011
Film
Equilibrium
Mary O'Brien
2002
Film
Everest
Helen Wilton
2015
Film
The Theory of Everything
Beryl Wilde
2014
Film
Gosford Park
Elsie
2001
Film
The Book Thief
Rosa Hubermann
2013
Film
Punch-Drunk Love
Lena Leonard
2002
Film
Small Things Like These
Sister Mary
2024
Film
Anna Karenina
Countess Lydia Ivanova
2012
Film
Synecdoche, New York
Tammy
2008
Film
Miss Potter
Millie Warne
2006
Film
The Legend of Ochi
Dasha
2025
Series
Fired on Mars
Sheila (voice)
2023
Series
Little Women
Marmee March
2017
Film
The Water Horse
Anne MacMorrow
2007
Film
Monster Family
Emma Wishbone (voice)
2017
Film
Steve
Jenny
2025
Film
King Lear
Regan
2018
Film
Belle
Lady Mansfield
2013
Film
Monster Family 2
Emma Wishbone (voice)
2021
Series
Apple Tree Yard
Yvonne Carmichael
2017
Film
Angela's Ashes
Angela McCourt
1999
Film
Breaking the Waves
Bess McNeill
1996
Series
The Early Show
Self
1999
Series
Working Shakespeare
2003
Film
The Boxer
Maggie Hamill
1997
Film
Little Boy
Emma Busbee
2015
Film
On Chesil Beach
Violet Ponting
2018
Film
Midas Man
Queenie Epstein
2024
Film
Red Dragon
Reba McClane
2002
Film
The Dresser
Her Ladyship
2015
Film
Testament of Youth
Mrs. Brittain
2015
Series
The Politician's Husband
Freya Gardner
2013
Film
Molly Moon and the Incredible Book of Hypnotism
Miss Trinklebury
2015
Film
Cradle Will Rock
Olive Stanton
1999
Film
The Proposition
Martha Stanley
2005
Film
The Happy Prince
Constance Wilde
2018
Film
The Life and Death of Peter Sellers
Anne Sellers
2004
Film
Fireflies in the Garden
Jane Lawrence
2008
Film
Cold Souls
Claire
2009
Series
The Secret Life of Marilyn Monroe
Grace McKee
2015
Film
Hilary and Jackie
Jackie du Pré
1998
Film
A Royal Night Out
Queen Elizabeth
2015
Film
Cemetery Junction
Mrs. Kendrick
2010
Film
Crusade in Jeans
Mary Vega
2006
Series
Too Close
Dr. Emma Robinson
2021
Film
The Memory Keeper's Daughter
Caroline Gil
2008
Film
God's Creatures
Aileen O'Hara
2022
Film
Wah-Wah
Ruby Compton
2005
Film
Separate Lies
Anne Manning
2005
Film
Trixie
Trixie Zurbo
2000
Series
Appropriate Adult
Janet Leach
2011
Film
Oranges and Sunshine
Margaret Humphreys
2010
Film
The Making of Gosford Park
Self
2002
Film
The Luzhin Defence
Natalia Katkov
2000
In Doctor von Trier's Laboratory: Back to the Magic of Cinema
Self
1998
Film
Metroland
Marion
1997
Film
Weinstein
Narrator (voice)
2018
Amri
Marie Antoinette Gottesman
RSC Meets USA: Working Shakespeare
Self
Film
Within the Whirlwind
Evgenia Ginzburg
2009
Film
Ballchewer
Self
2002
Film
Some Girl(s)
Lindsay
2013
Film
The Mill on the Floss
Maggie Tulliver
1997
Film
A Director's Journey: The Making of 'Red Dragon'
Self
2003
Film
Inside Look: Hamnet
Self (archive footage)
2025
Fado!
London Fog: A Ruby Gale Mystery
(The Detective)
The Clockmaker’s Secret: Lost in Spindlewood
The Keeper of the Keys
Film
A Christmas Child
Emily Watson ( Self/Narrator )
Film
Tranceformer: A Portrait of Lars von Trier
1997
Film
A Song for Jenny
Julie Nicholson
2015
Film
Meerkats 3D
Narrator
2011
A Summer Day's Dream
1994
Holly Noel: The Winter Ball (Christmas 3)
( Host )
Late in Summer
Midday Sun
Sarah
Film
Blossoms & Blood
Lena Leonard
2003