British actress (born 1975)
Anne Emily Bergl[1] (born 25 April 1975) is an English actress. She is known for her roles as Rachel Lang in the supernatural horror film The Rage: Carrie 2 (1999), Francie Jarvis on Gilmore Girls (2001-2003), Annie O'Donnell on the ABC series Men in Trees (2006–08), Tammi Bryant on the TNT drama series Southland (2009–2013), Beth Young on Desperate Housewives (2010–12), Sammi Slott on Shameless (2014–2015), Lilah Tanner on American Crime (2016-2017), and Tessie on The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (2018-2023). She also performs as a cabaret singer.
Early life
Bergl was born in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England, to an Irish mother and an English architect father.[2] She has one brother.[3] Her family emigrated to the United States when she was six, initially residing in Denver, Colorado.[3] When she was ten, they moved to Glenview, Illinois, where she spent the remainder of her upbringing.[4] She attended Glenbrook South High School and Grinnell College, where she was the lead in several school productions.[5] She graduated Phi Beta Kappa in 1997 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and theatre.[5] During her college years, she spent a semester (spring 1996) studying with the National Theater Institute at The Eugene O'Neill Theater Center. She received additional acting training at HB Studio[6] in New York City.
Career
Acting
Bergl began acting in theater, appearing in a production of Romeo and Juliet opposite Neil Patrick Harris at San Diego's Old Globe Theatre in 1998.[4] She then had the lead role of Rachel Lang in the 1999 film The Rage: Carrie 2, the sequel to the 1976 supernatural thriller Carrie.[5] She has appeared in episodes of the TV shows Gilmore Girls, CSI: Miami, Medium, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, NYPD Blue, Grey's Anatomy and Star Trek: Enterprise. She also appeared in the psychological thriller Chasing Sleep, opposite star Jeff Daniels. She had a major role in the Steven Spielberg 2002 miniseries Taken.
From 2006 to 2008, Bergl had a significant co-starring role in the ABC series Men in Trees as Annie, an enthusiastic fan of the series' main character, played by Anne Heche.
In 2009, Bergl starred in Becky Shaw at Second Stage Theatre on Broadway in New York City.
From 2010 to 2012, Bergl played Paul Young's new wife, Beth, in the seventh season of Desperate Housewives.[7]
From 2014 to 2015, Bergl played Sammi Slott on Shameless.
From 2016 to 2017, Bergl played Lilah Tanner on American Crime.
From 2018 to 2023, Bergl played Tessie on The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.
In 2023, Bergl played June Levant in the Tony Award-winning Broadway play Good Night, Oscar, opposite Tony Award winner Sean Hayes as Oscar Levant.
Cabaret
In 2010–11, Bergl performed a cabaret show called Kidding on the Square, which had a run in the summer of 2010 in Los Angeles and New York City, then later in Chicago. In September 2011, with the show in New York, The New York Times wrote of her performance:
Emily Bergl, an incandescent kewpie doll with a bright Betty Boop-inflected chirp, a defiant flounce and a sharp comedic edge, took the Oak Room of the Algonquin Hotel by storm on Tuesday evening. Her sensational show, "Kidding on the Square" may have played elsewhere, but arriving at the staid Oak Room it felt like a gust of fresh air that could knock you off your feet.[8]
A later article elaborated on her cabaret acts.[9]
Personal life
Bergl's daughter, Eleanor Ruby Rósín Bergl, was born in 2017.[10]
Accolades
Bergl was nominated for two Saturn Awards by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films: in 2000, for Best Performance by a Younger Actor/Actress for The Rage: Carrie 2 (1999); and in 2003, for Best Actress in a Television Series for Taken (2002).
