# Willa Fitzgerald
**Willa Fitzgerald** (born 1991) is an American actress from [Nashville, Tennessee](https://www.edgepedia.org/nashville-tennessee), known for playing Emma Duval on MTV's *Scream: The TV Series*, officer Roscoe Conklin in the first season of Amazon's *Reacher*, Young Madeline Usher in Netflix's *The Fall of the House of Usher*, and the lead role of "The Lady" in the 2024 thriller *Strange Darling*.
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1991, Nashville, Tennessee, USA[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2560618/bio/) |
| Education | Harpeth Hall School (2009); BA in theater studies, Yale University (2013)[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2560618/bio/) |
| Breakout television roles | Emma Duval in *Scream: The TV Series* (2015); Colette French in *Dare Me* (2019); Roscoe Conklin in *Reacher* season 1 (2022)[2](https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/pulse-star-willa-fitzgerald-becoming-170600330.html) • [3](https://www.metacritic.com/person/willa-fitzgerald/) |
| Signature film role | "The Lady" in *Strange Darling* (2024), directed by JT Mollner; the film holds 96% on Rotten Tomatoes[4](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/strange_darling) |
| Award nomination | 2024 Critics Choice nomination for Best Supporting Actress in a Limited Series, for *The Fall of the House of Usher*[5](https://nz.news.yahoo.com/regretting-willa-fitzgerald-signs-caa-203000567.html) |
| Recent work | Danny Simms in Netflix's *Pulse* (2025); *Regretting You*, *A House of Dynamite*, and *Relay* (2025)[6](https://apnews.com/article/676403eafd3c53a4e0ce3ed6cd7965e2) • [5](https://nz.news.yahoo.com/regretting-willa-fitzgerald-signs-caa-203000567.html) |
## Early life and education
Fitzgerald is a native of Nashville, Tennessee. She graduated from the Harpeth Hall School, a private college-preparatory school for girls in Nashville, in 2009, and received a BA in theater studies from Yale University in 2013. Her film career began with the role of Vivian in *For the Love of a Dog* (2008), and she made her television debut in 2013 as Lola Laffer in the political satire series *Alpha House*.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2560618/bio/)
In interviews she has described coming to acting gradually: she explored other options before committing, switched majors after writing a thesis, and graduated with the theater degree because, in her words, "becoming an actor felt undeniable."[2](https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/pulse-star-willa-fitzgerald-becoming-170600330.html) Her theater credits include *Couple in the Kitchen*, *The Private Sector*, *Cow Play*, and *The Cat and the Canary*.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2560618/bio/)
## Television career
**Early roles.** After *Alpha House*, Fitzgerald took a recurring role as Emma Miller on [USA Network](https://www.edgepedia.org/usa-network)'s *Royal Pains* in 2014, followed by guest appearances on *Blue Bloods*, *The Following*, and *Gotham*, and parts in *House of Cards* and *Younger*.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2560618/bio/) • [2](https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/pulse-star-willa-fitzgerald-becoming-170600330.html)
**Scream and Dare Me.** Starting in 2015, Fitzgerald played the lead, Emma Duval, in MTV's *[Scream](https://www.edgepedia.org/scream-tv-series): The TV Series*, which ran for three seasons.[2](https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/pulse-star-willa-fitzgerald-becoming-170600330.html) In 2019 she played Colette French, the head cheerleading coach, in USA's *Dare Me*.[3](https://www.metacritic.com/person/willa-fitzgerald/) She also played Meg March in the [BBC America](https://www.edgepedia.org/bbc-america) adaptation of *Little Women* opposite [Maya Hawke](https://www.edgepedia.org/maya-hawke).[5](https://nz.news.yahoo.com/regretting-willa-fitzgerald-signs-caa-203000567.html)
**Reacher and House of Usher.** Fitzgerald played officer Roscoe Conklin in the first season of Amazon Prime Video's *Reacher* (2022), a role she has said she loved for the chance to help initiate the Reacher television universe.[3](https://www.metacritic.com/person/willa-fitzgerald/) • [2](https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/pulse-star-willa-fitzgerald-becoming-170600330.html) Her exit from the series opened the door to two 2023 projects: *Strange Darling* and Mike Flanagan's Netflix series *The Fall of the House of Usher*, in which she played the young Madeline Usher opposite [Mary McDonnell](https://www.edgepedia.org/mary-mcdonnell)'s older version of the same character.[7](https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/strange-darling-star-willa-fitzgerald-183729450.html) Critics singled out her performance; Rotten Tomatoes' roundup quoted a review praising how she and McDonnell "perfectly embody the icy and highly intelligent Madeline Usher at different ages."[8](https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/article/the-fall-of-the-house-of-usher-reviews/) The role earned her a 2024 Critics Choice nomination for Best Supporting Actress in a Limited Series.[5](https://nz.news.yahoo.com/regretting-willa-fitzgerald-signs-caa-203000567.html)
## Strange Darling
Fitzgerald's breakout film role came in *Strange Darling*, written and directed by JT Mollner and produced by Roy Lee for Miramax.[5](https://nz.news.yahoo.com/regretting-willa-fitzgerald-signs-caa-203000567.html) The film premiered at [Fantastic Fest](https://www.edgepedia.org/fantastic-fest) 2023 in [Austin, Texas](https://www.edgepedia.org/austin-texas), where it drew enthusiastic reviews for its non-linear narrative, the performances of Fitzgerald and [Kyle Gallner](https://www.edgepedia.org/kyle-gallner), and the 35mm cinematography of actor-turned-cinematographer Giovanni Ribisi.[9](https://nextbestpicture.com/the-next-best-picture-podcast-interviews-with-strange-darling-star-willa-fitzgerald-director-writer-jt-mollner-cinematographer-giovanni-ribisi/) It received a theatrical release on August 23, 2024.[10](https://time.com/7012318/strange-darling-explained/)
The film is a serial-killer thriller told in six non-chronological chapters, with Fitzgerald and Gallner credited only as "The Lady" and "The Demon." Nearly an hour of its 96-minute runtime sets up the expectation of a standard male-killer-targets-female-victim story before revealing that Fitzgerald's character is the wanted killer, a fugitive known as "The Electric Lady."[10](https://time.com/7012318/strange-darling-explained/) The film holds a 96% Tomatometer score from 164 reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, whose critics consensus names "two breakout performances by Willa Fitzgerald and Kyle Gallner."[4](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/strange_darling)
Reviewers consistently centered her performance. The *Washington Post* called it a "knockout performance" that elevates the film;[11](https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/movies/2024/08/23/strange-darling-ribisi-review/) *Sight and Sound* described her work as "nothing short of a tour de-force";[12](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/reviews/strange-darling-gotcha-serial-killer-thriller-delights-its-own-wicked-games) and RogerEbert.com called it "a bravura performance" while criticizing the film around it.[13](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/strange-darling-film-review-2024) Fitzgerald herself has said she loves acting in genre work because, outside a strict box of realism, "you get such a huge playground to play in."[14](https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/story/willa-fitzgerald-strange-darling-awards-insider)
## Recent and upcoming work
In 2025 Fitzgerald starred as Danny Simms in *Pulse*, Netflix's first English-language medical procedural, set at a Level 1 trauma center in Miami and co-starring Colin Woodell.[6](https://apnews.com/article/676403eafd3c53a4e0ce3ed6cd7965e2) Her 2025 film slate included Paramount's adaptation of [Colleen Hoover](https://www.edgepedia.org/colleen-hoover)'s *Regretting You*, Kathryn Bigelow's *A House of Dynamite* for Netflix, David Mackenzie's *Relay* opposite [Lily James](https://www.edgepedia.org/lily-james) and [Riz Ahmed](https://www.edgepedia.org/riz-ahmed), and *Alarum*.[5](https://nz.news.yahoo.com/regretting-willa-fitzgerald-signs-caa-203000567.html) • [15](https://www.fandango.com/people/willa-fitzgerald-217176/film-credits) She also wrapped the Cold War thriller *Billion Dollar Spy* alongside Russell Crowe and Harry Lawtey.[5](https://nz.news.yahoo.com/regretting-willa-fitzgerald-signs-caa-203000567.html)
In January 2026 she signed with CAA for representation, continuing with Untitled Entertainment and Jackoway Austen Tyerman.[5](https://nz.news.yahoo.com/regretting-willa-fitzgerald-signs-caa-203000567.html) Upcoming projects include *Skeletons*, a Sony creature feature releasing in theaters on June 4, 2027, which reunites her with *Strange Darling* collaborators Kyle Gallner and JT Mollner alongside [Brie Larson](https://www.edgepedia.org/brie-larson) and [John Goodman](https://www.edgepedia.org/john-goodman),[16](https://www.imdb.com/de/name/nm2560618/news/) and *New England Toys*, a period thriller from writer-director Blaise Beyhan in which she and [Ruby Cruz](https://www.edgepedia.org/ruby-cruz) play sisters in 1910s America concealing the death of an abusive husband; Fitzgerald is also executive producing.[17](https://www.dreadcentral.com/news/557140/sisters-cover-up-a-brutal-death-in-new-england-toys-starring-willa-fitzgerald/)
## References
1. [Willa Fitzgerald – Biography, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2560618/bio/)
2. [For 'Pulse' Star Willa Fitzgerald, Becoming an Actor Felt "Undeniable", Yahoo Entertainment](https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/pulse-star-willa-fitzgerald-becoming-170600330.html)
3. [Willa Fitzgerald – Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/person/willa-fitzgerald/)
4. [Strange Darling – Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/strange_darling)
5. ['Regretting You's Willa Fitzgerald Signs With CAA, Yahoo/Deadline](https://nz.news.yahoo.com/regretting-willa-fitzgerald-signs-caa-203000567.html)
6. [What to stream: Elton John & Brandi Carlile, Michelle Williams on FX and Kevin Bacon hunts demons, AP News](https://apnews.com/article/676403eafd3c53a4e0ce3ed6cd7965e2)
7. ['Strange Darling' Star Willa Fitzgerald Breaks Down the Shocking End of Her Acclaimed Thriller, Yahoo Entertainment](https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/strange-darling-star-willa-fitzgerald-183729450.html)
8. [The Fall of the House of Usher Reviews: 'Deliciously Macabre' and 'Triumphant,' Critics Say, Rotten Tomatoes](https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/article/the-fall-of-the-house-of-usher-reviews/)
9. [The Next Best Picture Podcast – Interviews With "Strange Darling" Star Willa Fitzgerald, Director/Writer JT Mollner & Cinematographer Giovanni Ribisi](https://nextbestpicture.com/the-next-best-picture-podcast-interviews-with-strange-darling-star-willa-fitzgerald-director-writer-jt-mollner-cinematographer-giovanni-ribisi/)
10. [Breaking Down the Big Twist in Strange Darling, TIME](https://time.com/7012318/strange-darling-explained/)
11. [Shot by Giovanni Ribisi, this serial killer tale delights in twists, The Washington Post](https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/movies/2024/08/23/strange-darling-ribisi-review/)
12. [Strange Darling: gotcha serial killer thriller delights in its own wicked games, Sight and Sound (BFI)](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/reviews/strange-darling-gotcha-serial-killer-thriller-delights-its-own-wicked-games)
13. [Strange Darling movie review & film summary, RogerEbert.com](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/strange-darling-film-review-2024)
14. [Willa Fitzgerald Is Revelatory in the Serial-Killer Thriller 'Strange Darling.' Is It Too Scary for Awards?, Vanity Fair](https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/story/willa-fitzgerald-strange-darling-awards-insider)
15. [Willa Fitzgerald Filmography and Movies, Fandango](https://www.fandango.com/people/willa-fitzgerald-217176/film-credits)
16. [Willa Fitzgerald – News, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/de/name/nm2560618/news/)
17. [Sisters Cover Up a Brutal Death in 'New England Toys', Starring Willa Fitzgerald, Dread Central](https://www.dreadcentral.com/news/557140/sisters-cover-up-a-brutal-death-in-new-england-toys-starring-willa-fitzgerald/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screen actors of the Anglosphere and Europe › American actors: 2000s onward › Surnames F*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license