Cailee Spaeny

Cailee Spaeny (/ˈkeɪli ˈspeɪni/;^[1] born July 24, 1998) is an American actress. Her first major roles were in the science fiction film Pacific Rim Uprising and the neo-noir film Bad Times at the El Royale (both 2018). Her television roles include appearances in the miniseries Devs (2020) and Mare of Easttown (2021).

Cailee Spaeny
Spaeny in 2023
Born	(1998-07-24) July 24, 1998 (age 26) Knoxville, Tennessee, U.S.
Occupation	Actress
Years active	2014–present

In 2023, she received critical acclaim for her portrayal of Priscilla Presley in the biographical film Priscilla, for which she received the Volpi Cup for Best Actress and a nomination for a Golden Globe Award. Further recognition came in 2024 for starring in the dystopian drama film Civil War and the horror film Alien: Romulus.

Early life

Spaeny was born July 24, 1998,^[2][3] in Knoxville, Tennessee, and raised in Springfield, Missouri with her eight siblings.^[4] Growing up, she spent a large amount of time in the Springfield Little Theatre group, with which she participated in many plays.^[5] She also took acting, voice, and dance classes six days a week at the Springfield Little Theatre group.^[5] In the 2014–2015 season, she landed the lead role of Dorothy in a stage production of The Wizard of Oz.^[6][7]

Career

Spaeny in 2018

In 2018, Spaeny played several major film roles, starring in Steven S. DeKnight's science fiction monster adventure Pacific Rim Uprising, alongside John Boyega and Scott Eastwood; Drew Goddard's thriller Bad Times at the El Royale;^[8][9][10] and the biographical dramas On the Basis of Sex and Vice.^[11]

She next appeared in the main cast of the FX miniseries Devs and starred in the film The Craft: Legacy, both in 2020.^[12] In 2021, she appeared in the HBO limited series Mare of Easttown, a murder mystery, starring Kate Winslet.^[13] She then portrayed Anna Roosevelt Halsted in the series The First Lady (2022).^[14]

In 2023, Spaeny starred as Priscilla Presley in Sofia Coppola's biographical drama film Priscilla alongside Jacob Elordi as Elvis Presley.^[15] Reviewing the film for Variety, Owen Gleiberman opined, "Spaeny makes Priscilla a figure of strength, but the force of her performance is how she enacts Priscilla's slow-motion melancholy".^[16] Her performance earned her the Volpi Cup for Best Actress at the 80th Venice International Film Festival.^[17][18]

In 2024, Spaeny starred in the war drama Civil War as Jessie, a young war photographer, and in the science fiction horror film Alien: Romulus as Rain Carradine, a space colonist.^[19][20] Reviewing the latter film, Jordan Hoffman of Entertainment Weekly deemed Spaeny "the finest weapon in the arsenal... differentiating herself quite a bit from the doe-eyed characters she played in Civil War and Priscilla."^[21]

Spaeny will next star in the mystery film Wake Up Dead Man, the third installment of the Knives Out series, set for a Netflix release in 2025.^[22] In 2024, she joined the cast for the second season of Netflix's anthology series Beef, alongside Oscar Isaac, Carey Mulligan, and Charles Melton.^[23]

Filmography

Key

†	Denotes productions that have not yet been released

Film

List of Cailee Spaeny's film roles

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2018	Pacific Rim Uprising	Amara Namani
	Bad Times at the El Royale	Rose Summerspring
	On the Basis of Sex	Jane Ginsburg
	Vice	Lynne Cheney (young)
2020	The Craft: Legacy	Lilith "Lily" Schechner
2021	How It Ends	Little Liza
2022	Unlimited World	Lars	Short film
2023	Priscilla	Priscilla Presley
2024	Civil War	Jessie Cullen
	Alien: Romulus	Rain Carradine
2025	Wake Up Dead Man †	TBA	Post-production

Television

List of Cailee Spaeny's television appearances and roles

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2020	Devs	Lyndon	Miniseries
2021	Mare of Easttown	Erin McMenamin	Miniseries
2022	The First Lady	Anna Roosevelt Halsted	Recurring role
TBA	Beef †	TBA	Filming; season two

Video games

List of Cailee Spaeny's video game appearances and roles

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2024	Dead by Daylight	Rain Carradine	voice and likeness; Purchasable skin for Ellen Ripley

Music videos

• "Send Her to Heaven" (2019), by The All-American Rejects

Awards and nominations

Award	Year	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref.
Golden Globe Awards	2024	Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama	Priscilla	Nominated	[24]
Gotham Awards	2023	Outstanding Lead Performance		Nominated	[25]
London Critics Circle Film Awards	2024	Breakthrough Performer of the Year		Nominated	[26]
Satellite Awards	2024	Best Actress in a Motion Picture, Comedy or Musical		Nominated	[27]
Venice International Film Festival	2023	Volpi Cup for Best Actress		Won	[28]

References

1. "Pacific Rim Uprising Cast Answer 50 of the Most Googled Kaiju Questions". YouTube. Wired. March 22, 2018. Archived from the original on April 9, 2021. Retrieved March 28, 2018.
2. "Cailee (@CaileeSpaeny) | Twitter". Archived from the original on September 22, 2018. Retrieved April 30, 2024. Born July 24
3. Smith, Krista (January 11, 2018). "Get Ready to See a Lot More of Pacific Rim Uprising's Cailee Spaeny". Vanity Fair. Retrieved April 30, 2024. Age: 19
4. Sobrevilla, Savannah (November 2, 2023). "V145: It's Time For Cailee Spaeny". V. Archived from the original on December 15, 2023. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
5. Houghton, Jeff (April 2018). "Cailee Spaeny's Journey from Springfield Little Theatre to Pacific Rim: Uprising". 417 Magazine. No. April 2018. Archived from the original on May 17, 2022.
6. Collins, Larry T. (April 11, 2015). "The yellow brick road comes to Landers: A review of 'The Wizard of Oz'". Springfield News-Leader. p. 3A. Archived from the original on October 23, 2023. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
7. "The Wizard of Oz | Springfield Little Theatre". Springfield Little Theatre. Archived from the original on April 4, 2015. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
8. Kroll, Justin (September 15, 2016). "Newcomer Cailee Spaeny Lands Female Lead in 'Pacific Rim 2'". Variety. Archived from the original on September 18, 2016. Retrieved November 22, 2017.
9. White, James (September 15, 2016). "Pacific Rim sequel adds Cailee Spaeny". Empire. Archived from the original on August 11, 2018. Retrieved November 22, 2017.
10. "Cailee Spaeny Cast as Female Lead in Pacific Rim Sequel". ComingSoon.net. September 15, 2016. Archived from the original on October 23, 2023. Retrieved November 22, 2017.
11. Kit, Borys (September 15, 2016). "Drew Goddard's 'Bad Times at the El Royale' Adds Newcomer Cailee Spaeny". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on March 10, 2021. Retrieved November 22, 2017.
12. Galuppo, Mia (June 21, 2019). "'The Craft' Reboot Finds Lead With Cailee Spaeny (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on January 13, 2021. Retrieved October 8, 2019.
13. Romano, Nick (February 17, 2021). "Kate Winslet gets her prestige murder mystery drama in HBO's Mare of Easttown trailer". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on March 18, 2021. Retrieved February 19, 2021.
14. Petski, Denise (July 23, 2021). "'The First Lady': Ellen Burstyn, Eliza Scanlen, Cailee Spaeny To Recur On Showtime Anthology Series". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on July 23, 2021. Retrieved July 27, 2021.
15. Jackson, Angelique (September 12, 2022). "Jacob Elordi to Play Elvis, Cailee Spaeny Is Priscilla Presley in Sofia Coppola's Film 'Priscilla'". Variety. Archived from the original on March 22, 2023. Retrieved October 6, 2022.
16. Gleiberman, Owen (September 4, 2023). "'Priscilla' Review: Sofia Coppola's Piercingly Authentic Inside Drama About the Troubled Love Story of Priscilla and Elvis Presley". Variety. Archived from the original on December 9, 2023. Retrieved October 18, 2023.
17. Tartaglione, Nancy; Ntim, Zac (September 9, 2023). "Venice Winners: Golden Lion Goes To Yorgos Lanthimos For 'Poor Things'; Hamaguchi, Sarsgaard, Spaeny Also Score — Full List". Deadline. Archived from the original on September 10, 2023. Retrieved September 9, 2023.
18. "Cailee Spaeny Brings Florals to the 2024 Golden Globes Red Carpet". The Fashion Enthusiast. January 7, 2024. Archived from the original on January 8, 2024. Retrieved January 8, 2024.
19. Kroll, Justin (November 16, 2022). "Cailee Spaeny Circling New Alien Movie At 20th Century Fox And Scott Free". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on November 16, 2022. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
20. Grobar, Matt (January 21, 2022). "Alex Garland Reteams With A24 For Action Epic Civil War; Kirsten Dunst, Wagner Moura & More Set To Star". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on April 18, 2022. Retrieved January 21, 2022.
21. "'Alien: Romulus' launches Cailee Spaeny into winning gross-out orbit". EW.com. Retrieved August 17, 2024.
22. Kroll, Justin (May 27, 2024). "Josh O'Connor And Cailee Spaeny Join Daniel Craig In Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on May 28, 2024. Retrieved May 28, 2024.
23. Petski, Denise (October 22, 2024). "'Beef' Confirms Season 2 With Oscar Isaac, Carey Mulligan, Charles Melton & Cailee Spaeny". Deadline. Retrieved October 22, 2024.
24. film, Guardian (December 11, 2023). "Golden Globes 2024: full list of nominations". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on December 11, 2023. Retrieved December 11, 2023.
25. Lang, Clayton Davis, Brent; Davis, Clayton; Lang, Brent (October 24, 2023). "Gotham Awards Nominations: 'All of Us Strangers' Leads With Four Nominations". Variety. Archived from the original on October 24, 2023. Retrieved December 11, 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
26. Pulver, Andrew (December 20, 2023). "All of Us Strangers leads London film critics awards nominations". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on December 20, 2023. Retrieved January 2, 2024.
27. "2023 Nominees | International Press Academy". Archived from the original on February 27, 2024. Retrieved January 2, 2024.
28. Ritman, Scott Roxborough, Alex; Roxborough, Scott; Ritman, Alex (September 9, 2023). "Venice: Yorgos Lanthimos' 'Poor Things' Wins Best Film (Full Winners List)". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on December 11, 2023. Retrieved December 11, 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)

External links

• Cailee Spaeny at IMDb