Friday Familiar Faces: Emily Mortimer

Welcome to a semi-regular weekly feature here at Movies With Abe! There are plenty of actors out there who people recognize by face but can’t identify because they just don’t tend to get the leading roles. There is a fantastic book (and website) dedicated to this phenomenon, appropriately titled “Hey! It’s That Guy” and touting the fantastic J.T. Walsh as the ultimate recognizable everyman.

This series will spotlight an actor or actress who has recently turned in a notable or scene-stealing performance and showcase some of their best cinematic appearances. More than other any feature, this series will merge the worlds of television and film as needed to highlight a performer’s best and most recognizable work.

Emily Mortimer

Where you’ve seen her most recently: Running the show and talking very quickly as executive producer MacKenzie McHale on HBO’s “The Newsroom” and as the sweet Lisette, object of the station inspector’s affection in Martin Scorsese’s “Hugo.”

Where you might have first seen her: In the USA, in the critically-acclaimed “Lovely and Amazing” opposite Catherine Keener. Not, as many think, as Ross’ second wife Elizabeth on “Friends” in 1999 – that’s Helen Baxendale, who bears only a slight resemblance to Mortimer.

Other notable appearances: As the wife being cheated on in “Match Point,” as Lars’ sweet-natured sister-in-law in “Lars and the Real Girl,” as the wife trapped on a dangerous train in “Transsiberian,” the investigator tailing the title character in “Harry Brown,” a haunting inmate patient in “Shutter Island,” and as one of Paul Rudd’s siblings in “Our Idiot Brother.” Also, on TV as Jack’s weird wife Phoebe.

What you might expect from her: Usually, a shy and somewhat sheepish young woman with a surprisingly strong resolve. In the new role that might make her a household name, she’s awkward and talkative with a brazen and immutable personality.