Brit Marling

Early life

Marling was born on August 7, 1982, in Chicago, Illinois, the daughter of property developer parents John and Heidi Marling. She was named "Brit" after her Norwegian maternal great-grandmother. She has a sister, Morgan. Marling grew up in Winnetka, Illinois, and Orlando, Florida, where she attended the arts program at Dr. Phillips High School. Marling was interested in acting, but her parents encouraged her to focus on academics. She graduated from Georgetown University in 2005 with degrees in economics and studio art, graduating top of her class and being her class valedictorian.

Career

At Georgetown, Marling met her long-time collaborators, future directors Mike Cahill and Zal Batmanglij. Marling spent the summer of her junior year interning for the investment banking firm Goldman Sachs as an investment analyst. She felt a life spent there would have a lack of meaning and eventually turned down a job offer from the firm, opting instead to move to Cuba with Cahill to film the documentary Boxers and Ballerinas. Co-writing the documentary with Cahill and Nick Shumaker, and co-directing with Cahill, the film helped Marling gain recognition in 2004.

In 2005, Marling moved with Cahill and Batmanglij to Los Angeles. She attended auditions and was offered roles in horror films but turned them down. She stated she "wanted to be able to cast herself in roles that wouldn't require her to play the typical parts offered to young actresses, the perfunctory girlfriend or a crime victim". She was discovered by talent agent Hylda Queally.

In mid-2009, she joined a group of freegans with friend and co-worker Zal Batmanglij, living in tents and retrieving food from dumpsters, to explore how other young people were constructing a meaningful life. Marling co-wrote, co-produced, and acted in the 2011 films Sound of My Voice and Another Earth, directed by Batmanglij and Cahill, respectively. Both of these films were featured at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival, with Another Earth winning the Alfred P. Sloan Prize for outstanding film with science, technology or math as a major theme. In 2012, she played the daughter of Richard Gere's character in Arbitrage. In 2013, she collaborated with Searchlight on the film The East, in which she also played the lead role. Directed by Zal Batmanglij and co-written by Marling and Batmanglij, The East is based on the duo's experience as freegans and their concern with the side effects of prescription drugs.

Marling and Batmanglij collaborated to create the drama series The OA, which debuted in 2016 on Netflix. It was written by Marling and Batmanglij, who produced the series along with Dede Gardner and Jeremy Kleiner of Plan B, and Michael Sugar of Anonymous Content. The show's second season, entitled "Part II", started filming in January 2018 and was released in March 2019 to positive reviews.

In June 2024, Marling and Batmanglij entered an agreement to develop television and film projects with independent production house Sister, led by Cindy Holland, who had been the vice president of original content for Netflix when The OA was developed.

Despite having many roles in films she has co-written, Marling stated she "get[s] a lot more pleasure in acting in other people's stories" since "one of the great pleasures of acting is surrendering to someone else's point of view of the world".

Filmography

Film

Television

References

References

1. (August 7, 2024). "Today in history: August 7, Twin Tower tightrope walk". The Boston Globe.
2. "Brit Marling Biography & Movies". [[Tribute (magazine).
3. Petski, Denise. (June 13, 2023). "FX's Murder Mystery Series Starring Emma Corrin Gets New Title, Premiere Date, First Images". [[Deadline Hollywood]].
4. Hornaday, Ann. (July 22, 2011). "Brit Marling of ''Another Earth'' does stardom her way". The Washington Post.
5. Broadben, Lucy. (January 29, 2014). "Brit Marling: the Hollywood star on her Channel 4 series Babylon". The Telegraph.
6. (July 22, 2011). "Brit Marling Exclusive Interview - Another Earth". Movies.about.com.
7. Caro, Mark. (June 2, 2013). "Covert actress: Brit Marling infiltrates Hollywood". The Chicago Tribune.
8. Moore, Roger. (October 19, 2012). "Great Brit". Orlando.
9. Hirschberg, Lynn. (March 2013). "The New Guard: Brit Marling". [[W (magazine).
10. [http://www.interviewmagazine.com/film/brit-marling-another-earth The otherworldly Brit Marling] {{Webarchive. link. (December 3, 2012, ''[[Interview (magazine)). Interview]]'', July 6, 2011
11. "Brit Marling: True Brit". The Independent.
12. (2011-01-28). "Sundance '11: Brit Marling".
13. [http://blog.georgetownvoice.com/2011/01/31/alums-win-prizes-at-sundance-film-festival/ Alums Win Prizes at Sundance Film Festival] {{Webarchive. link. (October 4, 2011, ''Georgetown Voice'' blog)
14. (June 1, 2013). "Brit Marling on Writing, Anarchists, and the Need to Get Her Heart Broken".
15. "Q&A: Brit Marling, Indie Star You Need to Know".
16. Rosenblum, Emma. (June 24, 2011). "How to Succeed in Hollywood Despite Being Really Beautiful". [[The New York Times Magazine]].
17. [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0435609/ ''Boxers and Ballerinas'' (2004)] {{Webarchive. link. (July 31, 2017. [[Internet Movie Database]]. Retrieved January 29, 2011.)
18. Seymour, Tom. (June 28, 2013). "The East: from Goldman Sachs to freeganism, Brit Marling is a Hollywood conundrum". The Guardian.
19. Fernandez, Maria Elena. (July 18, 2011). "Hollywood's Anti-It Girl".
20. "Hylda Queally". [[The Hollywood Reporter]].
21. Chai, Barbara. (January 28, 2013). "''The East'' Intersects Anarchy Collectives With Corporate CEOs". [[The Wall Street Journal]].
22. "Director Zal Batmanglij Talks Making ''The East'', Harnessing The Power Of Young Filmmakers & Creating An Anarchist Collective". Indiewire.
23. [http://www.sundance.org/press-center/release/alfred-p.-sloan-feature-film-prize-awarded-to-mike-cahills-another-earth-at/ "Alfred P. Sloan Feature Film Prize Awarded to Mike Cahill's ''Another Earth'' at 2011 Sundance Film Festival"] {{webarchive. link. (February 2, 2011, Sundance.org, January 28, 2011. Retrieved January 29, 2011.)
24. Kornhaber, Spencer. (January 17, 2017). "The OA and the Dark Side of Science".
25. (March 5, 2015). "Netflix Greenlights ''The OA'' Reuniting Brit Marling And Zal Batmanglij".
26. Kiefer, Halle. "Brit Marling Says The OA's Second Season Starts Filming in January". Vulture.
27. Lansky, Sam. (March 20, 2019). "How The OA Became Netflix's Most Mysterious Show". [[Time.com]].
28. "The OA: Season 2 (2019)". [[Fandango Media.
29. "The OA: Season 2". [[CBS]].
30. Schneider, Michael. (2024-06-20). "''The OA'' Creators Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij to Develop Film and TV Projects at Sister".
31. "Q&A: Brit Marling, Vampire Weekend's Rostam Batmanglij, and Director Zal Batmanglij on Sound of My Voice".
32. "Political Disasters on Amazon Prime Video".
33. Movies. (September 28, 2012). "Wes Bentley and Brit Marling Join ''The Green Blade Rises'' | The Wrap Movies". Thewrap.com.
34. Zeitchik, Steven. (2025-04-29). "Natasha Lyonne Set to Make Feature Directorial Debut With AI Film — With Help From Jaron Lanier (Exclusive)".
35. Sharf, Zack. (December 1, 2014). "Watch: Brit Marling Heads to TV in Danny Boyle's ''Babylon'' Trailer". Indiewire.