--- name: "Jeannie Berlin" canonical: "https://film.one/person/jeannie-berlin" fi1m_id: "jeannie-berlin" imdb_id: "nm0075588" tmdb_id: 124377 wikidata_id: "Q442907" roles: ["Actor"] born: "1 November 1949" reviewed_on_fi1m: 7 average_fi1m_score: 76 average_as: "actor" average_over: 7 updated: "2026-10-03T21:15:46.316299+00:00" licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Jeannie Berlin ## Identity Jeannie Berlin - **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/jeannie-berlin - **Type:** Person - **Fi1m ID:** jeannie-berlin - **IMDb ID:** nm0075588 - **TMDB ID:** 124377 - **Wikidata ID:** Q442907 - **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeannie_Berlin, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q442907, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0075588/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/124377 Actor. Born 1 November 1949 in Los Angeles, California, USA. ## Details - **Work:** Actor - **Born:** 1 November 1949, Los Angeles, California, USA - **Active:** 1971–present - **Also known as:** Jeannie Brette May - **Academy Awards:** 1 Oscar nomination - **Average Fi1m score:** 76, as actor, over 7 titles - **Fi1m score by decade:** 1970s 82 (2), 2010s 79 (3), 2020s 66 (2) - **Fi1m against the critics:** 74 to 73 across 5 titles - **Score spread:** 2 at 80+, 4 at 60–79, 1 under 60 - **Lead roles:** 0 of 6 acting credits billed first or second - **Genres:** Drama 5, Mystery 3, Comedy 2, Crime 2, Fantasy 1, Horror 1 - **Screen time:** 11 hours of reviewed films - **Box office:** $90m across 5 films with figures - **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeannie_Berlin, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q442907, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0075588/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/124377 ## Streaming the US now - **HBO Max:** [*The Night Of*](https://film.one/tv/the-night-of.md) (81), [*The Bride!*](https://film.one/film/the-bride.md) (57) - **Disney+:** [*Margaret*](https://film.one/film/margaret.md) (78) - **Peacock:** [*The Fabelmans*](https://film.one/film/the-fabelmans.md) (76) For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country. ## Fi1m on Jeannie Berlin > Jeannie Berlin makes supporting characters feel entitled to their own scene, even when the film has other plans. We value her emotional directness, though a glance can only do so much when the script gives her little else. In *Margaret* (2011), Jeannie Berlin's Emily does not wait for Lisa Cohen to finish being upset before having feelings of her own. Berlin gives those feelings enough force to interrupt our attention to the central character. That matters in a film which keeps asking who is entitled to speak for somebody else's suffering. We rate her because she makes us take a supporting character seriously even when doing so complicates our sympathy for the lead. The early breakthrough was *The Heartbreak Kid* (1972), with Elaine May directing her as Lila Kolodny. The part gave her scope to play vulnerability and romantic delusion without smoothing away the awkwardness. A lead followed in *Sheila Levine Is Dead and Living in New York* (1975), then a long absence from major screen work before *Margaret* brought her back to prominence. Kenneth Lonergan's writing in *Margaret* is particularly well suited to that emotional directness. Emily's feelings cannot simply be borrowed to explain Lisa, and Berlin makes us consider them separately. We were unsettled by Emily, because Berlin made our concentration on Lisa feel like a way of overlooking somebody else's pain. The crowded story and uneven editing can make the film hard work, but her performance helps justify the effort. Lonergan lets disagreements persist rather than settling them by telling us whom to like. Later ensemble parts include Aunt Reet in *Inherent Vice* (2014) and Hadassah Fabelman in Steven Spielberg's *The Fabelmans* (2022). The difficulty with this sort of career is that a film can hire the actor and then neglect the character. Maggie Gyllenhaal's *The Bride* (2026) leaves Berlin's Greta with a promising look and too little development. Berlin can suggest more with a glance than the dialogue supplies in a speech, but that is a criticism of the writing as much as praise for her. For Berlin with enough to do, start with *Margaret*. ## Biography Jeannie Berlin is an American actress. Born Jeannie Brette May on 1 November 1949 in Los Angeles, she is the daughter of director and performer Elaine May. She is best known for her performance as Lila Kolodny in her mother's 1972 film *The Heartbreak Kid*, for which she received Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations for Best Supporting Actress. Berlin has appeared in films including *Margaret* (2011), *Inherent Vice* (2014), *Café Society* (2016), *The Fabelmans* (2022) and *You Hurt My Feelings* (2023). Her television credits include roles in *The Night Of* (2016), *Hunters* (2020) and *Succession* (2019–2023). She is set to appear as Greta in the 2026 film *The Bride!*. *Sources: en.wikipedia.org, imdb.com.* ## On Fi1m (7) - *The Bride!* (2026), Fi1m 57, as Greta — [page](https://film.one/film/the-bride.md) - *The Fabelmans* (2022), Fi1m 76, as Hadassah Fabelman — [page](https://film.one/film/the-fabelmans.md) - *The Night Of* (2016), Fi1m 81, as Helen Weiss — [page](https://film.one/tv/the-night-of.md) - *Inherent Vice* (2014), Fi1m 78, as Aunt Reet — [page](https://film.one/film/inherent-vice.md) - *Margaret* (2011), Fi1m 78, as Emily — [page](https://film.one/film/margaret.md) - *The Heartbreak Kid* (1972), Fi1m 78, as Lila Kolodny — [page](https://film.one/film/the-heartbreak-kid.md) - *Columbo* (1971), Fi1m 86, as Janie Brandt — [page](https://film.one/tv/columbo.md) ## Complete filmography (31) Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page. - *The Bride!* (2026), as Greta — Fi1m 57, [page](https://film.one/film/the-bride.md) - *I'll Be Right There* (2024), as Grace - *You Hurt My Feelings* (2023), as Georgia - *The Fabelmans* (2022), as Hadassah Fabelman — Fi1m 76, [page](https://film.one/film/the-fabelmans.md) - *Faraway Eyes* (2021), as Goldie (Mom) - *Hunters* (2020), series, as Ruth Heidelbaum - *The Boor* (2018), Writer, Director - *Succession* (2018), series, as Cyd Peach — Fi1m 88, [page](https://film.one/tv/succession.md) - *The Night Of* (2016), series, as Helen Weiss — Fi1m 81, [page](https://film.one/tv/the-night-of.md) - *Café Society* (2016), as Rose Dorfman - *Inherent Vice* (2014), as Aunt Reet — Fi1m 78, [page](https://film.one/film/inherent-vice.md) - *Vijay and I* (2013), as Mrs. Korokowski - *Margaret* (2011), as Emily — Fi1m 78, [page](https://film.one/film/margaret.md) - *Miss Match* (2003), series, as Risa Barbeko - *In the Spirit* (1990), as Crystal · Writer - *Going Hollywood: The '30s* (1984), Creative Consultant - *Sheila Levine Is Dead and Living in New York* (1975), as Sheila Levine - *Why?* (1973), as The Junkie - *The Heartbreak Kid* (1972), as Lila Kolodny — Fi1m 78, [page](https://film.one/film/the-heartbreak-kid.md) - *Why* (1972), as The Junkie - *Bone* (1972), as The Girl - *Portnoy's Complaint* (1972), as Bubbles Girardi - *Two on a Bench* (1971), as Harriet - *Columbo* (1971), series, as Janie Brandt — Fi1m 86, [page](https://film.one/tv/columbo.md) - *The Baby Maker* (1970), as Charlotte - *The Strawberry Statement* (1970), as Girl with Clipboard - *Move* (1970), as Myrna (uncredited) - *On a Clear Day You Can See Forever* (1970), as Girl in Orphanage (uncredited) - *Getting Straight* (1970), as Judy Kramer - *In Name Only* (1969), as Heather - *Alice's Restaurant* (1969), as Extra (Uncredited) ## Awards ### Academy Awards — 0 won, 1 nominated - 1973: Best Supporting Actress (nominated), for *The Heartbreak Kid* *From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.* --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/jeannie-berlin