# Ahna O'Reilly

Ahna O'Reilly (born September 21, 1984) is an American actress. She is best known for her role in the film The Help (2011).

## Early life and career

O'Reilly graduated from Menlo School in 2003 and attended the University of Southern California for one year before dropping out.
After graduating, O'Reilly began her acting career in 2003 in the film, Bill the Intern. She has appeared in several other movies like Dinocroc, Nancy Drew, Just Add Water and Forgetting Sarah Marshall. She also acted in television series like CSI: NY, Unhitched, The Vampire Diaries and Prime Suspect.
In 2011, she appeared in the movie The Help based on Kathryn Stockett's best-selling novel of the same name, a period piece set in Jackson, Mississippi, in the 1960s. The film opened to positive reviews and became a box-office success with a worldwide gross of $211,608,112. It also won several ensemble awards including National Board of Review Award, Screen Actors Guild Award and Satellite Award. O'Reilly co-starred in the 2013 film Jobs, alongside Ashton Kutcher and Josh Gad, about the life of technology pioneer Steve Jobs.
In 2016, she appeared in the Roundabout Theatre Company off-Broadway production of The Robber Bridegroom. A cast recording featuring O'Reilly in her role as Rosamund was released on September 9, 2016.
In 2017, O’Reilly starred as Sarah Foster in the film Sleepwalker.

## Personal life

She dated actor James Franco for a time before the two broke up in 2011. In December 2021 O'Reilly announced via Instagram that she married writer and producer Dave Andron a year earlier, in secret.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2003 | Bill the Intern | Actress | |
| 2004 | Dinocroc | Beach-Goer | |
| 2007 | Succubus: Hell-Bent | Bikini Babe | |
| 2007 | Good Time Max | Girl Jumping on Bed | |
| 2007 | Nancy Drew | 'No' Woman | |
| 2008 | Forgetting Sarah Marshall | Leslie | |
| 2008 | Just Add Water | Tammy | |
| 2009 | The Harsh Life of Veronica Lambert | Maya | also known as 5 Nights in Hollywood |
| 2009 | Herpes Boy | Christeee | |
| 2010 | House Under Siege | Lana | |
| 2011 | 0s & 1s | Caitlin | |
| 2011 | Girls! Girls! Girls! | N/A | |
| 2011 | The Help | Elizabeth Leefolt | Black Film Critics Circle Award for Best Ensemble Black Reel Award for Best Ensemble Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Cast Hollywood Film Festival Award for Ensemble of the Year National Board of Review Award for Best Cast Satellite Award for Best Cast – Motion Picture Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Southeastern Film Critics Association Award for Best Ensemble Women Film Critics Circle Award for Best Ensemble Nominated — Detroit Film Critics Society Award for Best Ensemble Nominated — San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Performance by an Ensemble Nominated — Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Ensemble |
| 2011 | From the Head | Lily | |
| 2012 | I Am Ben | Max | |
| 2012 | The Time Being | Olivia | |
| 2013 | Miss Dial | Concerned Pet Owner | |
| 2013 | CBGB | Mary Harron | |
| 2013 | The Big Ask | Zoe | |
| 2013 | Fruitvale Station | Katie | |
| 2013 | Jobs | Chrisann Brennan | |
| 2013 | As I Lay Dying | Dewey Dell Bundren | |
| 2013 | Lucky Them | Charlotte | |
| 2014 | Get On Up | Reporter | |
| 2014 | The Sound and the Fury | Caddy Compson | |
| 2015 | She's Funny That Way | Former Prostitute | |
| 2015 | No Way Jose | Dusty Morrison | |
| 2015 | I Am Michael | Laura | |
| 2016 | Elvis & Nixon | Mary Anne Peterson | |
| 2016 | In Dubious Battle | Edith "Edie" Malone | |
| 2016 | All I See Is You | Carla | |
| 2017 | Marshall | Mrs. Richmond | |
| 2017 | Sleepwalker | Sarah | |
| 2017 | Big Bear | Jess | |
| 2017 | Totem | Robin | |
| 2018 | Spivak | Tammy Gordon | |
| 2019 | Our Friend | Gale | |
| 2019 | Bombshell | Julie Roginsky | |
| 2022 | Where the Crawdads Sing | Ma | |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2008 | CSI: NY | Halie | Episode: "Happily Never After" |
| 2008 | Unhitched | Blind Hostess | Episode: "Conjoined Twins Pitch No-Hitter" |
| 2011 | The Vampire Diaries | Jessica Cohen | Episode: "The Descent" |
| 2011 | Prime Suspect | Emma | Episode: "Shame" |
| 2013 | Call Me Crazy: A Five Film | Bethany | Television film |
| 2014 | How I Met Your Mother | Kelly | Episode: "How Your Mother Met Me" |
| 2017 | Kingdom | Amy | 4 episodes |
| 2018 | Reverie | Rachel Kauffman | Episode: "Bond. Jane Bond." |
| 2019 | The Morning Show | Ashley Brown | 2 episodes |
| 2019 | Bull | Erin Flemming | Episode: "Imminent Danger" |
| 2023 | Justified: City Primeval | Officer Charlene Gerret | Episode: "The Question" |