# Jessica Williams (actress)

Jessica Renee Williams (born July 31, 1989) is an American actress and comedian. She has appeared as a senior correspondent on The Daily Show, as cohost of the podcast 2 Dope Queens, as Lally Hicks in the Fantastic Beasts film series, as Gaby in Shrinking, and as Meadow in Entergalactic.

## Early life

Williams was born in Los Angeles County, California. She attended Nathaniel Narbonne High School where she studied drama. She made her television debut as a series regular on the Nickelodeon series Just for Kicks in 2006, and in 2012, she became The Daily Show's youngest correspondent ever at 22 years old. She attended California State University, Long Beach.

## Career

Williams made her Daily Show debut on January 11, 2012. Williams is a frequent performer at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre in Los Angeles. Williams also made appearances on Season 3 of HBO's Girls. She currently resides in Brooklyn, New York and Los Angeles, California. She appeared in the film People Places Things. She cohosted the comedy podcast 2 Dope Queens with Phoebe Robinson. Williams appears in an HBO special spun off from the podcast in February 2018. She appeared on her last regular Daily Show episode on June 30, 2016, but returned for a guest appearance on April 22, 2024, and October 28, 2024. She starred in the 2017 Netflix comedy movie The Incredible Jessica James, as a character described by The Guardian as "a struggling Brooklyn-based playwright navigating the murky waters of modern romance while waiting impatiently for her big break."
Williams appeared in the sequels of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, titled Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald and Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore as Lally Hicks, a teacher from Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. In 2023, Williams was a main cast member in the Apple TV+ show Shrinking. For her performance, she earned a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2011 | Crying in Public | Coffee Shop Crier | Short film |
| 2013 | Delivery Man | Tanya | |
| 2015 | People Places Things | Kat | |
| 2015 | Hot Tub Time Machine 2 | Herself | Cameo role |
| 2015 | Tap Shoes & Violins | Charlie | Short film |
| 2017 | The Incredible Jessica James | Jessica James | Also executive producer |
| 2018 | Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald | Lally Hicks | |
| 2019 | Corporate Animals | Jess | |
| 2019 | Booksmart | Miss Fine | |
| 2020 | Omniboat: A Fast Boat Fantasia | TBA | |
| 2022 | Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore | Lally Hicks | |
| 2024 | Road House | Frankie | |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2006 | Just for Kicks | Vida Atwood | 13 episodes |
| 2012–2016, 2024 | The Daily Show | Herself (correspondent) | 142 episodes |
| 2014 | Girls | Karen | 4 episodes |
| 2018-2019 | 2 Dope Queens | Herself | 8 episodes |
| 2019 | The Twilight Zone | Rei Tanaka | Episode: "Six Degrees of Freedom" |
| 2021 | I Heart Arlo | Elena | Voice role |
| 2021 | Love Life | Mia Hines | Main role |
| 2022 | Entergalactic | Meadow Watson | Voice role, television film |
| 2023-present | Shrinking | Gaby | Main role |

### Podcast

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2016–2018 | 2 Dope Queens | Herself (cohost) | Also co-creator, writer, executive producer |

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result |
| 2024 | Critics' Choice Award | Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series | Shrinking | Nominated |
| 2024 | Primetime Emmy Award | Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series | Shrinking | Nominated |
| 2024 | Screen Actors Guild Awards | Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series | Shrinking | Nominated |