Eve Best

Eve Best is not your typical red carpet star. At the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London, she learned that silence communicates more than a scream. That restraint earned her first Laurence Olivier Award in 1999 for her role in ‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore.

Technique is her obsession.

In 2005 she played Hedda Gabler, and British critics stopped seeing her as a promising newcomer. That production at the Almeida Theatre earned her another Olivier. But Best didn't want to limit herself to the London circuit, so she crossed the pond to try her luck in American television.

The Jump to American Television

She arrived in New York to shoot Nurse Jackie in 2009. For seven seasons she played Dr. Eleanor O'Hara, the sophisticated, cynical counterpoint to Edie Falco. The pay was better than in theater, but the shooting schedule was exhausting.

Because on television, timing is everything.

Despite her international fame, she chose to return to the stage in 2011 to star in Much Ado About Nothing alongside Charles Edwards. The press praised her ability to deliver Shakespeare's lines as if they were barroom banter. She wasn't chasing easy applause.

In 2013, she made her directing debut in theater with a production of Macbeth at Shakespeare's Globe. It was a risky bet that divided London's critics. She has always preferred the risk of the stage to the comfort of a conventional film set.

Dragons and Period Crowns

In 2022, she donned a silver wig to play Rhaenys Targaryen in House of the Dragon. Her character demanded an imposing physical presence. For the scenes of flying on mechanical dragons, she had to train her balance in a stunt gym.

And that's when young audiences discovered her.

That same year, she appeared in the fifth season of The Crown as Carole Middleton. It was a brief role. In 2023, she starred in the series Maryland alongside Suranne Jones. Filming took place in Ireland under constant rain that shaped the entire photography of the production.

In 2024, she wrapped up her role in the second season of the Game of Thrones prequel with an action scene that required fourteen hours of digital post-production for every minute of footage.