Oona Laurence (born August 1, 2002) is an American actress. She is best known for the roles of Leila Hope in Southpaw and Matilda Wormwood in Matilda on Broadway alongside Bailey Ryon, Milly Shapiro, and Sophia Gennusa. She began her career as a New York City-based child actress, with credits in film, theatre, and television.
Life and career Laurence was born August 1, 2002, and lives in New York City and has two sisters. After several appearances in regional theatre productions and minor roles in short films and television episodes, Laurence auditioned for the new musical Matilda on Broadway in 2012. Laurence landed the role of Matilda, performing in the show from March 4 to December 15, 2013. She performed alongside Bailey Ryon, Milly Shapiro, and Sophia Gennusa.
After Matilda, Laurence transitioned to film acting, appearing in Tumorhead, A Little Game, The Grief of Others, I Smile Back, Damsel, Lamb, and Southpaw, portraying the daughter of Jake Gyllenhaal and Rachel McAdams' characters. She has appeared on television in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and Orange Is the New Black.
In 2016, she co-starred as Natalie in the film Pete's Dragon, and portrayed Jane Mitchell, the daughter of Mila Kunis' character Amy Mitchell, in Bad Moms. In 2017, Laurence co-starred opposite Colin Farrell, Nicole Kidman, Kirsten Dunst, and Elle Fanning in Sofia Coppola's The Beguiled.
She is the voice of Hedgehog and additional characters in the Cartoon Network series Summer Camp Island. She also performs the theme song. In 2020, she starred in the Netflix American family dark fantasy film A Babysitter's Guide to Monster Hunting alongside Tom Felton, Indya Moore, and Tamara Smart.
Filmography Film Year Title Role Notes2012 Wet Cement Girl Short Esther Esther 2013Penny Dreadful Little Girl Correcting. Perplexing. Patrick. Jessica Barnwell2014 A Little Game Becky Tumorhead Jean Short 2015 I Smile Back Daisy Lamb Tommie Imaginapped Olivia Short Southpaw Leila Hope The Grief of Others Biscuit Ryrie Damsel Ava Vicky & Jonny Young Vicky Short 2016 Little Boxes Ambrosia Reed Bad Moms Jane Mitchell Pete's Dragon Natalie Lily + Mara Lily Short2017 The Beguiled Amy A Bad Moms Christmas Jane Mitchell 2019 Big Time Adolescence Sophie 2020 Lost Girls Sarra Gilbert What We Found Holly A Babysitter's Guide to Monster Hunting Liz Lerue 2025DOE EYEDCocoShort
Television Year Title Role Notes 2011 Celebrity Ghost Stories Young Phyllis / Phyllis' Daughter Episode: "Beverley Mitchell/Mark Curry/Donovan Leitch/Phyllis Diller" 2012 Louie Spiteful Mean Girl #4 Episode: "Looking for Liz/Lilly Changes" 2014 Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Zoe Harris Episode: "Glasgowman's Wrath" 2015 Orange Is the New Black 10 Year Old Tiffany Episode: "A Tittin' and a Hairin'" 2016 Blindspot Maya Ahmadi Episode: "Swift Hardhearted Stone" 2018–2023 Summer Camp Island Hedgehog / Additional Voices (voice) Main role
Theatre Year Title Role Notes 2013 Matilda the Musical Matilda Wormwood Broadway, Sam S. Shubert Theatre
Awards and nominations
Year Award Category Work Result 2013 Tony Award Tony Honors for Excellence in Theatre (shared with Sophia Gennusa, Bailey Ryon and Milly Shapiro) Matilda the Musical Grammy Award Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album 2015 Hell's Half Mile Film & Music Festival Best Actress Lamb Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Best Youth Performance Southpaw 2016 Young Entertainer Award Best Leading Young Actress- Feature Film 2017 Young Artist Award Best Performance in a Feature Film - Leading Teen Actress Pete's Dragon
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