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Frankie Shaw
Shaw in 2015
Born	1981 or 1982 (age 42–43) Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
Alma mater	Barnard College
Occupations	Actress screenwriter director
Years active	2005–present
Spouse	Zach Strauss ​(m. 2016)​
Children	1

Rachel Frances Shaw (born 1981 or 1982 ) is an American actress, writer and director. She is best known for playing Bridgette Bird on the Showtime series SMILF, based on the 2015 short film of the same title, which she wrote, directed and starred in. Shaw is also known for playing Mary Jo Cacciatore on the 2010–2011 Spike TV series Blue Mountain State, and her recurring role as Shayla Nico in the first season of the USA Network television series Mr. Robot.

Early life and education

Shaw was born in South Boston, and also grew up in Brookline, Massachusetts. Her mother was from South Boston. Shaw's parents divorced when she was four years old. She grew up in a single-mother home with an older half-brother, who owns a bar in Boston.

Shaw attended Michael Driscoll School and Brookline High School. At Michael Driscoll, Shaw played full court streetball at a nearby neighborhood park. Shaw said that basketball was a constant of her childhood, and she incorporated it into the pilot and third episode of SMILF. After receiving a scholarship in her junior year, Shaw transferred to the private school Milton Academy in Milton, Massachusetts, where she graduated in 2000. In 2007, she graduated from Barnard College with a degree in literature.

Career

After college, Shaw decided to move to Los Angeles, but discovered she was pregnant. Much of her struggles to work as an actor while being a single mother are the loose inspiration for SMILF. A role in the 2014 ABC's ensemble series Mixology was a breakout role, providing Shaw with her first sense of financial stability since giving birth to her son.

In 2009, Shaw first received recognition in the completely improvised Katie Aselton-directed film The Freebie and then as the oddball drunken cheerleader Mary Jo Cacciatore in the 2010 sitcom Blue Mountain State.

In 2013, Shaw appeared in the HBO's TV series starring Stephen Merchant called Hello Ladies. She had roles in the 2013 independent film The Pretty One, which starred Zoe Kazan and Jake Johnson, and the 2014 romantic comedy film Someone Marry Barry. Also in 2014, Shaw appeared in another independent feature, the drama Lullaby, which starred Garrett Hedlund and Amy Adams.

In 2015, Shaw had a recurring role on the first season of the television series Mr. Robot as Shayla Nico, the drug dealing love interest of Elliot Alderson, for seven episodes.

In 2015, she appeared in the ABC Family pilot Tough Cookie as well as on the 2015 Fox TV series Mulaney. In 2016, Shaw reprised her role of Mary Jo Cacciatore from the 2010 series in the movie Blue Mountain State: The Rise of Thadland. Also in 2016, Shaw appeared in the Netflix series Flaked. She was a series regular on the 2016 TV series Good Girls Revolt.

Shaw's 2014 short film SMILF, which she wrote, directed and starred in opposite Thomas Middleditch, won the 2015 Short Film Jury Award for U.S. Fiction at Sundance. In 2015, SMILF was picked up by Showtime as a half-hour comedy television show with Shaw as showrunner, writing, directing, starring in, and producing the series. The first season, which was shot on location in South Boston as well as Los Angeles, received generally positive reviews, with her portrayal of single mother Bridgette Bird notable for its realism, insight, and biting humor. "Frankie Shaw, it marks the arrival of an important and original voice." SMILF co-stars Connie Britton and Rosie O'Donnell, and tackles subjects like eating disorders and sexual abuse. Shaw said that the show was a way to discuss and portray the role of women on screen. In November 2017, Showtime renewed SMILF for a second season. In December 2018, it was reported that Shaw and the series had been accused of workplace misconduct. In March 2019, the series was cancelled after two seasons.

In 2016, Shaw returned to the Sundance Film Festival with another short film she wrote and directed, a dark comedy titled Too Legit, which stars Zoë Kravitz, Teresa Palmer, Nate Corddry and Clark Gregg. Too Legit is inspired by a satire of Congressman Todd Akin's controversial 2012 remarks about rape and pregnancy: "It seems to be, first of all, from what I understand from doctors, really rare. If it's a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut the whole thing down."

In 2017, Shaw had a supporting role as Gail Hurley in the feature film Stronger, which was directed by David Gordon Green, and starred Jake Gyllenhaal as 2013 Boston Marathon bombing survivor Jeff Bauman.

In 2019, it was reported that Shaw is attached to direct an adaption of the Katherine Faw Morris novel Ultraluminous, produced by Steven Soderbergh. In 2020, numerous announcements were made regarding projects Shaw is attached to: she is reported to be writer and executive producer of an HBO series adapting the 1978 Judy Blume novel Wifey, and will direct the first episode; she is reportedly to star in Kill Switch, a film to be directed by Soderbergh; and she is attached to direct an adaption of the T Kira Madden novel Long Live the Tribe of Fatherless Girls. She is also set to direct a film adaptation of the comic 4 Kids Walk Into a Bank.

Personal life

In August 2016, Shaw married writer–producer Zach Strauss.

Shaw has a son, Isaac Love, from a prior relationship with director and actor Mark Webber. Shaw and Webber share joint custody of Isaac.

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards and nominations

This section of a biography of a living person needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately from the article and its talk page, especially if potentially libelous. Find sources: "Frankie Shaw" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (May 2015) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

References

1. ^ Feldman, Dana. "Showtime Is Betting on New Frankie Shaw-Helmed Comedy Series 'SMILF'". Forbes. Retrieved January 24, 2018.
2. ^ Sarner, Lauren (December 7, 2017). "Actress Frankie Shaw takes a page from her own life on 'SMILF'". New York Post. Retrieved January 24, 2018.
3. ^ Press, Joy (November 3, 2017). "The Single Mom's Guide to Sex, Love and Basketball". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 22, 2018. Retrieved November 27, 2017.
4. ^ Pirnia, Garin (November 3, 2017). "There's More to This SMILF Than an Attention-Grabbing Name". Vanity Fair. Archived from the original on December 10, 2019. Retrieved November 29, 2017.
5. Poniewozik, James (November 3, 2017). "Review: 'SMILF' Tallies the Costs of Motherhood". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 22, 2018. Retrieved November 29, 2017.
6. ^ Adamson, Stephen (January 25, 2016). "We Interviewed Mr. Robot's Frankie Shaw and Spoke About Her Sundance Short Film 'Too Legit'". Moviepilot. Archived from the original on April 2, 2019. Retrieved November 29, 2017.
7. Trahan, Erin (September 13, 2018). "Why Frankie Shaw Set Up Home Base in Boston For Season 2 Filming Of 'SMILF'". The ARTery.
8. Sullivan, Jim (September 26, 2018). "Frankie Shaw's Boston: The TV Star Unpacks Her Home Town". WhereTraveler. Morris Visitor Publications, LLC.
9. ^ Rao, Sonia (November 2, 2017). "Boston's Frankie Shaw Does It All on 'SMILF'". The Boston Globe.
10. Slane, Kevin (March 27, 2018). "4 surprising things we learned about 'SMILF' star Frankie Shaw". Boston.com.
11. Turchiano, Danielle (November 19, 2017). "'SMILF' Creator Frankie Shaw on Bridgette's Hoop Dreams, Dealing With Trauma and Running Her First Series". Variety.
12. "Alumna Frankie Shaw '00: Empowering Women in Film". Centre Connection: Parents' Newsletter, Milton Academy. 2016. Archived from the original on October 28, 2021. Retrieved November 29, 2017.
13. "3000 Miles From Broadway: Barnard in the Entertainment Industry". Barnard Alumnae. Barnard College. December 2, 2015. Archived from the original on December 10, 2019. Retrieved November 29, 2017.
14. ^ Wagoner, Mackenzie (October 27, 2017). "Frankie Shaw on What a 'SMILF' Is, and How She Became One on Showtime". NYLON.
15. William Hughes (March 8, 2019). "Showtime kills SMILF amid allegations of inappropriate behavior against creator-star Frankie Shaw". News. Retrieved May 31, 2020.
16. Bacle, Ariana (November 3, 2017). "How Frankie Shaw's 'SMILF' explores the messiness of motherhood". Entertainment Weekly.
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19. Goldberg, Lesley (May 11, 2017). "Showtime Picks Up 'SMILF' Comedy to Series From Frankie Shaw". The Hollywood Reporter.
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21. Ali, Lorraine (November 4, 2017). "Showtime's 'SMILF' Goes Where Most Shows Don't—Working-class, Single Motherhood". Los Angeles Times.
22. Andreeva, Nellie (April 17, 2015). "Frankie Shaw's Sundance Short "SMILF" to Be Developed as Showtime Comedy". Archived from the original on December 31, 2015.
23. "SMILF: 63 Metascore". Metacritic. November 5, 2017.
24. Gilbert, Matthew (November 2, 2017). "In 'SMILF,' Shaw's Southie Mom Has Room to Grow". The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on April 18, 2019. Retrieved November 29, 2017.
25. Goodman, Tim (November 3, 2017). "'SMILF': TV Review". The Hollywood Reporter.
26. Patterson, Troy (November 5, 2017). "'SMILF,' a Rude, Nimble Comedy of Sex and the Single Mother". The New Yorker.
27. Nicholson, Rebecca (March 15, 2018). "Shocking, Raw and Fun: SMILF and TV's new generation of single mothers". The Guardian.
28. Marine, Brooke (November 6, 2017). "Connie Britton, Rosie O'Donnell, and Frankie Shaw on 'SMILF', Their Stealthily Subversive New TV Comedy". W Magazine.
29. Travers, Ben (October 30, 2017). "SMILF Review: Frankie Shaw's New TV Series Brings Meaning to Season 1". IndieWire.
30. Saraiya, Sonia (November 20, 2017). "'SMILF' Creator Frankie Shaw on Her Own Story of Harassment and Bridgette's Craigslist Misadventure". Variety.
31. Dowd (February 28, 2015). "Dirty Words from Pretty Mouths". Sunday Review. The New York Times. Archived from the original on October 27, 2015. Retrieved February 9, 2016.
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33. Masters, Kim (December 17, 2018). "'SMILF' Creator Frankie Shaw Investigated Over Misconduct Claims (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved March 24, 2019.
34. Andreeva, Nellie (March 8, 2019). "'SMILF' Canceled By Showtime After Two Seasons". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved March 8, 2019.
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36. Jaco, Charles (August 19, 2012). "Jaco Report: Full Interview with Todd Akin". FOX2now.com. Archived from the original on June 6, 2017. Retrieved February 9, 2016.
37. Lincoln, Ross A. (April 30, 2016). "Frankie Shaw Joins Boston Marathon Bombing Drama 'Stronger'". Deadline Hollywood.
38. Andreeva, Nellie (November 14, 2019). "Jennifer Fox Inks First-Look Deal With Platform One, Steven Soderbergh-Produced Indie Film 'Ultraluminous' Among First Projects". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
39. Otterson, Joe (March 6, 2020). "Frankie Shaw to Develop Judy Blume Novel 'Wifey' as HBO Limited Series (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
40. Perez, Rodrigo (May 19, 2020). "Steven Soderbergh Has Written A 'Sex, Lies & Videotape' Sequel; Says George Clooney & More Set For 'Kill Switch'". The Playlist. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
41. Patten, Dominic (March 20, 2020). "Frankie Shaw To Direct T Kira Madden's 'Long Live' Memoir; Bow & Arrow Financing The Feature". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
42. D'Alessandro, Anthony (December 6, 2024). "Frankie Shaw Feature Directorial Debut '4 Kids Walk Into A Bank' With Liam Neeson Lands Orion Distribution, Miramax & Picturestart Financing". Deadline. Retrieved December 6, 2024.
43. Palmer, Teresa (August 28, 2016). "A magical weekend to celebrate the incredible love between Isaacs Mama @frankieshawisag & Isaacs now step-dad Zach Strauss! Thank you for including us in all the beautiful ways you did; asking us to do a speech (!!), including us in the wedding party and having Bodhi as a "flower boy" (he was very proud), we love you guys! #family #coparenting #tgifandz #love". Teresa Palmer. Instagram.
44. Cohn, Beverly (March 21, 2013). "Mark Webber Discusses "The End of Love"". Santa Monica Mirror. Retrieved December 24, 2013.
45. "2016 Participants". American Film Institute. Archived from the original on April 1, 2016. Retrieved April 21, 2016.
46. "Showrunner Training Program Alumni". Writers Guild of America.
47. "Golden Globes: Full list of nominees". BBC. December 11, 2017. Archived from the original on August 27, 2019. Retrieved January 9, 2018.

External links

• Frankie Shaw at IMDb 

• 1980s births
• Living people
• 21st-century American actresses
• Actresses from Boston
• American film actresses
• American television actresses
• Barnard College alumni
• Milton Academy alumni
• American showrunners
• American television directors
• Sundance Film Festival award winners
• Writers from Brookline, Massachusetts
• American women television producers
• American women television writers
• American television writers