1. Early life and education
Portia Doubleday was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. She is the younger of two daughters born to Christina Hart and Frank Doubleday. Her upbringing was deeply rooted in the entertainment industry, as both of her parents were former professional actors. Her older sister, Kaitlin Doubleday, is also an actress. Beyond acting, her mother now works as a writer and producer of plays within the entertainment field.
Doubleday attended the Los Angeles Center for Enriched Studies, which is a magnet school located in west Los Angeles. In addition to her academic pursuits, she was actively involved in sports, playing soccer for 12 years. She has described herself as having been a tomboy during her youth. Around January 2010, she also pursued higher education, studying medicine, dentistry, and psychology at a university.
2. Career
Doubleday's career continued to gain momentum with notable roles in both film and television, showcasing her versatility across various genres.
Portia Doubleday's acting career began at a young age, with her first appearance in a commercial for Goldfish crackers when she was eight years old. Around the same time, she secured a minor role in the 1998 film Legend of the Mummy. Despite these early opportunities, her parents emphasized the importance of education, insisting that she complete high school before fully pursuing a professional acting career.
After graduating from high school, Doubleday was cast in the pilot episode of United States of Tara, a television series created by Diablo Cody. In this role, she was set to play 15-year-old Kate, the daughter of Toni Collette's character. However, the series' creative team later decided to take the character in a different direction, leading to Doubleday being replaced by Brie Larson. In 2009, she appeared in the short film 18, which depicted a girl coping with the end of her mother's life.
2.1. Film
Doubleday's film career includes a range of roles from independent features to major studio productions. In 2009, she starred opposite Michael Cera in the teen comedy Youth in Revolt. Based on C.D. Payne's 1993 novel of the same name, the film featured Doubleday as Sheeni Saunders, a complex and imaginative girl living a dreary life who encounters Cera's character during a family vacation. Doubleday described her character as "mean" and "really complex" in an interview with the Los Angeles Times. The film was directed by Miguel Arteta and premiered at the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival.
In 2010, Doubleday starred in the drama Almost Kings, previously known as Touchback, which was directed by Marvin Jarrett, the founder of Nylon magazine. The following year, she appeared in Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son (2011) as Jasmine Lee. She also took on the role of Butterfly in the 2012 film K-11.
A significant role came in 2013 when Doubleday played the popular and monstrous Chris Hargensen in the adaptation of Carrie. For this role, she dyed her hair brown to match the character's natural brunette hair as described in the novel. The character of Chris Hargensen was originally portrayed by Nancy Allen. In the same year, she had a brief but notable role as Isabella, a sex surrogate, in the critically acclaimed film Her.
In 2015, Doubleday starred in After the Ball, playing the dual role of Kate "Katie" Kassell and Nate Ganymede. Her more recent film work includes Fantasy Island; it was announced in November 2018 that she had joined the cast as Sloane Maddison. The movie was released to the public on February 14, 2020.
Her filmography includes:
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Legend of the Mummy | Young Margaret | |
| 2009 | 18 | Becky | Short film |
| 2009 | Youth in Revolt | Sheeni Saunders | |
| 2010 | In Between Days | Lindley | Short film |
| 2010 | Almost Kings | Lizzie | |
| 2011 | Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son | Jasmine Lee | |
| 2012 | K-11 | Butterfly | |
| 2012 | Howard Cantour.com | Dakota Zearing | Short film |
| 2013 | Carrie | Chris Hargensen | |
| 2013 | Her | Isabella | |
| 2015 | After the Ball | Kate "Katie" Kassell / Nate Ganymede | |
| 2020 | Fantasy Island | Sloane Maddison |
2.2. Television
Doubleday has also made significant contributions to television, with her most prominent role being in the critically acclaimed series Mr. Robot.
In 2011, she appeared regularly in the ABC network comedy Mr. Sunshine, which served as a midseason replacement for the 2010-2011 season. In this series, she played the character Heather across 12 episodes.
In September 2014, it was announced that Doubleday had joined the main cast of the USA Network pilot for the television series Mr. Robot. In the show, she portrayed Angela Moss, who is the childhood friend and current co-worker of the protagonist, Elliot Alderson, played by Rami Malek. The first episode of Mr. Robot premiered on June 24, 2015. Doubleday was a central figure throughout the series, appearing in all four seasons. The final three seasons premiered in July 2016, October 2017, and October 2019, respectively, with her appearing in a total of 34 episodes.
Her television work includes:
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Mr. Sunshine | Heather | Recurring role; 12 episodes |
| 2015-2019 | Mr. Robot | Angela Moss | Main role; 34 episodes |
3. Personal life
As of 2018, Portia Doubleday was living in Los Angeles, California. She is 66 in (168 cm) tall. Her strong family ties to the entertainment industry, with both parents and her older sister being actors, have been a consistent aspect of her life.