2011–2014: Early work and television breakthrough Although Farmiga initially planned on becoming an
accountant, she was persuaded by her sister, Vera, to appear in her directorial debut drama
Higher Ground, where she was cast as the 16-year-old version of the lead character, Corinne Walker. Shortly after its premiere at the
2011 Sundance, where Farmiga garnered rave reviews for her performance, she was signed to talent agency
ICM Partners. That same year, Farmiga starred in the first season of
FX's anthology series
American Horror Story, which launched her to worldwide prominence.
Murder House, where she played
Violet Harmon, the troubled adolescent daughter of Vivien (
Connie Britton) and Ben Harmon (
Dylan McDermott), premiered to rave reviews. She secured the role of Violet in her first professional acting audition. She next joined the cast of
Sofia Coppola's crime satire
The Bling Ring, based on the
real life criminal group of the same name, portraying 17-year-old
wild child Sam Moore. The film opened in
Un Certain Regard at the
2013 Cannes Film Festival to generally positive reviews. She then portrayed Audrey Martin, an uptight teen touring a college campus, in the romantic comedy
At Middleton, co-starring with her sister Vera and
Andy García. The film premiered at the 2013
Seattle International Film Festival and received a mixed to positive response from critics. Farmiga returned to the
American Horror Story franchise to star as
Zoe Benson, a young witch afflicted with a dark and dangerous power in the third season,
American Horror Story: Coven (2013–2014), for which she received critical acclaim. She had her first leading film role as Anna Greene in
Jorge Dorado's psychological thriller
Mindscape, which premiered at the 2013
Sitges Film Festival. Her performance in
Mindscape was lauded by critics; comparing her to a young
Hannibal Lecter, and
La Razón calling her "hypnotic" in the role. She next co-starred as Sarah, the main character's love interest, in the biographical crime drama
Jamesy Boy (2014).
2015–2016: Rise to prominence in mainstream film premiere of
The Final Girls in September 2015.|240x240px Farmiga starred in three films that premiered at the 2015
South by Southwest: the first was
Todd Strauss-Schulson's critically-acclaimed horror comedy
The Final Girls, in which she portrayed the lead role of
final girl Max Cartwright, which earned her a Fright Meter Award nomination. The second was
Hannah Fidell's heavily improvised romantic drama
6 Years, in which she starred as Melanie Clark. The third and final film was Pippa Bianco's short drama
Share, in which she played Krystal Williams, a teenager who returns to school after an explicit video of her sexual assault goes viral. Her performances in all these films were acclaimed, and Farmiga was listed as one of the breakout stars of the festival. Farmiga next appeared as Karen McClaren, a young journalist who gets caught up in the hunt for a serial killer, in
ABC's short-lived crime drama series
Wicked City (2015). On filming the series, she stated that, "There's neon lights and billboards and clubs, and it just feels so fun – even though there's a seedy underbelly to it." The series received mixed reviews from critics, and due to low ratings was cancelled after three episodes, with the remaining unaired episodes later debuting on
Hulu. In 2016, she made her stage debut as Shelly in the
Off-Broadway revival of
Sam Shepard's drama
Buried Child, also starring
Ed Harris and
Amy Madigan. She then starred opposite
Ethan Hawke and
John Travolta in the
Ti West-directed revenge Western film
In a Valley of Violence, playing a motormouthed young innkeeper who befriends Hawke's character. The film premiered at the 2016 South by Southwest, and was met with positive reviews. Farmiga made her voice acting debut as the superhero
Raven in
DC Comics'
Justice League vs. Teen Titans, directed by
Sam Liu, which premiered at the 2016
WonderCon, and thereafter returned to
American Horror Story for the sixth season of the series,
Roanoke, where she guest starred as Sophie Green in the November 2016 episode "
Chapter 9". Farmiga next co-starred as Sarah Bransford in
Warren Beatty's ensemble romantic comedy-drama ''
Rules Don't Apply, which premiered at the 2016 AFI Fest to mixed reviews. The project reunited Farmiga with her Buried Child'' co-stars Harris and Madigan, who portray her character's parents in the film.
2017–2021: Established film actress Farmiga reprised her voice role as Raven in
Teen Titans: The Judas Contract, again directed by Sam Liu, which premiered at the 2017 WonderCon. She next played Emma Ertz in
Elizabeth Chomko's drama film
What They Had, and re-teamed with director Hannah Fidell for the comedy film
The Long Dumb Road, both of which premiered at the
2018 Sundance. Farmiga next appeared as the Catholic novitiate Sister Irene in
Corin Hardy's horror film
The Nun, the fifth film in
The Conjuring Universe, which was released in September 2018, and became the highest-grossing film in its series. In August 2018, it was confirmed that Farmiga would return to
American Horror Story for the eighth season of the series,
American Horror Story: Apocalypse, portraying both her
Murder House and
Coven characters, Violet Harmon and Zoe Benson. Farmiga then played protagonist Merricat Blackwood in
Stacie Passon's
film adaptation of
Shirley Jackson's mystery novel
We Have Always Lived in the Castle, which premiered at the 2018
LA Film Festival. She also appeared alongside
Clint Eastwood and
Bradley Cooper in the Eastwood-directed drama film
The Mule, released in December 2018. In May 2019, Farmiga appeared as Annie Miller in an episode of the
CBS All Access series of
The Twilight Zone, a reboot of the
1959 TV series of the same name, where she starred opposite
Rhea Seehorn,
Luke Kirby and
Ike Barinholtz. The following year, she also guest starred as Hannah Stolsfiss in 3 episodes of the horror anthology series
50 States of Fright for
Quibi.
2022–present: The Gilded Age and further film roles In 2022, Farmiga began starring in the
HBO period drama series
The Gilded Age as socialite Gladys Russell, the daughter of
Carrie Coon’s character. The following year, she reprised her role as Sister Irene in the supernatural horror sequel
The Nun II. Farmiga next starred in the independent romantic drama film
She Taught Love in the supporting role of Samantha Miron, which was released by
Hulu on September 27, 2024. ==Personal life==