Early roles (2011–2014) premiere of
Martha Marcy May Marlene, her first role to gain critical attention Olsen made her film debut in the 2011 thriller film
Martha Marcy May Marlene. The film, along with her performance, received critical acclaim following its premiere at the
Sundance Film Festival. Olsen earned several award nominations for her portrayal of the titular Martha, a young woman suffering from delusions after fleeing her life in a cult and returning to her family, including those for the
Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Actress and the
Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead. Despite premiering at the Sundance Film Festival alongside
Martha Marcy May Marlene, it was released in 2012, during which she also starred in the thriller
Red Lights and the comedy
Liberal Arts. In January 2013, Olsen garnered a nomination for the
BAFTA Rising Star Award at the
66th British Academy Film Awards. Later that year, she played
Edie Parker, novelist
Jack Kerouac's first wife and the author of the
Beat Generation memoir ''You'll Be Okay
, in the biographical drama Kill Your Darlings. She also appeared in the American remake of the 2003 South Korean film Oldboy, playing Marie Sebastian, a nurse who helps the protagonist, played by Josh Brolin, find his daughter. That same year, she starred as the titular Juliet in an off-Broadway production of the play Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. The New York Times'' critic
Ben Brantley described her portrayal as "alternating between saucy petulance and hysteria". She played the leading role in
In Secret, a film adaptation of
Émile Zola's 1867 novel
Thérèse Raquin. The film was released in February 2014. Later that year, Olsen starred in the monster film
Godzilla, opposite
Bryan Cranston and
Aaron Taylor-Johnson, which received positive reviews and grossed $529 million against a $160 million production budget. She and
Dakota Fanning co-starred as teenage girls in Brooklyn in the film
Very Good Girls, released that same year, which Josh Duboff of
Vanity Fair characterized as unfavorably reviewed.
Marvel Cinematic Universe and other roles (2015–present) Olsen starred in the 2015 superhero film
Avengers: Age of Ultron, a sequel to
The Avengers, joining the
Marvel Cinematic Universe media franchise. In the film, she portrayed
Wanda Maximoff / Scarlet Witch, which marked the
comic book character's film debut. She first appeared as the character in a
post-credits scene of the 2014 film
Captain America: The Winter Soldier, alongside Aaron Taylor-Johnson, who portrayed Maximoff's brother,
Pietro. Olsen played the part with an accent originating from a fictional country called Sokovia, which she described as similar to
Slovak.
Avengers: Infinity War (2018), and
Avengers: Endgame (2019), the last of which became the
second highest-grossing film of all time. With the role, Olsen rose to fame. Olsen portrayed
Audrey Williams, the wife, manager, and duet partner of singer
Hank Williams, portrayed by
Tom Hiddleston, in the 2015 biographical film
I Saw the Light, directed by
Marc Abraham. In 2017, she starred as a novice FBI agent in the mystery film
Wind River and a social media influencer in the comedy-drama film
Ingrid Goes West, both of which were released in August to critical praise.
Vultures
David Edelstein found Olsen's "incongruously high-schoolish demeanor" in
Wind River problematic, while
Peter Travers of
Rolling Stone wrote that she gave a "major eye-opener of a performance" in
Ingrid Goes West, deeming it "toxic perfection". The following year, she appeared in the
Netflix film
Kodachrome, playing a caregiver to a photographer, played by
Ed Harris. Olsen executive produced and starred as a young widow named Leigh Shaw in the
Facebook Watch web television series
Sorry for Your Loss, which premiered in September 2018. She said the three years it took to develop the series enabled her to immerse herself in Shaw's impulses. Critics reviewed the series positively, and Olsen's performance, which earned her a nomination for the
Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Actress in a Drama Series, was noted as "stunning", "disciplined and sharp", as well as "slyly sympathetic". The show was canceled in January 2020 after two seasons. Alongside
Paul Bettany as
Vision, Olsen played Maximoff again in the superhero miniseries
WandaVision, which premiered on
Disney+ in January 2021. In addition to complimenting Olsen and Bettany's chemistry, critics praised the cast, with
Voxs Alex Abad-Santos writing Olsen was brilliant in her portrayal and
Linda Holmes of
NPR highlighting her "indelible central performance" in their respective reviews. Olsen earned a
Primetime Emmy Award nomination for
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie and
Golden Globe Award nomination for
Best Actress – Miniseries or Television Film for her performance. She reprised the role in the film
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, which was released in May 2022 to mixed reviews. Olsen's performance received praise, with
Owen Gleiberman of
Variety writing that it "generates an operatic fire". in support of
The Assessment Olsen starred as housewife
Candy Montgomery in
Love and Death (2023), an
HBO Max limited series about a 1980 killing in Texas. Her performance earned her a nomination for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Miniseries or Television Film. Following the series, Olsen then starred in
Azazel Jacobs' drama film
His Three Daughters and the science fiction thriller
The Assessment. She voiced a variant of Wanda Maximoff in Marvel's animated series
Marvel Zombies, which released on September 24, 2025. She then appeared as Joan in David Freyne's romantic comedy
Eternity alongside
Miles Teller and
Callum Turner, which released on November 26, 2025. Olsen will next appear in
Sam Esmail's thriller
Panic Carefully, which is set for release on February 26, 2027. In 2025,
Deadline reported that
FX had ordered a pilot for
Seven Sisters, a drama series. The report indicated the project would reunite Olsen with director
Sean Durkin, who previously directed her in
Martha Marcy May Marlene. She is also attached to star in
Todd Solondz's dark comedy
Love Child with
Charles Melton, an
Apple TV+ limited series
Once There Were Wolves, adapted from
Charlotte McConaghy's novel, and
Panos Cosmatos' vampire thriller
Flesh Of The Gods alongside
Wagner Moura and
Kristen Stewart. ==Personal life==