Emily Pendergast (; born February 25, 1987) is an American actress. She has appeared on TV series such as Veep, Common Side Effects, and Jury Duty Presents: Company Retreat. She is a longtime member of the Groundlings improvisational comedy troupe.
Early life
Pendergast grew up in Canfield, Ohio. She was a big fan of Saturday Night Live growing up, sometimes reenacting Dana Carvey or Adam Sandler sketches in home videos. She graduated from Canfield High School in 2005, where she played soccer as a letterwinner all four years. She also sang in the choir and had small roles in theater. She majored in psychology at Ohio University, graduating in 2009.
Career
Pendergast moved to Los Angeles after college to pursue an acting career. She began working as a waitress and took classes with the Groundlings improvisational and sketch comedy group. She said she had "looked up my comedic north stars and realized that Groundlings was the common denominator of several of them". She immediately discovered that the Groundlings "felt like home" and was eventually promoted to the main company in 2017.
In 2019, she played the recurring role of Beth Ryan, wife of presidential candidate Jonah, on the last season of the HBO political satire Veep.
In 2025, she voiced the main role of Frances on the Netflix adult animated series Common Side Effects, reuniting with former Veep writer Steve Hely.
In 2026, she played the main role of Amy on the Amazon Prime Video series Jury Duty Presents: Company Retreat.
Personal life
She married Cory Pendergast on September 8, 2012.
Filmography
Film
Year Title Role Notes 2019 This Isn't Funny Kendra TV film 2021 We Broke Up Allison 2022 Out of Office Margie TV film 2023 Nurse 2023 LaRoy, Texas Kayla 2025 Descendent Kimmie
Television
Year Title Role Notes 2016 You Can Do Better Various 4 episodes 2018 Love Leah Episode: "Sarah from College" 2019 Veep Beth Ryan Recurring role (season 7) 2020 Mike Tyson Mysteries Various 2 episodes; voice role 2020 Indebted Jenny Episode: "Everybody's Talking About Pleasure" 2021 Lisa Episode: "Who Are Bosses, Boats and Eckhart Tolle?" 2021 Miracle Workers Lionel's Wife Episode: "Oregon Trail: Hunting Party" 2023 White House Plumbers (miniseries) Edwina Episode: "Please Destroy This, Huh?" 2024 Curb Your Enthusiasm Flight Attendant Episode: "No Lessons Learned" 2025– Common Side Effects Frances Applewhite Main role; voice role 2025–2026 Leanne Faye 3 episodes 2026 Jury Duty Presents Amy Patterson Main role (season 2)
References
External links