Career
Prior to her role in Jane Eyre, Wilson had one professional screen credit, in Suburban Shootout, a situation comedy she appeared in with Tom Hiddleston. In 2006–2007, she filmed the second series of Suburban Shootout, a new Agatha Christie's Marple mystery (Nemesis) for ITV, and Stephen Poliakoff's BBC television drama Capturing Mary as the young Mary.
Wilson appeared in Gorky's Philistines in 2007, playing Tanya, at the Royal National Theatre from May until August. In June, she presented the 2007 Lilian Baylis Awards. Other projects in 2007 included a guest appearance in the sitcom Freezing as Alison Fennel (BBC2, 21 February 2008); narration of the documentary The Polish Ambulance Murders (BBC4, 5 February 2008); and the portrayal of a mentally ill doctor in the dramatised documentary The Doctor Who Hears Voices (Channel 4, 21 April 2008).
From 23 July to 3 October 2009, she appeared as Stella Kowalski in the Donmar Warehouse revival of A Streetcar Named Desire. On 15 November 2009 AMC Television and ITV premiered the 2009 TV miniseries remake of The Prisoner, in which Wilson played the Village doctor, "No. 313". She played "Queenie" in an adaptation of Andrea Levy's Small Island, which aired on BBC1 in December 2009 and also aired in the United States on PBS in 2010.
From 2010, she appeared in the British psychological police drama Luther as Alice Morgan, a research scientist and highly intelligent individual described by Luther as a narcissist. While Wilson could not appear in series four of Luther due to filming clashing with The Affair, she returned for series five.
From 4 August to 8 October 2011, Wilson starred in the title role of Eugene O'Neill's Anna Christie at the Donmar Warehouse alongside Jude Law. Her performance prompted The Guardian to devote an editorial to Wilson's "courageous, edgy and compelling talent".
In 2014, Wilson began starring as Alison Bailey in the drama television series The Affair, created by Sarah Treem and Hagai Levi. She won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Drama in January 2015 for her performance in the series' first season. She departed the series in 2018 after four seasons. It was reported in December 2019 that Wilson's departure was due to "frustrations with the nudity required of her, friction with Treem over the direction of her character, and what she ultimately felt was a 'hostile work environment'".
Wilson made her Broadway debut in Constellations, a play written by Nick Payne, at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre. She starred alongside Jake Gyllenhaal throughout the play's run from 12 January to 14 March 2015. She received a Tony Award nomination for Best Actress in a Play for her performance.
Her film I Am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House, directed by Oz Perkins, premiered at the 2016 Toronto International Film Festival. From December 2016 to February 2017, Wilson starred in the title role of Hedda Gabler in a new version by Patrick Marber at the Royal National Theatre. The production, and Wilson's performance in particular, received critical acclaim.
In November 2018, Wilson starred as the title character Alison Wilson—her real-life grandmother—in the BBC drama Mrs Wilson. Alison Wilson was the third of four wives of former MI6 officer and novelist Alexander Wilson. They were married for 22 years. After his death in 1963, Alison discovered another wife of her husband, with whom she eventually collaborated on the funeral. In order not to create extra shock for his children, the other wife and her children attended the funeral as "distant relatives". Alison died in 2005 without knowing about her husband's two other wives. Wilson was also the executive producer for the series.
In October 2020, Wilson won the BAFTA Cymru Award for Best Actress for her portrayal of Marisa Coulter in His Dark Materials. In November 2020, it was announced that she would be starring as Norwegian diplomat Mona Juul in a filmed version of J. T. Rogers' Tony Award-winning play Oslo.
In 2024, Wilson starred as the BBC journalist Emily Maitlis in the series A Very Royal Scandal.
