Emily Ava Matthews MBE (12 June 1942 - 5 March 2017) was a British-American actress, writer, and director. She was best known for playing Boomette in the 1990 zombie film Left 4 Dead 2; Paula McFadden in the 1977 film The Goodbye Girl, and Agent Jane in the 2000 film Bait.
She was born in Burnham-on-Sea and raised in London.
In the summer of 1994, during Matthews' UK vacation, she was awarded Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE).
Early life[]
Matthews was born on 12 June 1942, in Burnham-on-Sea, to Margaret, a radio presenter for the BBC (and later actress), and Bernard Matthews, a film actor, and director. The family moved to London where Emily started acting.
Career[]
Acting[]
1950's to 1960's[]
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9-year-old Matthews in 1951
Emily Matthews started her own acting career at age 6 in 1948. Her first film was in the 1955 film Children Galore as one of the kids at the end of the movie. She appeared in many British movies until late 1964, when she decided to move out of England and move to America to marry George Johnson. She appeared her last film ever made before heading to America was What's New Pussycat.
mid 1960's to 1970's[]
Her first American film was the 1966 film, Agent for H.A.R.M., played Ava Vestok. She appeared as Gia Campbell in the 1968 film, Buona Sera, Mrs. Campbell.
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Matthews in 1971
In 1970, Matthews auditioned for the role of Blonde Cult Member in I Drink Your Blood, losing out to Iris Brooks.
In 1977, Matthews, age 34, was cast as Lauren Humphries in the film, The Car. In the same year, she played Paula McFadden in the film, The Goodbye Girl. In 1978, she played a reporter in the film Up In Smoke.
In 1979, Matthews started becoming a film director. Her first directed film was, Full of Funny Jokes About You.
1980's[]
Matthews in 1982
In 1980, Matthews was auditioned for the role of Elaine Dickinson in the comedy film, Airplane!. But the role went to Julie Hagerty.
In 1981, she played a sex education teacher in the horror-comedy film, Student Bodies.
In 1982, she played Dr. Judith Kutter in the horror film Basket Case.
In the same year, she played a babysitter in the film Death Valley. Also the same year she also played Mrs. Stegman in the crime action film, Class of 1984. Also the same year. She made a cameo appearance along with her daughter in the horror film Monster House.
In 1983, Matthews was cast as Ophelia in the comedy film, Trading Places. In the same year, she appeared in the British horror film Screamtime.
In 1984, she appeared in the TV film Threads and the documentary The Times of Harvey Milk.
In 1985, Matthews played Mrs. Peacock in the film Clue.
1990's[]
In 1990, she was played as an infected fat zombie Boomette, or people calling her Female Boomer in the zombie film Left 4 Dead 2.
In 1992, Matthews was cast as Nora Matheson in the New Zealand horror zombie comedy film, Braindead (also known as Dead Alive in America). In the same year, she was cast as Helen Robertson in the horror film Sleepwalkers.
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Space Ghost interviews Matthews (1995)
In 1995, she played Ramόn Sánchez's mother in the crime film Hackers. In the same year, she made a cameo appearance as a movie theater goer in the film Outbreak.
Also the same year she appeared in Space Ghost Coast to Coast as Space Ghost interviewed her.
In 1997, Matthews was cast as Delilah in the comedy film Bean.
In 1998, she played Professor Ruth Allen in the film Krippendorf's Tribe.
In 1999, Matthews starred in the black-comedy film American Beauty.
In the same year, she appeared in the episode of The Ground Floor Brothers where she played Rachel the Taxi Driver, about driving around in a taxi car for 24 hours including singing part that changed not only Jere O'Doherty and Rondell Powell's life but also her life as well. She eventually recovered from the loss of her first husband.
2000's[]
In 2000, she appeared in three films like Thomas and the Magic Railroad as a cameo role. Bait starring Jamie Foxx, and O Brother, Where Art Thou? Played an Old Woman who listened to Homer Stokes on the radio.
In 2004, Matthews starred in action film Peter's Life as Aunt Patty. This film was her last acting performance before her retirement and her death in 2017.
Voice acting[]
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Emily Matthews dubbing for cartoons (early 1999)
Matthews was ready to plan for the next step in her career. She has never done voice-over work in the past. So her daughter, Hailey told her to do voice-over work. She agreed to do this.
Voice acting briefly began in late 1981 when she voiced Howard in the animated short film "New Friends".
After the recording was finished, she decided to stick around with on-screen roles until early 1990, when she decided to start voice-over work again, after they moved to Los Angeles for her daughter's acting career revival. She joined Saban Entertainment as a voice actress in the mid-1990.
In late 1996, she left Saban Entertainment and joined DIC Entertainment in late 1994.
In 1990, she voiced The Blue Fairy in Pinocchio: The Series.
In 1993, she voiced as Widow Douglas in Saban's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.
From 1995 to 1996, Matthews voiced as What-a-Mess' Mother in the cartoon series What-a-Mess.
In 1996, Matthews voiced Queen Victoria in an episode of Saban's Adventures of Oliver Twist.
In 1999, Matthews was voiced as Queen Aleena Hedgehog in the animation series Sonic Underground.
She was originally going to be voiced as Miss Grundy in Archie's Weird Mysteries. She did record her lines, but she collapsed near the end of recording and was later diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. After that, she was forced to retire from both acting and voice acting.
Post-Acting Career[]
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Taken from George Johnson: The Sweetest Man in Hollywood (2002) (filmed in late 2001)
After she got MS in late 1999, Matthews was forced to retire from acting, begin a new job as a writer, and started her own company called Matthews' Books.
Matthews was a longtime attendee at fan conventions for Left 4 Dead.
In later years, Matthews appeared on television sporadically.
In 2001, she appeared in a commercial for a book that she wrote called "My Daughter was an Actress".
In early 2008, she appeared in a commercial for the video game World of Warcraft.
In early 2009, she founded the Emily Matthews Foundation, a nonprofit organization that helped improve her life and recovers from MS until 2016.
Personal life[]
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64-year-old Emily Matthews in 2006
Matthews has a younger sister named Verna. Unlike her older sister, who moved to America. She stayed in Britain with her parents. In September 1999, she reunited with her older sister after she moved to America. She stayed in America until her older sister's death.
Matthews first met an American actor, George Johnson, at the airport after she first moved to America. And the couple was later married on 26 March 1965.
Matthews gave birth to her son Daniel in 1966. And then the following year, she gave birth to her daughter Hailey.
On 19 March 1972, Matthews gave birth to her youngest son Derby.
From late August to early September 1982, she, her daughter, and her two sons went to England to film the movie "Screamtime".
When her daughter announces that she has returned to acting, she and her family move to Los Angeles.
On 4 September 1991, during the second day of filming Braindead, she can't see the script. So her daughter brought her glasses and started wearing them for the rest of her life.
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Emily Matthews at Comic-Con '96 (1996)
In 1994, Matthews' voice changed due to her increasing age rapidly.
In late 1995, her husband, George Johnson, was diagnosed with lung cancer. She and her daughter were devastated when that happened.
Thankfully, in 1996, he recovered from lung cancer and will continue working on TV and Films.
But sadly, on 14 November, 1997, when her husband Johnson died of heart failure at age 59, Matthews and her daughter attended his memorial service a few days later. She was heartbroken over her husband's death. After Johnson's death, she decided to finish her husband's unfinished film Half-Life, which was later released on November 19, 1998, a year after Johnson's death.
Emily Matthews at George Johnson's Memorial Service (November 19, 1997)
In the summer of 1999, she married Alan Matthews, who first met her when he was at Johnson's memorial service.
In late that year, she was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis or MS; that meant that after 51 years, she was forced to retire from acting to become a writer for her book called "My Daughter was an Actress" by Emily Matthews, and start her own company called "Matthews' Books".
And since she has Multiple Sclerosis, she now has both a wheelchair and a scooter for the rest of her life until late 2011 when her daughter brought her a WalkAide for treatment of MS.
Illness and death[]
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Matthews in 2015
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Dying 74-year-old Emily Matthews at the hospital saying goodbye to her daughter (Photo was taken a few days before she passed away from pneumonia)
In September 2014, 72-year-old Matthews noticed something was wrong with her voice. It was a raspy voice. That could have caused her oral cancer because she started smoking at age 33. She decided to quit smoking after she got a raspy voice and her cancer. Doctors were able to remove her voice box to save her life and she was cancer-free.
In May of 2016, Matthews suffered a severe stroke and was hospitalized in intensive care.
On 4 March 2017, Matthews suffered a massive seizure and slipped into a coma. And on March 5, her family removed her from life support. She later died from pneumonia at the age of 74.
Emily Matthews' grave
Her funeral was held on 9th March, at Clarity Funerals & Cremation. She was buried in Los Angeles National Cemetery.
According to Hailey, she died a month shy of her daughter's 50th birthday. She wishes that her mother will lived long enough to celebrate her daughter turning 50.
Filmography[]
Actress[]
Film[]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1955 | Children Galore | Unnamed girl | Her first on-screen acting role |
| 1959 | Sapphire | Patsy | |
| 1961 | Dangerous Afternoon | Lizzie | |
| 1963 | These Are the Damned | Joan | Filmed in 1961 |
| The Haunting | Eleanor Lance | Horror film | |
| 1964 | Devil Doll | Marianne Horn | Horror film |
| 1965 | What's New Pussycat | Her last British film role until 1983. | |
| 1966 | Agent for H.A.R.M. | Ava Vestok | Her first American film role |
| 1968 | Buona Sera, Mrs. Campbell | Gia Campbell | |
| 1977 | Audrey Rose | Janice Templeton | Horror film; with her daughter |
| The Car | Lauren Humphries | Horror film | |
| The Goodbye Girl | Paula McFadden | Romantic comedy-drama film; with her daughter Hailey Matthews. | |
| 1978 | Up in Smoke | Reporter | Comedy film |
| 1980 | Full of Funny Jokes About You | Comedy film; Also director | |
| 1981 | Student Bodies | Sex Education Teacher | Horror comedy film |
| New Friends | Howard | Short film; Voice role; Her first voicing role | |
| 1982 | Basket Case | Dr. Judith Kutter | Horror film |
| Death Valley | Baby Sitter | Horror film | |
| Class of 1984 | Mrs. Stegman | Crime action film | |
| Monster House | Cameo | Horror comedy film; with her daughter Hailey Matthews. | |
| 1983 | Trading Places | Ophelia | Comedy film |
| Living In The Swamp | Josie Ross | Horror film | |
| Screamtime | British horror film; Filmed during her family vacation. | ||
| 1984 | Threads | British war drama film | |
| The Times of Harvey Milk | Herself | Documentary | |
| 1985 | Clue | Mrs. Peacock | Black comedy mystery film |
| 1987 | Left 4 Dead | Screamer | Horror comedy film directed by George Johnson; Cut from final edit of movie |
| 1990 | Left 4 Dead 2 | Boomette | Horror comedy film directed by George Johnson; with her daughter Hailey Matthews. |
| 1992 | Sleepwalkers | Helen Robertson | Horror film |
| Braindead | Nora Matheson | New Zealand Horror zombie comedy film directed by Peter Jackson (also known as Dead Alive in America) | |
| 1995 | Outbreak | Cameo | Disaster film |
| Hackers | Ramόn Sánchez's mother | Crime film | |
| 1997 | Bean | Delilah | Comedy film |
| Abused Dad II: The Final Chapter | Susan Webb | Horror drama film with her husband George Johnson. | |
| 1998 | Krippendorf's Tribe | Professor Ruth Allen | Comedy film |
| Left 4 Dead 3: Back 4 Blood | Holly's Mom | Horror comedy film directed by George Johnson; with her daughter Hailey Matthews as Holly. | |
| 1999 | American Beauty | Black comedy film | |
| 2000 | Thomas and the Magic Railroad | Cameo | Children's adventure film |
| Bait | Action comedy film | ||
| O Brother, Where Art Thou? | Old Woman | Crime comedy-drama film | |
| 2002 | George Johnson: The Sweetest Man in Hollywood | Herself | Filmed in late 2001; the Documentary directed by Alan Matthews |
| 2004 | Peter's Life | Aunt Patty | (Final acting role) |
| 2007 | The Making of Left 4 Dead | Herself | Documentary |
Television[]
| Year | Title | Role | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | Psammead the Mini Genie | Mrs. Turner | Voice role |
| 1990 | Pinocchio: The Series | The Blue Fairy | Voice role |
| 1990-1991 | Left 4 Dead: The TV Mini-Series | Boomette | TV mini-series |
| 1992-1994 | The Emily Matthews Show | Emily Ford | 60 episodes |
| 1993 | Saban's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn | Widow Douglas | Voice role |
| I Have A Blueberry For A Daughter: A Denise Nickerson Story | Flo Nickerson (Denise's mother) | Made-for-TV movie | |
| 1995-1996 | What-a-Mess | Mother | Voice role |
| 1996 | Saban's Adventures of Oliver Twist | Queen Victoria | Voice role; Episode: "Chimney Sweeps Gang" |
| Saturday Night Live | Herself (host); Various roles | ||
| 1999 | The Ground Floor Brothers | Rachel | Episode:
"Chicken Nuggets/24 Hour Taxi" |
Video games[]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Left 4 Dead: The Interactive Adventure | Boomette | |
| 1998 | Left 4 Dead 3: Back 4 Blood | Holly's Mom |
Director[]
Film[]
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | Full of Funny Jokes About You |
Television[]
TBA
Theatre[]
| Year | Title | Role | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest | Nurse Ratched | Beacon Theatre |