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Heather Donahue

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Heather Donahue
Donahue speaking at the Tavern Book Center inDenver, Colorado,2012
Born
Heather Donahue

(1974-12-22)December 22, 1974(age 49)
Upper Darby Township, Pennsylvania,U.S.
Alma materUniversity of the Arts, Philadelphia(BFA)
Occupations
  • Actress
  • businesswoman
  • writer
Years active
  • 1995–2008(acting)
  • 2008–present(business and writing)

Rei Hance[1](bornHeather Donahue;December 22, 1974) is an American retired actress, credited under her birth name during her acting career. She is known for starring in thehorrorfilmThe Blair Witch Project(1999) and theminiseriesTaken(2002). After retiring from acting, she became amedical marijuanagrower. She legallychanged her nameto Rei Hance in 2020.[2]

Early life

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Heather Donahue was born on December 22, 1974, inUpper Darby,Pennsylvania,the daughter of Joan, anoffice manager,and James Donahue, aprinter.[3]She graduated from Philadelphia'sUniversity of the Artsin 1995 with aBFAin theater, and also performed in productions at theBattersea Arts Centrein London, England,[4]where she apprenticed in conjunction with theUniversity of the Arts London.[5]After completing her studies, she worked as an administrative officetemp workerwhile appearing in New York stage productions.[5]

Career

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1995–2008:The Blair Witch Projectand acting

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Donahue's first screen appearance, and best known role, is in the 1999 found-footage horror filmThe Blair Witch Project.Her role in the film originated in 1997, when she read about an audition that was being advertised inBackstagemagazine for actors with strong improvisational abilities, which were needed for an independent horror film. She auditioned at the Musical Theater Works inNew York Cityand was cast in one of the three principal roles.[6][7]She and the two other main cast membersMichael C. WilliamsandJoshua Leonardwere cast as characters that would share their given names. She would come to regret this later in life, changing her name to Rei Hance years after retiring from acting.

For the role, Donahue had to learn how to operate a camera, spending two days in a crash course. She said she modeled her character after a director that she once worked with, citing the character's self-assuredness when everything went as planned, and confusion during crisis.[8]After filming, Donahue and the two other leads were asked not to appear on any television shows or in any films, as the filmmakers made great advertising efforts to portray the events in the film as factual, including the distribution of flyers at festivals such as theSundance Film Festival,asking viewers to come forward with any information about the "missing" students.[9][10]TheIMDbpage for the film also listed the actors as "missing, presumed dead" in the first year of the film's availability.[11]The promotion for the film was so convincing that Donahue's mother received sympathy cards from people who believed that her daughter was actually dead or missing.[9]

Once released, the film received unexpected acclaim from critics and became a resounding box office success–grossing overUS$248 million worldwide,[12]making it one of the most successful independent movies of all time. While being nominated for aBlockbuster Entertainment Award for Favorite Actress – Newcomer,and anOnline Film Critics Society Award for Best Actress,Donahue was also nominated for worst actress at theStinkers Bad Movie Awards,and won in the same category at theGolden Raspberry Awards.[13]Donahue later admitted there was a considerable amount of backlash against her because of her association with the film, which led to her having threatening encounters with people, and difficulty finding other employment.[9][14]

A year after the release ofThe Blair Witch Project,she appeared in the independent filmHome Field Advantage,and alongsideFreddie Prinze, Jr.andJason Biggsin the romantic comedyBoys and Girls.In 2001, she appeared in the independent filmSeven and a Matchand in the short filmThe Velvet Tigress.In 2002, she had a co-starring role in thescience fictionminiseriesTaken,for which she was nominated for aSaturn Award for Best Supporting Actress on Television.The same year, she appeared in an array of short films and televised films, such asThe Walking Hack of Asbury Park,New SuitandThe Big Time.In 2005, she guest-starred in an episode of the comedy seriesIt's Always Sunny in Philadelphia.[15]Her last acting role was in the 2008direct-to-DVDhorror filmThe Morgue.

2008–present: Business and writing ventures

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Donahue left acting in 2008 to become amedical marijuanagrower.[16][17]In 2011, she signed a publishing deal for her debut bookGrowgirl,about her time as a marijuana grower,[14][18]which was released on January 5, 2012 byGotham Books.[17]As of 2013, she was residing inNevada City, California.At the time, she was also reported to be developing a line of herbal skin-care products.[19]In a 2016 interview inGQ,she discussed the ongoing challenges associated with having used her birth name inThe Blair Witch Project– a name she was still using at the time of the interview.[20]The same interview revealed that she was writing for, and intended to produce, a sitcom tentatively calledThe High Country,based on her experiences in marijuana farming.[20]

During the development of the2016 sequeltoThe Blair Witch Project,she was contacted by the film's producers for permission to use her name and likeness in the film, which she later stated was a difficult decision: "My name and face are forever going to be someone else's intellectual property. My snot-flooded portrait was back. It's all anyone wanted to talk to me about... ThenLionsgatecalled. The company that originally boughtThe Blair Witch Projectwas purchased by Lionsgate and they're the ones behind this new sequel. They asked what they could do to show me how much they appreciated my work in the original. They made sure my last name wasn't used anywhere. In their press materials, their protagonist goes in search of his 'sister' but they don't use my name. For all the talk of Hollywood being populated with jerks and sharks, these guys were actually being considerate and were genuinely concerned that this would not be any more disruptive to my life than was inevitable ".[21]

In 2020, she formally changed her name to Rei Hance.[1]Hance stated in a 2021 interview that she was paid a sum of money for the use of her likeness in the sequel, but that it had followed eight years of "constant failure" in her life, and so she "took that money and just drove around North America, getting shitfaced for about two years, and hoping I would die. Like I did not want to be alive anymore."[22]She subsequently relocated toMaineand becamesober.[22]She is a practicingBuddhist.[23]

Filmography

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Film

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Year Title Role Notes
1999 The Blair Witch Project Heather Donahue Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Actress
Nominated –Blockbuster Entertainment Award for Favorite Actress – Newcomer
Nominated –Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Actress
Sticks and Stones: An Exploration of the Blair Witch Legend
2000 The Massacre of The Burkittsville 7: The Blair Witch Legacy Archival footage only
Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2 Archival footage only
Home Field Advantage Wendy Waitress
Boys and Girls Megan
2001 Seven and a Match Whit
The Velvet Tigress — Short film
2002 The Walking Hack of Asbury Park Wendy Short film
New Suit Molly
The Big Time Heather Television film
2005 Manticore Cpl. Keats Television film
2008 The Morgue Nan
2016 Blair Witch Heather Donahue Archival footage only

Television

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Year Title Role Notes
2001 The Outer Limits Claire Linkwood Episode: "The Surrogate"
2002 Taken Mary Crawford Main cast (miniseries)
Nominated –Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress on Television
2003 Without a Trace Linda Schmidt Episode: "The Friendly Skies"
2005 It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia Stacy Corvelli Episode: "Charlie Wants an Abortion"

References

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  1. ^abFrance, Kim (August 16, 2021)."This week on Everything is Fine".Girls of a Certain Age.Archived fromthe originalon April 1, 2023.
  2. ^"Blair Witch's Heather Is Now Real-Life 'Witch' Rei Hance".
  3. ^Femme Fatales,February 25, 2000, pp. 16-18, 21-22, 27, 28-29, 61.
  4. ^"Donahue, Heather 1974–".Encyclopedia.com.Archivedfrom the original on November 22, 2021.
  5. ^ab"Heather Donahue biography and filmography".Tribute.Archivedfrom the original on March 20, 2023.
  6. ^Donahue, Heather. Interview with Craig Kilborn. CBS Networks. August 1999.
  7. ^Staff (January 1, 1999)."Heather Donohue – Blair Witch Project".KAOS 2000 Magazine.Archived from the original on March 30, 2010.RetrievedJuly 30,2006.{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  8. ^Lim, Dennis (July 14, 1999)."Heather Donahue Casts A Spell".The Village Voice.Archivedfrom the original on December 4, 2007.RetrievedOctober 20,2021.
  9. ^abc"IMDb: The Blair Witch Project".IMDb.
  10. ^"MTV".MTV.Archived fromthe originalon July 18, 2022.
  11. ^"The Blair Witch Project - Heather Donahue, Joshua Leonard, Michael C. Williams, Daniel Myrick, Eduardo Sánchez".www.thefleshfarm.com.
  12. ^"The Blair Witch Project".Box Office Mojo.January 1, 2006.RetrievedJuly 28,2006.
  13. ^"1999 22nd Hastings Bad Cinema Society Stinkers Awards".Stinkers Bad Movie Awards.Los Angeles Times.Archived fromthe originalon January 3, 2007.RetrievedJuly 8,2013.
  14. ^abNudd, Tim (December 21, 2011)."Blair Witch Actress Heather Donahue Quit Acting to Grow Pot".People.RetrievedApril 12,2012.
  15. ^Dobuzinskis, Alex.""Blair Witch" actress details how life went to pot ".Reuters.Archivedfrom the original on March 20, 2023.
  16. ^Borondy, Matt (April 18, 2013)."Interview: Heather Donahue, Author of Growgirl".Archived fromthe originalon January 5, 2017.RetrievedOctober 31,2017.
  17. ^abStern, Marlow (January 6, 2012)."Growgirl: Heather Donahue's Journey From 'Blair Witch' to Growing Marijuana".The Daily Beast.RetrievedApril 12,2012.
  18. ^"'Blair Witch' Actress Heather Donahue Quit Acting For Pot ".Huffington Post.December 21, 2012.RetrievedApril 12,2012.
  19. ^Paz, Katrina (January 21, 2013)."Author, actress leads fearless life".The Union.RetrievedJuly 10,2020.
  20. ^abMeslow, Scott (September 16, 2016)."The Blair Witch Project's Heather Donahue Is Alive and Well".GQ.RetrievedOctober 25,2020.
  21. ^Stanley, Anya (October 27, 2022)."Hearing About The Blair Witch Sequel Was An Emotional Moment For Heather Donahue"./Film.Archivedfrom the original on December 4, 2022.
  22. ^ab"From Young & Traumatized in Hollywood to Joyfully Middle Aged".Everything Is Fine(Podcast). August 16, 2021. Event occurs at 36:15–42:05 – viaApple Podcasts.
  23. ^"Conversations: Rei Hance – Author of The Oracle of Emergence and An Evolutionary".The Real Jemima House(Podcast). December 2021.RetrievedMarch 20,2023– viaSpotify.
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