If you can’t tell Meryl Streep’s daughters apart, it’s not your fault. You’re not alone! Two thirds of the talented Gummer clan (who go by the surname of their father, sculptor Don Gummer) have been popping up regularly on TV and the movies, not to mention in theater, and while it’s easy to point at a screen and knowingly say, “That’s Meryl Streep’s daughter,” it’s no great accomplishment if you can’t take it to the next level and say whether it’s Mamie or Grace. So with one of the similar-looking siblings showing up regularly on The Newsroom right now, sowing confusion anew, it’s time to help with a cheat sheet.
Mamie Gummer, 30
Where you might have seen her:
+ As Emily Owens on the short-lived CW show Emily Owens M.D.
+ As Kristen Bell’s responsible friend in The Lifeguard.
+ As lawyer Nancy Crozier, who took on Alicia Florrick, in The Good Wife.
+ As Sally Smith Adams, John Adams’s daughter-in-law, in John Adams.
+ As Maxine Cooper, a pregnant woman who responds to Laura Linney’s adoption dreams, in The Big C.
Roles cast with mother, Meryl Streep:
+ Evening, in which she plays a younger version of her mother.
+ Heartburn, in which she plays her mother’s daughter, Annie.
Distinguishing characteristics: She has lighter hair and an overall lighter complexion, and is shorter than Grace.
Grace Gummer, 27
Where you might have seen her:
+ As Hallie Shea, Jim Harper’s Romney bus love interest on The Newsroom.
+ As a dancer in the ballet company Frances Ha’s Frances so badly wants to join.
+ As Anjelica Huston’s daughter, Katie, in Smash.
+ As a student alongside Tom Hanks in Larry Crowne.
+ As FBI Agent Paige Willis in Zero Hour.
Roles cast with mother, Meryl Streep:
+ The House of the Spirits, in which she plays a younger version of her mother.
Distinguishing characteristics: Her hair and complexion are darker, and she is about a foot taller than her sister (see above), but if you stare long enough, her eyes are often a bit more squinted and they turn upward.
