She had supporting roles in films including Robot & Frank, Being Flynn (both 2012) and The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby (2013), before her breakthrough performance in Inherent Vice (2014).

[6] Waterston's first starring role on film was in the 2007 independent drama The Babysitters, alongside John Leguizamo and Cynthia Nixon.

[10] The following year, she appeared in Queen of Earth and played Chrisann Brennan in director Danny Boyle's biographical drama Steve Jobs, starring Michael Fassbender.

In 2016, Waterston was cast as Tina Goldstein in the fantasy film Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them opposite Eddie Redmayne.

[12] In 2017, she starred alongside Fassbender for director Ridley Scott in the science fiction horror film Alien: Covenant.

That year she also starred in Steven Soderbergh's comedy-drama Logan Lucky and Alfonso Gomez-Rejon's historical drama The Current War.

She has cited her participation in the Fantastic Beasts franchise as a reason for her being so vocal, and has publicly opposed statements made by series creator J.K.