Hala Finley (born May 18, 2009) is an American actress. She is best known for her roles in Man with a Plan (2016–2020) as Emme Burns and in We Can Be Heroes (2020) as Ojo.
Finley was born on May 18, 2009, in Gladstone, Missouri, the daughter of a Libyan mother, Somiya Finley. It was from her mother, who has had a modest screen career of her own, that Finley first acquired her interest in acting. Moreover, the two appeared together in Hala's film debut, the 2014 Kansas-City-filmed short, Counter Parts. The following year, the family relocated to Los Angeles, in furtherance not only of Finley's screen prospects and her mother's, but also those of her older brother, who wished to learn cinematography.[2]
In Los Angeles, Finley appeared in print and TV commercials.[citation needed] In 2015, she played the lead role in Grammy. Gruesome Magazine said she was "adorable".[3] In 2016, at the age of seven, Finley appeared in Man with a Plan as Emme Burns, the youngest of Adam Burns's (Matt LeBlanc) children.[4] In 2018, she played Jody Altmyer in Back Roads, for which she received a positive review. Nerdy Babble said she was "most surprising part of this entire experience", saying "she blew my expectations out of the water. ... [She was] adorable and endlessly endearing."[5] In February 2020, Finley was cast in Mandalay Pictures's Shelter.[6]
In September 2021, Finley joined Ben Affleck and Alice Braga in action-thriller film Hypnotic, reuniting with director Robert Rodriguez.[7]
In 2022, she starred in Paradise Highway, which centers around human trafficking. Finley portrays Leila, who is trafficked in an attempt to save another character. The A.V. Club praised her performance, stating: "Finley eschews cuteness as much as possible, playing Leila almost as feral at the beginning—a writhing mass of gutteral screams and uncontrolled bodily functions, designed to be as distasteful as possible to would-be kidnappers."[8]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Counter Parts | Twins | Short film |
| 2015 | Grammy | Child | Short film |
| 2016 | Letters from a Father | Young Marie | Short film[9] |
| 2018 | Back Roads | Jody Altmyer | |
| 2020 | Bobblehead: The Movie | Audrey (voice) | |
| 2020 | We Can Be Heroes | Ojo | |
| 2022 | Unplugging | Elizabeth "Blizzard" Dewerson | |
| 2022 | Paradise Highway | Leila | |
| 2023 | Hypnotic | Minnie | |
| 2024 | Venom: The Last Dance | Echo Moon | |
| 2025 | The Roses | Older Hattie Rose |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016–2020 | Man with a Plan | Emme Burns | Main role; 69 episodes |
| 2018 | American Housewife | Harriet | Episode: "Highs and Lows"[10] |
| 2019 | Teachers | Delia | Episode: "The Tell-Tale Cart" |
| 2022 | Magnum P.I. | Ella Vaughn | Episode: "Remember Me Tomorrow" |
| 2024 | Star Wars: Skeleton Crew | Hayna | Episode: "Can't Say I Remember No At Attin" |
Comedian Tina Fey ("30 Rock," "Saturday Night Live") is 54. Musician Jack Johnson is 49. Country singer David Nail is 45. Singer Darryl Allen of Mista is 44. [...] Actor Spencer Breslin ("The Cat in the Hat") is 32. Actor Violett Beane ("God Friended Me") is 28. Actor Hala Finley ("Man With a Plan") is 15.See also:
Comedian Tina Fey (30 Rock, Saturday Night Live) is 47. [...] Musician Jack Johnson is 42. Country singer David Nail is 38. Singer Darryl Allen of Mista is 37. [...] Actor Spencer Breslin is 25. Actress Hala Finley (Man With a Plan) is 8.
