If you spent any part of 2021 obsessing over the grey, damp streets of Delco, you know that Mare of Easttown wasn’t just a "whodunnit." It was a "how-is-everyone-this-traumatized-it." We all came for Kate Winslet’s pitch-perfect accent and her vape pen, but we stayed for the kids. Specifically, the kids caught in the crossfire of a town that eats its young.
Enter Ruby Cruz.
Before she was wielding a sword in Willow or being hilarious in Bottoms, Ruby Cruz played Jess Riley. You remember Jess. She was the best friend of Erin McMenamin, the girl whose murder sets the whole tragedy in motion. But if you think Jess was just a background character meant to look sad at a wake, you’ve basically missed the pivot point of the entire finale.
The Character Most People Overlook
Honestly, Jess Riley is the most underrated character in the series. While Mare is out there chasing leads and dealing with her own family grief, Jess is the one actually holding the keys to the kingdom.
Think about the pressure on that character. Jess knows things. She knows about the journals. She knows about the "secret" father of Erin’s baby. She’s essentially the keeper of Erin’s legacy in a town that wants to bury it. Ruby Cruz plays her with this constant, simmering anxiety. It’s not flashy acting; it’s the kind of performance that feels like a real teenager who is way out of her depth but trying to do the "right" thing.
Even when she’s being shady—like when she’s running around with Dylan (Jack Mulhern) burning those journals—you can see the conflict in her face. You’ve probably wondered: Why didn't she just tell Mare everything from day one? Because in Easttown, nobody trusts the cops. Not even the ones they grew up with.
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Ruby Cruz: Mare of Easttown and the Turning Point
There is a specific moment that changes everything. It’s the scene where Jess goes to the police station. She hands over that one remaining photograph.
That single piece of evidence is what finally blows the case wide open. It’s the photo of Erin in bed with John Ross. Without Jess deciding to keep that photo—to disobey Dylan and protect her friend's truth—the wrong person might have stayed in jail.
Ruby Cruz does something really subtle here. She doesn't play Jess as a hero. She plays her as someone who is absolutely terrified of what she’s about to do. It’s a moment of pure, unadulterated "goodness" in a show that is often very dark.
Breaking Down the Jess vs. Dylan Dynamic
The relationship between Jess and Dylan Hinchey was weird, right? It was this desperate, frantic alliance.
- They were both grieving Erin.
- They were both terrified of what the journals contained.
- They both had secrets that could ruin their lives.
But while Dylan was acting out of self-preservation, Jess was acting out of loyalty. Cruz manages to make us empathize with Jess even when she’s literally destroying evidence. That’s a hard tightrope to walk.
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Why Ruby Cruz Was the Perfect Choice
Before landing the role of Jess, Ruby Cruz had a few credits under her belt—Castle Rock and Blue Bloods among them—but Mare of Easttown felt like her "arrival."
Director Craig Zobel clearly saw something in her. She has this "everygirl" quality that fits perfectly into the working-class aesthetic of Pennsylvania. She doesn't look like a Hollywood starlet; she looks like a kid you’d see at a Wawa at 11:00 PM.
Interestingly, the role of Jess was originally going to be played by someone else, but due to scheduling, Cruz stepped in. It’s hard to imagine the show without her now. Her chemistry with Cailee Spaeny (who played Erin) in those brief flashbacks was vital. We had to believe they were "ride or die" friends for the stakes of the murder to matter.
What Happened After Easttown?
If you feel like you’ve seen her everywhere since 2021, you’re not wrong. Cruz’s career went into overdrive after HBO.
She famously took over the role of Princess Kit Tanthalos in the Willow series. Fun fact: she actually took over that role from her Mare co-star Cailee Spaeny, who had to drop out. Talk about a small world.
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She also starred in Bottoms (2023), which is about as far from the depressing atmosphere of Easttown as you can get. Seeing her go from a grieving teen in a murder mystery to a hilarious, high-energy lead in a queer comedy proves she has some serious range. More recently, she's been showing up in The Sex Lives of College Girls as Ash, continuing that streak of playing characters that feel authentically messy.
The Lasting Impact of Jess Riley
The reason people still search for "Ruby Cruz Mare of Easttown" years later is because the show’s ending still haunts them.
Jess wasn't just a plot device. She represented the survivor's guilt that ripples through a community after a tragedy. When you re-watch the series, keep an eye on her in the background of the early episodes. You can see the weight of the secret she's carrying in the way she stands, the way she avoids eye contact with Mare.
It’s a masterclass in supporting acting.
If you're looking to dive deeper into the world of Easttown or Ruby Cruz's work, here is how to get the most out of it:
- Watch the Flashbacks: Pay close attention to the scenes between Jess and Erin in the woods. It sets up why Jess eventually betrays Dylan to help Mare.
- Track the Journals: Follow the timeline of when Jess has the journals versus when they are burned. It reveals a lot about her internal struggle.
- Compare to Willow: Watch an episode of Willow right after Mare. The physical transformation and shift in energy Cruz brings to Princess Kit is wild.
The next time you're scrolling through Max and see that grey thumbnail of Kate Winslet, remember that the girl in the hoodie—the one everyone ignored—was actually the one who saved the day.