Heba Thorisdottir

Heba Thorisdottir is an Iceland-born makeup artist and department head based in Los Angeles. She relocated from Iceland to Los Angeles around two decades ago to pursue a career in makeup artistry. In her early days in Hollywood, she worked in very humble roles such as craft service and production assistant on music video sets, while slowly transitioning into makeup work for major artists like R.E.M., Bruce Springsteen, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Sting. Over time, she established a reputation for versatility across various platforms, including red carpet looks, commercial campaigns, fashion editorials, and film work.

Thorisdottir has become a frequent collaborator with director Quentin Tarantino, heading makeup departments on films such as Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003), Kill Bill: Vol. 2 (2004), Inglourious Basterds (2009), Django Unchained (2012), and The Hateful Eight (2015). In Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood (2019), she led the makeup team and was even cast in a cameo role as “Sonya.” Her approach often emphasises realism and subtle transformation rather than relying on heavy prosthetics or digital effects.

Throughout her career, she has received numerous award nominations and honours. For The Hateful Eight (2015), she was a 2016 Saturn Award nominee (shared with Greg Nicotero and Howard Berger) for Best Make-Up. Her work on The Suicide Squad (2021) earned her a 2022 Saturn Award nomination (shared with Greg Funk and Brian Sipe) for Best Make-Up. She was also nominated for a 2022 Hollywood Makeup Artist and Hair Stylist Guild Award (shared with Greg Funk, Sabrina Wilson, and Jillian Erickson) for Best Contemporary Makeup for The Suicide Squad. More recently, for Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood (2019), she received a 2020 Hollywood Guild nomination (shared with Greg Funk) for Best Period and/or Character Makeup. For Babylon (2022), she was nominated in 2023 by the Hollywood Guild (shared with Shaunna Chavez, Jean Ann Black, and Mandy Artusato) for Best Period/Character Makeup, and by various critics’ and film bodies such as the Online Film & Television Association, the North Carolina Film Critics Association, and the Hawaii Film Critics Society. She also won a Minnesota Film Critics Alliance Award in 2023 (shared with Mary Zophres and Jaime Leigh McIntosh) for Best Costume & Makeup for Babylon.