Washington Post Film Critic Ann Hornaday Dies at 66

Ann Hornaday, longtime film critic for The Washington Post and author, died on Sunday at the age of 66.

She died at her home in North Baltimore following a battle with glioblastoma, a form of brain cancer, her husband Dennis Greenia told the Baltimore Banner.

Widely admired for her incisive reviews, Hornaday was a 2008 Pulitzer Prize finalist for criticism.

Born on March 9, 1960, in Iowa City, Iowa, Hornaday grew up in Des Moines. She earned a degree in government from Smith College in 1982 before moving to New York, where she freelanced for Premiere and Us, worked at the feminist magazine Ms. Magazine, and served as co‑founder Gloria Steinem’s administrative assistant.

A journalism fellowship in Athens, Georgia, introduced her to future husband Dennis Greenia. She subsequently worked for several newspapers, including the Austin American-Statesman and The Baltimore Sun, before joining The Washington Post in 2002 as the successor to critic Rita Kempley.

At the Post, she emerged as a nationally recognized film critic, authoring hundreds of reviews celebrated for their clarity and lack of pretension. She also contributed to WYPR’s Midday at the Movies program. Hornaday departed the newspaper in 2025 following a buyout.

In 2017 she authored Talking Pictures: How to Watch Movies, a practical guide designed to help readers deepen their appreciation of cinema and sharpen film literacy. Hornaday also completed a book examining the making of Alan J. Pakula’s 1976 political thriller All the President’s Men; it is scheduled for posthumous release in 2028.

She is survived by her husband Dennis Greenia, daughters Victoria and Leila, and her brother William.

Source link