Sandweiss was born in Detroit, Michigan and is a graduate of the University of Michigan.. She went to Groves High School, where she participated in plays and later Super 8 movies with Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell. She gained notoriety in the 1981 horror cult-classic The Evil Dead, playing Ash Williams' sister Cheryl. Afterwards, she went on a hiatus from acting for over 20 years. In 2006, Sandweiss starred in Satan's Playground. The following year, she appeared in My Name is Bruce. In 2013, Sandweiss had a cameo role in Sam Raimi's Oz the Great and Powerful. In 2016, Sandweiss reprised her role as Cheryl Williams in Ash vs. Evil Dead, the character being reborn as a Deadite after a Kandarian demon possesses a photo of her.
Sandweiss has performed in musical theatre as a dancer and pop singer, and in a one-woman show of Jewish music. Her daughter is actress Jessy Hodges.[citation needed]

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