Why Margot Robbie is a great Aussie success story
A decade ago, Oscar nominee Margot Robbie had no overseas profile whatsoever. But her gutsy moves both on and off camera have led her down an inspiring path, says Colin Vickery.
Opinion
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Margot Robbie’s astonishing rise to international movie stardom has to be one of the most inspiring examples of an Australian taking on the world and winning in recent times.
The 29-year-old has just landed an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in Bombshell.
The honour comes two years after she was nominated for Best Actress for her starring role in I, Tonya.
Robbie also won kudos for her performance as Sharon Tate alongside Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt in the Oscar-nominated Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.
Next month, Robbie will hit movie screens in comic book blockbuster Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn.
She’s one busy woman. And Robbie’s production company, LuckyChap Entertainment produced I, Tonya and Birds of Prey and has a slate of other films in the pipeline.
It is easy to forget that less than a decade ago, Robbie had no overseas profile whatsoever. Her claim to fame was playing Donna Freedman in Ten soapie Neighbours.
The most prominent credit before that was a guest role in an episode of City Homicide. That’s hardly the makings of a stellar Hollywood career.
But there must have been a seed of ambition there because when her Neighbours contract ended, Robbie moved to Los Angeles to try her luck.
The early signs weren’t exactly auspicious. Robbie’s first US acting gig was as a rookie stewardess in Pan Am. The television series barely lasted one season.
But her fortunes changed when she was cast as Naomi LaPaglia opposite DiCaprio and Jonah Hill in Martin Scorsese’s 2013 hit The Wolf of Wall Street.
That led to a run of roles in high-profile projects including Focus with Will Smith, as Jane Porter in The Legend of Tarzan and Harley Quinn in Suicide Squad.
It is how Robbie leveraged that early success that is so stirring. You’ve got to have moxie to set up your own production company at the age of 24.
That is exactly what Robbie did in 2014 with now-husband Tom Ackerley and friends Sophia Kerr and Josey McNamara.
Talk about self-empowerment. It was a clear sign that the brilliant young Aussie was determined to be the master of her own destiny.
LuckyChap Entertainment is far from the usual movie star vanity project. Quality is obviously key.
First release I, Tonya, which detailed the life of disgraced Olympic ice skater Tonya Harding, grossed US$54 million worldwide and scored an Oscar for Allison Janney as Harding’s abusive mother, LaVona Golden.
As the company has evolved, Robbie and her producing partners have moved to spotlight women across all sectors.
Birds of Prey is directed by Cathy Yan and written by Christina Hodson, trailblazers in an industry where it is unusual for females to helm big budget (US$75 million) tentpole films.
So what are the secrets to Robbie’s success? One would have to be that sheer hard work is a big factor.
Robbie’s research for the role of the Kayla Pospisil in Bombshell was so thorough that it even included setting up a fake Twitter account. And for I, Tonya, she trained on the ice rink for four months to play Harding.
Another plus is that Robbie isn’t afraid to get out and take risks. In between those roles, she took on the challenge of playing Queen Elizabeth I in Mary Queen of Scots.
Robbie is hands-on. As a producer she seeks out projects, is involved in all the major talent hires, reads every script, watches all the dailies.
There is a determination, an attention to detail and a persistence that reminds me of another Aussie shining on the world stage at the moment: tennis star Ash Barty.
The 23-year-old has shot to world number one and French Open champion at the speed of light.
“I certainly fear no one and I know I can go out there and match it with the world’s best,” Barty said recently.
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I’m sure Robbie could relate to Barty’s words.
She’s quoted as saying: “Everyone’s like ‘overnight sensation’. It’s not overnight. It’s years of hard work.”
Robbie’s success should be an inspiration to all Australians, particularly women. Have faith in yourself, follow your dreams and blast through boundaries set by others. There are no limits to what you can achieve.
Colin Vickery is a Melbourne writer and TV critic.