Toni Collette

Toni Collette-Galafassi born Toni Collett; 1 November 1972 is an Australian actress, producer, and singer-songwriter. She is known for her work in independent films as well as supporting roles in feature films, for which she has received numerous accolades. After making her film debut in Spotswood (1992) and being nominated for the AACTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role, her breakthrough role came in the comedy-drama Muriel’s Wedding (1994), which earned her a Golden Globe Award nomination and won her an AACTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role. Collette achieved greater international recognition for her role in the horror film The Sixth Sense (1999), and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.

Collette’s films include diverse genres, such as the period comedy Emma (1996), the action thriller Shaft (2000), the period drama The Hours (2002), the romantic drama Japanese Story (2003), the comedies In Her Shoes (2005) and The Way, Way Back (2013), the horror films Krampus (2015) and Hereditary (2018), and the mystery film Knives Out (2019). She received BAFTA Award nominations for her performances in the romantic comedy About a Boy (2002) and the comedy-drama Little Miss Sunshine (2006). Her Broadway performances include the lead role in The Wild Party (2000), which earned her a Tony Award nomination. In television, she starred in the Showtime comedy-drama series United States of Tara (2008–2011) and the Netflix drama miniseries Unbelievable (2019). For the former, she won a Primetime Emmy Award and a Golden Globe Award. She has won five AACTA Awards, from eight nominations.

Collette married Dave Galafassi, drummer of the band Gelbison, in January 2003. The couple have two children together. As the lead singer of Toni Collette & the Finish, she wrote all 11 tracks of their sole album, Beautiful Awkward Pictures (2006). The band toured Australia, but have not performed nor released any new material after 2007. In 2017, Collette and Jen Turner co-founded the film production company Vocab Films.

Early life

Toni Collett was born on 1 November 1972, the eldest of three children, she has two younger brothers. She was raised in the Sydney suburb of Glebe until six-years-old and then in Blacktown. Her father, Bob Collett, was a truck driver while her mother, Judy (née Cook), was a customer-service representative. Collette later learned on an episode of Who Do You Think You Are? that Bob was possibly born as a result of his mother Norma (née McWhinney) having an extra-marital affair with a US Navy Chief Petty Officer stationed in Australia during, and after, World War II. Norma and her husband (Harold “Stanley” Collett) were going through a divorce, and Bob’s DNA test determined that Stanley was not his biological father. Despite a public appeal in August 2015, her biological grandfather’s name is not known.

She has described her family as, ” the most communicative” but that despite her parents’ lack of money, they made them feel cared for and they were supportive. She has fond memories of growing up in Blacktown where she joined Judy on Saturday afternoons watching movie matinees, presented by Bill Collins. She described her younger self as having “crazy” amounts of confidence. When she was 11 she believed she had appendicitis and convinced doctors: she was taken to an emergency department and had the appendix removed. As a student at Blacktown Girls High School, her favourite activities included netball, tap-dancing and swimming. She took part in local singing competitions. Her ambition was to perform in musicals as she loved to sing and dance.

Her first acting role was a high school performance of Godspell at 14 years old, which she auditioned for by singing Whitney Houston’s “Saving All My Love for You”. She decided to become an actor in the following year, and was influenced by Geoffrey Rush’s stage performance in The Diary of a Madman (July–August 1989). At age 16, with her parents’ approval, she transferred to the Australian Theatre for Young People in 1989, and later explained, “I was 16. And it’s not like I wasn’t good at school, or I didn’t enjoy it, I did. I just loved acting more. I don’t regret that decision, but I can’t believe I made it.” The actor returned an extra “e” at the end of her surname, which Stanley Collett had removed, as it sounded better for a stage name. She started at National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) in early 1991; but left after 18 months to appear as Sonya in Uncle Vanya (August–September 1992), directed by Neil Armfield, alongside Rush in the title role.

Career

1990–1999: Breakthrough and early roles

Collette made her television debut in 1988 on a comedy, variety show Blah Blah Blah as a singer. Her first acting role was in 1990, a guest appearance as Tracy, on the Seven Network drama series A Country Practice Season 10, Episode 31, “The Sting: Part 1”. Her first professional theatre role was as Debbie in Operation Holy Mountain in May of that year at Q Theatre, Penrith. Frank Barnes of Journal of the N.S.W Public School Teachers Federation noticed, “Collette simply amazing in her professional debut as the girl with cerebral palsy.” She joined the Sydney Theatre Company and, from December 1990 to February 1991, appeared in A Little Night Music at the Drama Theatre, Sydney Opera House. She performed Cordelia in King Lear (March 1994) and was also in stage productions at the Belvoir Street Theatre, directed by Rush.

In 1992, she made her feature film debut in the ensemble comedy-drama Spotswood (known in the US as The Efficiency Expert), which starred Anthony Hopkins and included a then-newcomer Russell Crowe. She played Wendy, a factory worker who harbours a secret attraction towards fellow worker Carey (Ben Mendelsohn). Filmnews‘ Peter Galvin observed, “it’s here that the film finds real warmth, vigour, and pain, all contained in expressive face; she’s terrific and so is Mendelsohn simply because we believe them.” Andrew Urban of Urban Cinephile felt that, ” has a lovely role and does it with minimalist excellence.” For the performance, she earned her first AACTA Award nomination, for Best Supporting Actress. Between auditions for roles, she worked part-time delivering pizzas and selling jeans.

In 1992, her agent alerted her to a proposed film project with a good role; a year later Muriel’s Wedding (1994) was financed and started casting in June 1993. Although the actor auditioned on the first day, she did not win until three months later. In preparation for portraying Muriel, the actor gained 18 kilograms (40 lb) in 7 weeks. The film was a critical and commercial success, grossing US$15.2 million on a budget of US$9 million. James Berardinelli of Reelviews called her “vibrant and energetic,” while Peter Stack of the San Francisco Chronicle opined that Collette played the lead role with “disarming earnestness.” She received her first Golden Globe Award nomination, for Best Actress and won an AACTA Award for Best Actress.

In 1996, she had parts in three critically acclaimed films. In the comedy-drama Così, which reunited her with Muriel’s Wedding castmate Rachel Griffiths, she played an actor recovering from drug addiction. David Stratton of Variety magazine said Collette ” a terrific performance.” In the drama Lilian’s Story she played an eccentric woman sent to a mental asylum in her youth. Stratton found her to be “poignant” and took note of her range and depth. She won her second AACTA Award, this time for Best Actress in a Supporting Role. In the period comedy Emma, an adaptation of Jane Austen’s novel of the same name, she played Harriet Smith, a close friend of the titular character. Originally dismissive of Austen’s works, she found Emma to be “warm and witty and clever.” Jane Ganahl of San Francisco Chronicle wrote, ” played with heartbreaking empathy… desperately trying to meet Mr. Right – so awkwardly you fear she’ll slip on a banana peel.”

She starred alongside Lisa Kudrow, Parker Posey and Alanna Ubach in Clockwatchers (1997) which depicted the lives of four friends working in an office. Dustin Putman of TheFilmFile called it a “jewel of a film” and praised the performances of the cast, particularly Collette whom he referred to as “outstanding.” For her supporting role as Michelle in The Boys (1998) she won her third AACTA Award. Although Velvet Goldmine (1998), returned less than half its production budget at the box office, Metacritic reports a 65% score based on 25 critics, indicating “generally favorable reviews.” It grew in stature after its release to become a cult film. Collette credited it with revitalising her passion for acting as it had freed her from distress she had been facing. Her next film, 8½ Women (1999) was not as well received: Metacritic gave it a “generally unfavorable” score of 36%.

1999–2004: The Sixth Sense and Broadway

When Collette received M. Night Shyamalan’s script for The Sixth Sense (1999), she feared it would be a “formulaic Hollywood action drama.” However, she was moved by the story and agreed to audition, winning the role over other actors, including Marisa Tomei. She portrayed Lynn Sear, a mother struggling to raise her son Cole (Haley Joel Osment) who communicates with ghosts. Gary Thompson of The Philadelphia Inquirer observed, “the scene in the car when divulges his secret is so riveting… and it’s so well-acted by Osment and Collette.” He added, “she’d become the greatest screen weeper of her generation.” The Sixth Sense grossed US$670 million on a budget of US$40 million and became the second-highest-grossing film of 1999. It gathered six Academy Award nominations including Collette’s for Best Supporting Actress. She reflected, “There was some definite feeling we all had that it was going to somehow be special. did really well and has been loved by a lot of people.”

In 2000 she made her Broadway debut with a leading role in The Wild Party, playing Queenie, a masochistic showgirl who hosts a lavish party with her husband. Originally written for Vanessa Williams, it went to Collette after the former was unavailable. Charles Isherwood felt under-whelmed by the musical and the actor’s performance, ” Queenie is flat and one-dimensional; she doesn’t convey the warmth that invites emotional investment.” Ben Brantley of The New York Times differed, “Ms. Collette… gives the evening’s most fully realized performance,” but criticised the lack of chemistry with Yancey Arias. She was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Leading Actress in a Musical. Collette turned down the title role in Bridget Jones’s Diary due to her Broadway commitments.

She followed with a supporting role in the action thriller Shaft (2000). The film received “mixed or average reviews,” and grossed US$107.2 million on a budget of US$46 million. Kam Williams of African American Literature Book Club noticed, “Collette lends the film some convincing and welcome dramatic weight as the frightened, conflicted Diane.” However, John Patterson of The Guardian rated it as a “career low” for her. In 2001 she appeared in the HBO TV movie Dinner with Friends and played Beth, a middle-aged woman who struggles with her husband leaving her for another woman. Steven Oxman of Variety said that she was “well suited” to her role, while Bruce Fetts of Entertainment Weekly praised her “flawless” American accent. The show earned a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Television Movie.

In 2002 she had a supporting role in The Hours, based on the novel of the same name, playing Kitty, a woman who plans to undergo surgery for her infertility. John Patterson felt she gave an “utterly convincing small-scale emotional meltdown born of suburban sadness and sexual self-repression.” The film received positive reviews and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture. In About a Boy (2002) she portrayed a woman with depression who attempts to commit suicide. Daniel Saney of Digital Spy said that she was “as impressive as ever” while Sheila Johnston of Screen Daily praised her “powerful presence.” She was nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role and won the Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress for both 2002 performances.

Collette played the lead role in Japanese Story (2003) as Sandy an Australian geologist who develops an intense relationship with a Japanese businessman. It was screened at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival. The performance led to reviewers welcoming her return to lead roles: the first since Muriel’s Wedding. John Patterson wrote that she gave a “shattering performance, masterfully controlled and detailed, and all the proof her fans ever needed of her special brilliance.” Richard Porton of the Chicago Reader remarked, ” pitch-perfect performance and the stunning evocation of the forbidding and beautiful outback make this film unexpectedly rewarding.” Critics praised her emotional range, with some regarding the performance to be the best of her career. She won her fourth AACTA Award statuette for her portrayal of Sandy Edwards in Japanese Story. Her two releases of 2004, The Last Shot and Connie and Carla, were rated as having “mixed or average reviews” by Metacritic.

2005–2011: Supporting roles and United States of Tara

Collette’s only film in 2005, In Her Shoes, was a comedy-drama about the relationship between two sisters (Rose and Maggie Feller) and their estranged grandmother, co-starring Cameron Diaz and Shirley MacLaine. Based on the 2002 novel of the same name by Jennifer Weiner, the film received “mixed or average” reviews from critics, and was a moderate independent success, earning US$82.2 million worldwide. She was subsequently nominated for a Satellite Award for Best Actress for her performance of Rose, a successful-but-lonely lawyer with low self-esteem, which Mick LaSalle of the San Francisco Chronicle noticed, “As usual, face is a fine-tuned transmitter of her emotions, moment by moment, and she becomes the locus of audience feeling.”

In 2006 the artist starred in Little Miss Sunshine, a comedy-drama road movie about a family’s trip to a children’s beauty pageant. It premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January of that year, and its distribution rights were bought by Fox Searchlight Pictures for one of the biggest deals in the history of the festival. Sharon Waxman of The New York Times called her “funny and believable”, while Stella Papamichael of BBC felt that she was “underused.” The film received critical acclaim, resulting in her second BAFTA and Golden Globe nominations. It grossed US$100.5 million worldwide and became one of the most successful independent films of the mid-2000s. Also in that year the actor took supporting roles in the thrillers The Night Listener and The Dead Girl. The latter was released to “generally favorable” reviews, while The Night Listener was higher earning with a revenue of US$10.5 million.

In her first television engagement in five years, the HBO-BBC joint miniseries Tsunami: The Aftermath (2006), she played an Australian government employee who tries to cope with the events following the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and the resulting tsunami in Thailand. The film received mixed reviews from critics. Robert Bianco of USA Today said that it was, “inexcusably tasteless, tone deaf… and dull”, and Brian Lowry of Variety remarked that the film, ” for higher ground that it never reaches.” Despite this, praise was given to the performances of the cast. For her role, Collette earned her first Primetime Emmy nomination and third Golden Globe nomination. At a ceremony in August 2006, Collette inducted Helen Reddy into the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) Hall of Fame and described her song, “I Am Woman” (1971) as “timeless.”

After working as a juror at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival, she starred in two releases of 2007, Towelhead and Evening. They received “mixed or average reviews.” Kelly Vance of East Bay Express, called Towelhead “one the most intelligent films of the year” and praised the artist’s performance. In her review of Evening, Putman called it “flawed in more ways than one” but lauded her for ” her scenes with pathos.” In 2008 she played a small role in Hey, Hey, It’s Esther Blueburger, and also served as an executive producer. Her scenes were shot in a week. The film received tepid reviews and failed to recoup its $6 million budget. Bernadete McNulty, writing for The Daily Telegraph, wrote, ” presence may have got this Australian debut from writer/director Cathy Randall off the ground her slight role is insufficient to make it fly the distance.” Her other 2008 film, The Black Balloon, was better received, for which she was also co-executive producer. Frank Hatherley of Screen Daily praised the film and her acting, ” gives another of her warm, full-blooded portraits” and Roger Ebert venerated her performance as being the heart of the film. She won her fifth AACTA Award for the role of Maggie Mollison in The Black Balloon.

In 2008, Collette accepted the leading role in the Showtime TV comedy-drama series, United States of Tara. Created by Steven Spielberg and Diablo Cody, it revolves around Tara Gregson, a wife and mother of two, who has dissociative identity disorder, and is coping with alternate personalities. She was given the leading role by Spielberg without auditioning. In the role, she portrayed multiple characters and found that it required more preparation than she normally did. However, after she understood the characters better, she found it easier to play them. The show was originally planned for a twelve-episode season, but was renewed for a second and third season after it gave the network its highest ratings since 2004. The series and her performance received “generally favorable reviews.” Tim Goodman of the San Francisco Chronicle called her a “tour de force”, and Ariana Bacle of Entertainment Weekly praised the actor’s “flawless” transition between personalities that felt so “insanely distinct” that they could have each been a different actor. Collette won both the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series and the Golden Globe for Best Actress in a TV Comedy in 2009 and was nominated for both again in the following year. Also in 2009 she lent her voice to the critically acclaimed stop-motion dramedy Mary and Max.

Collette was originally set to star in 2009’s Away We Go, but dropped out due to scheduling conflicts. She then starred as a single mother of a precocious child in Jesus Henry Christ (2011). The film received “mixed or average reviews”; James Plath of Movie Metropolis called her “terrific” but John DeFore of The Hollywood Reporter felt that she was severely underutilised. She later had a supporting role in the horror-comedy Fright Night (2011). The film reunited her with filmmaker Craig Gillespie who had directed her in several episodes of United States of Tara. Debbie Lynn Elias of Behind the Lens called her “pitchfork perfect” while Emmet Asher-Perrin of Tor.com said that she was “charming as always.” The film received “generally favorable reviews,” and was a commercial success grossing US$40.5 million on a US$30 million budget.

2012–2017: Independent films and Broadway return

Collette’s first release of 2012 was the independent comedy-drama Mental. She played Shaz, a hitchhiker who is hired as a nanny to take care of five mentally ill sisters. Despite giving the film a negative review, Gary Goldstein of the Los Angeles Times said that the actor “rips into her woolly role as if channeling a leftover personality from her United States of Tara days.” Luke Buckmaster of Crikey called her “charismatic and all-inhabiting.” She received her third AACTA Award for Best Actress nomination for the role. Later in the year, she played Peggy, a supporting role in the biographical drama, Hitchcock. Deborah Ross, writing for The Spectator, provided an unenthusiastic review and wrote, ” wastes many of its cast members – particularly Toni Collette.”

In 2013 Collette earned critical acclaim for her work in the independent film The Way, Way Back, opposite Steve Carell and Sam Rockwell, and in Enough Said, with Julia Louis-Dreyfus and James Gandolfini. For The Way, Way Back, she received positive reviews: Andrew O’Hehir of Salon magazine praised her “brilliant, understated performance;” Peter Travers of Rolling Stone noticed her star quality; Berardinelli described her adaptability and said that she gives a performance far and above what the role required. Her performance in Enough Said was also well received; Katie Smith-Wong of FlickFeast praised her for bringing humour to the film but Joseph Walsh of CinVue said that she was underused. Later that year, Collette starred in the CBS TV drama, Hostages, which received reviews that were generally favourable, but weak ratings. RedEye‘s Curt Wagner was fascinated by her performance, while Verne Gay of Newsday felt she was “superb,” and USA Today‘s Bianco as “nuanced” and “grounded.” The series aired for fifteen episodes and, due to a combination of low ratings and a closed narrative, did not return for a second season.

In the comedy-drama Lucky Them (2013), which debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival, Collette portrayed Ellie Klug, a music critic assigned to write about a disappeared musician and childhood sweetheart, and tasked herself to track him down. She took on the role because she felt the script had a realistic and in-depth approach to topics like self-sufficiency and self-realization. She later said that, out of all the roles she had played, Ellie resembled her the most. The film earned “generally favorable reviews”, with praise for her performance. David Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter wrote that it was “centered by smart, soulful work by the wonderful Toni Collette” and that she played her character “with warmth, realness and emotional transparency that make you stay with her even when she’s pushing people away.” The film also screened at the Tribeca Film Festival, where Joe Bendel of Libertas Film Magazine ranked her performance as the fourth-best of the festival. Upon release, Mike D’Angelo of The Dissolve wrote that she “is capable of anything.”

After a 14-year absence, Collette returned to Broadway in 2014, starring as Jennifer Jones in Will Eno’s play The Realistic Joneses alongside co-stars Marisa Tomei, Michael C. Hall, and Tracy Letts. The play examines a couple who project their insecurities and fears onto their next-door neighbors with the same last name. The play opened to positive reviews, with the actor and the entire cast earning high praise. Charles Isherwood from The New York Times wrote that “Ms. Collette exudes a touching, exasperated dignity as Jennifer.” Variety‘s Marilyn Stasio called her work “terribly funny,” while Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter claimed, “Collette, whose naturalness can cut through even the very deliberate theatrical artifice of Eno’s dialogue and scene construction, anchors the play with her somber restraint and deadpan delivery.” The New York Post‘s Elisabeth Vincentelli, who was more critical of the play, highlighted her performance: ” does some heavy lifting to fill in Eno’s blanks. You can read deep sadness in the wide planes of her expressive face, in her lost, unfocused eyes.” The artist and her co-stars won a Drama Desk Special Award for Best Ensemble Performance.