Toni Collette

Toni Collette
Birth name	Antonia Collette
Born	November 1 1972 (age 35) Blacktown, New South Wales, Australia

Antonia Collette, known mostly as Toni Collette (born November 1, 1972) is an Academy award-nominated Australian actress and musician.

Biography

Collette was born in Blacktown, Sydney, New South Wales to Bob Collette, a truck driver, and Judy, a customer-service representative. She attended both the Australian Theatre for Young People and NIDA.

Career

Collette has won four Australian Film Institute awards, including the Australian Best Actress in a Lead Role for Muriel's Wedding in 1994, a role for which she gained 40 pounds (18 kg) in seven weeks. In 1996, she was part of the ensemble cast of the comedy, Cosi. She received an Academy Award nomination for her role as the mother of troubled boy Cole in the U.S. film The Sixth Sense, which also starred Bruce Willis and Haley Joel Osment.

She has also received broad acclaim on Broadway, starring as Queenie in Michael John LaChiusa's musical work, The Wild Party. For this demanding role, Collette received a Tony Award nomination for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical.

In 2006, she played the mother Sheryl in Little Miss Sunshine, for which she received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress in a Comedy.

In October 2006, she began touring Australia to promote her first vocal album Beautiful Awkward Pictures, released on Hoola Hoop Records under the band name Toni Collette & the Finish. Collette recently appeared on the Australian television show Cool Aid and performed a song written especially for the show titled "Look Up." "Look Up" is currently the second single off her album.

After filming three films consecutively in the fall of 2006, Collette said in a recent interview that she wants to take a year off from acting and spend time with her friends and family. She has also stated that she wants to take roles in Australian films rather than mainstream US films.

Awards

Collette has won several awards, as well as being nominated in some.

Won

• Best Actress in a Leading Role at the 1994 AFI Awards for her role in Muriel's Wedding
• Best Actress in a Supporting Role at the 1996 AFI Awards for her role in Lilian's Story
• Best Actress in a Suporting Role at the 1998 AFI Awards for her role in The Boys
• Best Actress in a Leading Role at the 2003 AFI Awards for her role in Japanese Story

Nominated

• Best Actress in a Supporting Role at the 1991 AFI Awards for her role in Spotswood
• Best Actress in a motion picutre - Comedy or Musical at the 1996 Golden Globes for her role in Muriels Wedding
• Best Actress in a Supporting Role at the 2000 Academy Awards for her role in The Sixth Sense
• Internation Award for Best Actress at the 2006 AFI Awards for her role in In Her Shoes
• Best Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television for her role in Tsunami: The Aftermath at the 2006 Golden Globes
• Best Actress in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy at the 2007 Golden Globes for her role in Little Miss Sunshine

Personal life

When Toni Collette was eleven years old she faked appendicitis out of boredom and longing for attention. She was so convincing that doctors removed her appendix, even though tests showed nothing wrong with it. [1]

Collette has been married to Dave Galafassi since 11 January, 2003 and owns homes in both Australia and the Republic of Ireland.

Collette is a supporter of animal rights and PETA. She recently urged Prime Minister John Howard to end the Australian practice of mulesing sheep, which is considered by many animal rights activists to be cruel. [2] She later revised her position after doing her own research of the Australian wool industry. [3]

Filmography

• Spotswood (1992), Wendy Robinson
• This Marching Girl Thing (1994), Cindy
• Muriel's Wedding (1994), Muriel Heslop/Marial Heslop-Van Arckle
• Lilian's Story (1995), Young Lilian Singer
• Arabian Knight (1995), Nurse/Good Witch
• Cosi (1996), Julie
• The Pallbearer (1996), Cynthia
• Emma (1996), Harriet Smith
• Clockwatchers (1997), Iris Chapman
• The James Gang (1997), Julia Armstrong
• Diana & Me (1997), Diana Spencer
• The Boys (1998), Michelle
• Velvet Goldmine (1998), Mandy Slade
• 8½ Women (1999), Griselda/Sister Concordia
• The Sixth Sense (1999), Lynn Sear
• Shaft (2000), Diane Palmieri
• Hotel Splendide (2000), Kath
• The Magic Pudding (2000), Meg Bluegum (voice)
• Dinner with Friends (2001) (TV), Beth
• Changing Lanes (2002), Michelle
• About a Boy (2002), Fiona Brewer
• Dirty Deeds (2002), Sharon
• The Hours (2002), Kitty Barlowe
• Japanese Story (2003), Sandy Edwards
• Connie and Carla (2004), Carla
• The Last Shot (2004), Emily French
• In Her Shoes (2005), Rose Feller
• Like Minds (2006), Sally Rowe
• Little Miss Sunshine (2006), Sheryl
• The Night Listener (2006), Donna Logand
• The Black Balloon (film) (2007), Maggie Mollison

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