The first movie character Margot Robbie fell in love with: “There have been many over the years”
Margot Robbie’s character, Nelly Leroy, in the 2022 film Babylon, has more than a few things in common with the actor. Both share an infectious love for cinema that transcends the challenges of breaking into the industry. Through sheer determination and will, both Robbie and Leroy fought their way into Hollywood, proving themselves as tenacious, fiercely passionate performers willing to do just about anything for their craft.
Many people in the business can recall early memories of falling in love with cinema, whether it be a viewing of a nostalgic children’s film or the first foray into arthouse filmmaking as a teenager, but for Robbie, there was one performance in particular that she remembers falling head over heels for.
Robbie began her career in a similar fashion to many other actors, with phone calls, endless auditions, and the ability to sustain hope and resilience in spite of the bumps down the road. It is a difficult path to persevere down, with many drawing too many blank straws and giving up entirely or having soul-destroying experiences that slowly strip them of their love for the medium. However, after starting out on the hit television drama Neighbours as a teenager, it only cemented Robbie’s belief that this could become a viable career path, and so she continued down the treacherous path to success.
After booking supporting roles in small independent dramas and TV shows, ten years after her appearance on Neighbours, Robbie found herself auditioning for a Martin Scorsese picture. This changed everything for the Australian actor, and she since founded her own production company and went on to work with Quentin Tarantino, Damien Chazelle and Greta Gerwig. However, her role in Babylon strangely mirrors her own life, with her character becoming besotted by the business and putting everything on the line to work in the movies.
While we don’t see Nellie Leroy’s lightbulb moment of realisation as she decides to pursue a career in screen acting, we do see her relentless pursuit of this dream. However, Robbie has shared her own early experiences with the cinema and the films that sparked her lifelong love affair, describing one movie in particular.
The Lord of the Rings series has captivated global audiences, with people immediately being drawn to the immersive world-building and fantastical narrative. However, Robbie has one specific memory of a performance from the series that contributed to her career, saying, “There have been many, many, many over the years, but the one who comes to mind is Aragorn from The Lord of the Rings, played by Viggo Mortensen. Although, one of my favourite performances that Ryan Gosling has done is Young Hercules, for nostalgic reasons.”
Mortensen has made fascinating creative choices over the years, working on commercial hits as well as his discomforting collection of projects with David Cronenberg. Ryan Gosling has also perfectly honed the ability to switch between a plethora of genres, with devastating performances in Drive and Half Nelson as well as action-packed and swoon-worthy roles in Blade Runner 2049 and La La Land. Inspiration can come from anywhere, and often, the characters that most stick with us are the ones we first witness as children.
