The co-star Margot Robbie considers to be one of the comedic greats: “It was intimidating at first”
Somewhere between a supporting part in a Richard Curtis rom-com and the lead role in the blockbusting Barbie, Margot Robbie became one of the biggest names in Hollywood. Overthe last decade or so, she’s taken on comic book characters, billionaire love interests, Olympic athletes, con artists, Scottish queens, and everything in between, each new project making her more and more sought-after.
It’s now difficult to imagine Robbie’s name sitting anywhere other than right at the top of a film poster, but it wasn’t always that way. Long before the Aussie actor became one of the most in demand and intimidating names on the call-sheet, she was dreaming of Hollywood while struggling to make ends meet. She worked multiple jobs before landing her role on beloved Aussie soap Neighbours and eventually relocating to the States.
Even in the earliest stages of her career, Robbie was already working with the greats. Her fourth feature film role was Martin Scorsese’s The Wolf of Wall Street, in which she played Naomi Lapaglia opposite Leonardo Dicaprio. In the years that followed, she worked with everyone from Will Smith to Samuel L Jackson, quickly adjusting to star-studded sets.
During those early years, Robbie was particularly intimidated by one on-set collaborator. In 2016, she landed a role in Glenn Ficarra and John Requa’s Whiskey Tango Foxtrot, which followed the story of a journalist assigned to war correspondence in Afghanistan. Comedic legend Tina Fey took on the lead role, leaving Robbie star-struck on-set.
“I have to admit it was intimidating at first,” Robbie shared during a conversation with DOTW News, “when you know you’re working with someone who is one of the greatest sketch comedians and comedic actresses of all time.” It’s easy to see why Robbie was initially daunted by the prospect of working with Fey.
Kicking off her career in the early 2000s, Fey has penned and performed in some of the most iconic comedies of the last two decades. She spawned from Saturday Night Live in the late 1990s, wrote and appeared in teen comedy favourite Mean Girls, and played the iconic Liz Lemon in 30 Rock.
Despite being one of the most established and esteemed names in the comedic realm, Robbie’s concerns were quickly quelled as Fey proved herself to be warm and welcoming. “We were kind of thrown together in the way our characters in the film meet,” she remembered, “but Tina is such a wonderful person, so generous and friendly, that she made it very easy for me to feel comfortable working with her.”
Fey’s presence on set also pushed Robbie to improve her own performance. Inspired by the comedian’s talent behind the camera, she pushed herself to match Fey. She explained, “Tina is also so talented and so good at what she does that when you’re on the set she inspires you to lift your game.” Now, less than a decade later, it’s easy to imagine Robbie having the same effect on newcomers to set.
Robbie hasn’t yet honed a career quite as lengthy as Fey’s, but she has proven herself to be one of the best actors in her generation. Between huge credits like The Wolf of Wall Street and Barbie, and a blistering performance in I, Tonya, Robbie’s name is becoming just as well-known and well-respected as Fey’s.
