Melanie Lynskey

Once upon a time there were two girls who went on a hit-and-run under the orders of Peter Jackson playing two teenage murderers in Heavenly Creatures (1994). One was called Kate Winslet , she got on the Titanic , and achieved undeniable fame as well as an Oscar years later for The Reader . And the other? The other went by the name of Melanie Lynskey, and although she has moved on to date with her acting career, it seems clear that her name is much less well known.

Melanie Jayne Lynskey was born on May 16, 1977 in New Plymouth, New Zealand. And her screen debut came from her compatriot Peter Jackson in the much-mentioned Heavenly Creatures , where she alongside Winslet offered a chilling portrait of a young girl trapped in her unhealthy daydreams to the point of of becoming a murderer; the film was based on true events, and really surprised locals and strangers. Melanie was chosen among 500 candidates, and the director assured that she had decided the enigmatic aspect of her.

Melanie, or Mel, as she is familiarly known, could have launched herself headlong into an acting career at the age of 16, but instead she preferred to take it easy, dedicating herself to studying art and English literature at the University of Wellington. Which did not prevent Jackson from giving him a supporting role in Grab Those Ghosts (1996). After finishing her studies, she went to Los Angeles, determined to be an actress. Behind her was an idea prior to her debut on the screens, of being a film critic. And she signed up for a review of the Cinderella story, Forever and Ever ( Andy Tennant , 1998), where she was accompanied by other actresses who should have served as an inspiration, such as Drew Barrymore , Anjelica Hustonand even Jeanne Moreau . But the truth is that she came through a time of “lean years”, her work in Heavenly Creatures was too far behind, and she had to be in very unstimulating films like Zero in Conduct (1999) . She signed up for exotic titles- The Cherry Orchard (1999), a European adaptation of Chekhov’s play- and had a minor role in the popular “cannon girls” film El Bar Coyote (2000). While filming Rose Red in 2001 , a miniseries based on the work of Stephen King , she met actor Jimmi Simpson , whom she married in 2007.

So her film career, unlike that of Kate Winslet, was spent with supporting roles, such as in the thriller The Embry Disappearance (2002) and Sweet Home Alabama (2002), where her presence in this second film was perhaps justified by the actress’s previous meeting with Tennant in Forever and Ever . Some of her titles were interesting, such as The Price of Truth (2003), but the truth that she just had to admit is that she had minor roles. She until she was lucky enough to be cast in Charlie Sheen ‘s hit sitcom Two and a Half Men.(2003). There it was until 2007 Rose, the neighbor of the protagonists, and her face would become tremendously popular and she would still appear later in isolated episodes as a guest star. Other small screen series where Lynskey has been seen are The Shield , L and Drive .

Perhaps Melanie, with her fragile and disoriented appearance, does not invite leading roles, but the truth is that the actress has managed to be in great films by great directors. Most notable are Flags of Our Fathers ( Clint Eastwood , 2006), Up in the Air ( Jason Reitman , 2009), A Place to Stay ( Sam Mendes , 2009) and The Snitch! ( Steven Soderbergh , 2009). Now she has just filmed Leaves of Grass , together with Susan Sarandon , and above all, Win Win, we all win , a wonderful film by Thomas McCarthywhere she embroiders the role of a selfish mother with an addiction problem.