🔗 Share this article

Through a thoughtful discussion, Miranda Otto opens up on subjects as varied as her newest character as a regal sea creature to the invaluable wisdom gleaned from theatrical mistakes and meeting admirers.

Given the Chance to Become a Sea Creature for a Day

Your latest character portrays Queen of the Cuttlefish in The Pout-Pout Fish; supposing you had the opportunity to be a fish for a day, which one would you choose and why?

Straight away, the blue groper found at a specific shoreline – because it’s a local landmark, and individuals visit to see it. I just think as remarkable that there’s a local fish that people actually seek out and talk about – it’s a special fish.

A Film Staple to Return To

What film do you always return to, and why?

Ernst Lubitsch's 1942 comedy To Be Or Not To Be. I adore this film. When I was growing up, it would air on television occasionally, and one time I recorded it. I found it was hilarious. It’s the legendary Carole Lombard and comedian Jack Benny. Recently they were showing it at the Ritz and I discovered that it was also the favourite film of a friend of mine, and so we attended and simply chuckled and laughed. It’s such masterful work of humor and all the actors in it are superb. The director Mel Brooks did a remake in the 1980s – that wasn’t as effective. But the original film is an exceptional farce, worth viewing often.

The Best Lesson Gained Through a Fellow Actor

What’s the best lesson you learned from someone a colleague?

Years ago I performed in A Doll’s House with Pete – now my spouse, but at the time we were not together. We were playing opposite each other and during the premiere I tripped up – I jumped ahead a few lines in the script. I was unaware of my error but I abruptly sensed something wasn’t right. I remember looking at him, and he completely saved me, and then our performance took off again and proceeded splendidly. But I think what I learned in that moment was, first, always trust the people in your scene. When you lose your place, if you turn around and look at the actors sharing the stage with, you can rediscover where you’re meant to be somehow. It is a profoundly communal thing, performing live. And next, to maintain a sense of fun about it. Occasionally when something goes wrong, things actually spark off in a really great direction provided you are really present in that moment. It may become an unexpected boon when things go absolutely the wrong way.

Memorable Exchanges with Fans

What’s been your most touching encounter with a fan?

There isn't a single particular interaction but when I encounter devotees of Lord of the Rings, especially female fans, I hear a lot of accounts about what Eowyn meant to them when they were younger … things that had happened in their lives and the extent to which Eowyn meant to them and was some kind of help to them during those periods.

Which questions get asked most frequently by Lord of the Rings fans?

The most detailed inquiry concerns invariably regarding that infamous meal that Eowyn serves Aragorn. “Did that stew taste as terrible as it looked?” It has evolved into a running gag, the entire episode involving that dish, and all fans wish to know what was in the stew, and how was it made, and do you think her skills improved now, or do you think she really is a bad cook? People are, I think, obsessed with the humour of that scene. And I provide lengthy descriptions listing the ingredients that made up the concoction – as I recall the efforts made; such as put bits of colored thread to simulate the appearance like bits of veins in the meat. They went to great detail to render it as unappetizing as possible.

A Cringeworthy Star Meeting

What was your most embarrassing celebrity encounter?

I was at a pilates class and there was a woman lying down doing pilates, and the teacher remarked, “Oh, Miranda, meet Miranda.” And I made some joke about, “might you be a journalist?” Because it’s an uncommon moniker and often when I meet another Miranda, they’re a journalist. I hadn't properly seeing who it was. And as she rose, it was Miranda Richardson. At that point, I didn’t know words. I was obliged to stay and do my class, and I experienced so embarrassed. I wanted to say: “Oh my gosh, I am aware of your work!” I consider she’s so fabulous and I was simply too awestruck to utter a syllable.

The Source of a Moniker

It’s been confidently claimed that you were named after Prospero’s daughter in Shakespeare’s The Tempest, and yet you've mentioned stating otherwise – can you settle the matter definitively?

Yes – I was christened for a district in Sydney. My mother heard on the radio that they were opening a mall at Miranda, and the name seemed a pleasant choice.

Chaos on Set

What was the chaotic thing that’s ever happened on set?

While working in Brazil on Reaching for the Moon that was the least organized set I’ve ever worked on, and yet the final product emerged incredibly well. But the local crew operated in a distinct manner. The sense of time there is really different. Typically, you normally have a schedule and you have to be on set by a certain time. But this was rather flexible – you come on set at one's convenience. It was a novel way of working for me. All aspects were being assembled at the very last minute, and at times they wouldn’t know the next location the next day the methodology. And then I would be in the middle of a scene and be like, “What caused that sound that disturbed the scene? Oh, it’s the producer popping open a bottle on set, to start a party.” The result was excellent, but wow, it’s a distinct approach to film-making.

A Hidden Talent

Do you have a secretly good at?

I naturally possess good with numbers. I memorise numbers more readily than I learn dialogue often, I simply have a numerically-oriented mind. So I believe had I not pursued acting, I likely might have entered a field something to do with numbers, like mathematics or finance.

The Finest Piece of Advice Ever Received

What’s the best piece of advice you have ever received?

When I was in high school, someone came to speak when we were graduating and stated, “have no fear to fail” … which I think is supremely valuable counsel, since one gains so much more from failure than is gained from success. Success, one rarely understand precisely why it happened. Failure, the lessons are so much more.