Toni Collette

Toni Collette (born Toni Collett) is an Australian actress known for her portrayals of troubled, complex, and multi-faceted women across independent films, studio blockbusters, and primetime television. Recognized with multiple accolades—including five AACTA Awards, a Golden Globe Award, and a Primetime Emmy Award—she has also been nominated for an Academy Award, two British Academy Film Awards, and a Tony Award. In addition to acting, she co-founded the film production company Vocab Films in 2017 and served as the lead singer and songwriter for the music group Toni Collette & the Finish.

Raised in New South Wales in the Sydney suburbs of Glebe and Blacktown, Collette is the eldest of three children born to a truck driver and a customer-service representative. She developed an early interest in performing through local singing competitions, tap dancing, and musical theatre. After taking part in high school productions and joining the Australian Theatre for Young People at age 16, she briefly attended the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) in 1991 before leaving to perform in a stage production of Uncle Vanya. She made her television debut in 1988 as a singer and had her first professional theatre and screen roles in 1990.

Collette made her feature film debut in Spotswood (1992), earning an AACTA Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress. Her breakthrough came in Muriel's Wedding (1994), playing the lead role of Muriel, which earned her an AACTA Award for Best Actress and a Golden Globe nomination. She subsequently appeared in Emma (1996), Così (1996), Lilian's Story (1996), Clockwatchers (1997), The Boys (1998), and Velvet Goldmine (1998). She achieved international prominence for her role as a grieving mother in the supernatural thriller The Sixth Sense (1999), which earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress.

Throughout the 2000s, Collette expanded her work on screen and stage. She made her Broadway debut starring in the musical The Wild Party (2000), earning a Tony Award nomination for Best Actress in a Musical. She later featured in films such as Shaft (2000), Dinner with Friends (2001), The Hours (2002), Japanese Story (2003), In Her Shoes (2005), and Little Miss Sunshine (2006), earning BAFTA nominations for both About a Boy (2002) and Little Miss Sunshine. Beyond film, she wrote all 11 tracks for Beautiful Awkward Pictures (2006), the sole album released by her band Toni Collette & the Finish, which toured Australia through 2007.

From 2008 to 2011, Collette starred as a mother with dissociative identity disorder in the television series United States of Tara, winning a Primetime Emmy Award and a Golden Globe Award. Her later film credits include Mary and Max (2009), The Way, Way Back (2013), Hereditary (2018), Knives Out (2019), I'm Thinking of Ending Things (2020), Nightmare Alley (2021), Juror No. 2 (2024), and Mickey 17 (2025). Her work on television continued with Emmy-nominated roles in the miniseries Unbelievable (2019) and The Staircase (2022), as well as a starring role in the Netflix limited series Wayward (2025).