ISLA FISHER | Just a Girl from Perth
When Baz Luhrmann announced he was going to direct a lavish adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s classic novel The Great Gatsby, in Sydney — his first film since 2008’s Australia — it caused much excitement at home. And that excitement was only heightened when Luhrmann announced his cast, which, besides Australians Isla Fisher and Joel Edgerton, included international stars Carey Mulligan, Tobey Maguire and one of the highest-paid actors in the world, Leonardo DiCaprio. As shooting started in locations all over Sydney — including Centennial Park, the Sydney Polo Club, Waverley Cemetery and White Bay Power Station — locals kept an eye out for any glimpses of the Hollywood royalty who had temporarily made Sydney home. DiCaprio, who last worked with Luhrmann on 1996’s Romeo + Juliet, tried to keep a low profile during his four-month stay, splitting his time between a five-bedroom waterfront mansion in Vaucluse and a suite at The Star entertainment complex, where he reportedly had his own butler, driver, limo and access to the casino’s luxury jet. He also enjoyed frequenting fine Sydney restaurants like French bistro Felix, and other popular spots such as Otto and Aria. He often dined with Maguire, a close friend for 20 years. DiCaprio, Maguire and Mulligan also took in a Sydney Swans game, but the jury’s still out as to whether they enjoyed — or had the faintest clue what was happening — on the field. It was to be another 18 months before the film was finally released but Australians proved their love affair with Luhrmann is still strong: As of July 2013, The Great Gatsby held the record for biggest-grossing opening weekend of any Australia-made film.
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Coming Home. Shooting Baz Luhrmann’s highly anticipated The Great Gatsby in Sydney in 2011 gave Fisher a chance to spend some more time at “home”, even if she found working with a director of Luhrmann’s calibre — plus stars like Leonardo DiCaprio and Tobey Maguire — both “thrilling and terrifying.” “I did feel like I was going to be called out and sent home at some point — you always feel insecure, at least I do,” she told Gotham magazine. “But I got to eat Vegemite on toast for breakfast and swim at Bondi Beach!” Playing a dramatic character like Myrtle Wilson in The Great Gatsby also gave her the desire to take on more serious roles in the future. “The good thing about
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Aussie Heart. Fisher says she honed her comedic talents as a child whose family was often on the move. She was born in Oman, where her Scottish banker father then worked for the United Nations. Fisher has four brothers and attended six different schools by the age of 12; she says she learnt to be funny in order to make new friends. The family moved to Perth when she was six. She now splits her time between London — home base for her and Cohen — and Los Angeles, where the couple rent a house when projects dictate. But Fisher says she will forever call Australia home, even if she doesn’t physically live there anymore. “I still have a lot of my school friends in Perth and I feel hugely homesick for WA, but I don’t get the opportunity to go back as much as I’d like to,” she told Brisbane’s Courier-Mail. “I like to be in Europe a lot because that’s where my family [now] is. But definitely my sensibility is Australian and I probably feel that more than ever. “I’m definitely attracted to other Australians, I have a laid-back attitude to life that I feel is very Australian, and I love a good barbie!” she joked.
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8/29/13 3:52 PM