By Cara Alwill
Mia Wasikowska may not be a familiar name just yet, but as the star of Tim Burton’s remake of "Alice in Wonderland," she is sure to become a household name very soon. The 20-year-old Australian starlet graces the cover of the new Teen Vogue (on newsstands Feb. 9), and in the issue we learn more about this beautiful ballerina-turned-actress.
With her pixie haircut and porcelain skin, it seems completely fitting that Mia would take on a whimsical role like Alice. And even more fitting that Mia spent the first half of her life as a dancer before deciding to shift her passion into acting. She felt transferring her talent to the big screen would allow her to "express a feeling" without having to worry, as she did in dance, about achieving physical perfection first.
By the age of 14, Mia began calling agents in Sydney, though she was convinced she was way too old to break into acting. "Everybody who is an actor has been acting since they were three,” she said. She persevered despite her fear, and eventually someone gave her a shot. "I was really adamant," she explains. "I was trying to make it work."
Mia spent her teens acting in various Aussie productions and on the HBO series "In Treatment." Her big break came when Tim Burton came knocking on her door and invited her to play Alice. Mia is very familiar with the pressure that comes along with taking on such a huge role. "Alice is such a high-profile character," she explained. "One of the things that was scary about taking on that role is the huge fan base; everybody has their own idea of who she is. So [Tim and I] discussed, very early on, just being happy with her being our Alice ... making her my own." It will likely help that the movie's plot doesn't hew too tightly to that of the book.
"Alice in Wonderland" is just the beginning for Mia, who is set to take on another leading role in Jane Eyre, opposite "Inglourious Basterds" star Michael Fassbender. "I'm completely excited,” she gushed to the magazine. Though she is bubbly and excitable, Mia is wise for her age. She has two things that are often hard to balance: perspective and passion. "As a teenager I was very anxious. I had a lot of energy and passion that I wanted to channel into creative things, and I always felt like I wasn't achieving enough." We think it’s safe to say she’s made up for that now.
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