Melanie Lynskey is a popular American actress who hails from New Zealand. She is regularly seen on big-name movies and TV shows. She attained immense popularity when she acted in Heavenly Creatures, a film directed by Peter Jackson that was nominated for an Academy Award. She also played the recurring role of Rose in the series Two and a Half Men. She also had a long-running role as Michelle Pierson on the hit show Togetherness. Other hits she was seen in include The Perks of Being a Wallflower and Up in the Air.
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Early Life and Beginning of Career
Melanie Lynskey was born Melanie Jayne Lynskey on May 16, 1977. Her birth city is New Plymouth in New Zealand. Her parents both belonged to medical backgrounds. Her father was a bone surgeon while her mother was a nurse. She has four younger siblings.
Though she has perfect spoken and written English, as she has studied English literature at the Victoria University, she still retains an accent due to her Kiwi and Irish heritage. Her fans often remark how that adds to her appeal. Apart from studying English literature, she has also studied theater professionally.
Lynskey was only 16 when she was cast by Peter Jackson in his classic Heavenly Creatures. She was much appreciated in the film where she was pitted against the likes of Kate Winslet. She ended up winning the New Zealand Film and TV Awards for her role. She then appeared in movies such as Ever After, Detroit Rock City, Shooters, But I’m a Cheerleader, Coyote Ugly, and The Cherry Orchard. All of these movies received a great deal of success and established Lynskey’s reputation as a bankable character actress.
On TV, her first performance was in the Stephen King miniseries titled Rose Red. She went on to perform immensely memorable roles in Two and a Half Men and Togetherness.
Recent Successes
Her recent performances have included the Clint Eastwood movie Flags of Our Fathers and Show of Hands, a film that won for her the Best Actress trophy at the Qantas Television Awards. She also worked in acclaimed movies of recent times such as Away We Go and The Informant.
She was also present in the Academy Award nominated movie Up in the Air. Lately, she was seen in Seeking a Friend for the End of the World and The Perks of Being a Wallflower. She starred in Goodbye to All That and We’ll Never Have Paris.
Personal Life
Lynskey was married to the actor Jimmi Simpson, who was her costar in Rose Red. They married in 2007 but then in 2012, they separated citing irreconcilable differences. They divorced. Recently, she disclosed in an interview that she is dating Jason Ritter, with whom she is also involved in a relationship.
She is an avid reader too, and has a special love for Margaret Atwood’s books. She is known to suffer from a pathological hatred of sound, which is a condition known as misophonia. She is an animal lover and a supporter of People for Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). At present, her net worth is estimated to be in the vicinity of $5 million.
Last Modified: Apr 7, 2020
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