Aussie
comedian Rebel Wilson. Source: Herald Sun
Vicky Roach, The Sunday Telegraph, reports
Four scenes were all it took for Australian comic Rebel Wilson to make Hollywood sit up and take notice.
"I remember thinking: Is that enough to get any kind of attention?" says the former Sydneysider of her scene-stealing Bridesmaids cameo.
Not for most struggling wannabes. But Wilson is not most struggling wannabes.
For a start, her plus-size figure marks her apart from the thin starlets that are the dominant species in her adopted city.
When Wilson walked into the offices of super-agency William Morris Endeavor on her second day in California, it was her normalness that got her noticed. "In Los Angeles there are, like, thousands and thousands of super-glamorous people everywhere and I just look like a real person," Wilson says.
"I remember (the people at William Morris) looking at me and they were like, 'we don't have anyone who looks like you on our books'. So I got offered representation immediately."
Wilson makes the most of her physical differences in Pitch Perfect, the fun, smart, Glee-inspired college comedy that co-stars Twilight's Anna Kendrick.
Having lost 15kg in 15 weeks during her time as a Jenny Craig ambassador, the producers asked her not to shed any more weight before filming.
"Well, my character is called Fat Amy so I did have to be fat for it," she says.
The antipodean freshman, who auditions for her university's all-girl a cappella group, has coined the unflattering moniker for herself "so twig bitches like you don't do it behind my back".
Pitch Perfect is a terrific vehicle for Wilson's upfront brand of humour, much of it improvised with Adam DeVine, who plays the leader of the rival a cappella group, and who also has a comedy background.
While Wilson's current "It Girl" status clearly breaks Hollywood's body mass index rules, the constant focus in Australia on her size has sorely underestimated the performer's comedic and business acumen.
The actress credits her background in Australian television - in SBS comedies such as Pizza and Bogan's Pride - as helping her match wits with Saturday Night Live veterans such as Kristen Wiig and Maya Rudolph, and Little Britain's Matt Lucas, with whom she now shares a house in Los Angeles. "Appearing on Thank God You're Here was terrifying. But if I hadn't had those experiences (in Australia) I wouldn't be as confident to step on set with those superstars of American comedy," she says.
Wilson would like to think of herself as blazing something of a trail in Hollywood.
"Cate Blanchett and Russell Crowe, who I love, are clearly dramatic actors. I feel like I am making way for Australians in comedy," she says.
Having got her first break, Wilson capitalised on the opportunity with roles in five movies back to back. She is currently producing a TV pilot called Super Fun Night for ABC.
And the success of Pitch Perfect helped her secure a deal with Universal to write, produce and star in her own feature.
"Writing ... will be my weekend job," she says.
If Wilson's showbusiness career ever takes a downward spiral, the 26-year-old can always fall back on her law degree. But she isn't planning on a career change soon: "I am sure things are going to get crazier and crazier in the US and I'll do lots of good stuff and eventually move into dramatic roles."
Pitch Perfect opens Thursday.
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