Toni Collette was born on November 1, 1972 in Blacktown, Sydney, New South Wales. She is an Academy Award-nominated Australian actress and musician.

She made her feature film debut in the little-seen 1992 comedy The Efficiency Expert, starring Anthony Hopkins and also featuring Russell Crowe.

Collette was appearing in a play called Summer of the Aliens in June 1993, when she auditioned for the role that would prove to be her breakthrough: the gawky, ABBA-worshiping heroine of P.J. Hogan’s black comedy Muriel’s Wedding (1994). Collette also appeared in Cosi (1996), Diana and Me (1997), and Velvet Goldmine (1998). Collette also received two more Australian Film Institute Awards, for Best Supporting Actress in Lilian’s Story (1996) and The Boys (1998).

In 1999, Collette co-starred with Bruce Willis in the blockbuster suspense film The Sixth Sense, as the concerned mother of a troubled young boy. In 2000, Collette made her debut on Broadway, scoring a Tony nomination for her starring turn as a 1920s vaudeville performer in The Wild Party, also starring veteran musical theater actor Mandy Patinkin and Eartha Kitt. She also appears in Shaft, director John Singleton’s remake of the like-named 1971 private eye film, co-starring Samuel L. Jackson and Christian Bale.

In January 2003 Collette wed fellow Australian and musician Dave Galafassi in Sydney.

Filmography

• The Black Balloon (2007)
• Hey, Hey, It's Esther Blueburger (2007)
• Nothing Is Private (2007)
• Evening (2007)
• Tsunami: The Aftermath (2006)
• The Dead Girl (2006)
• Like Minds (2006)
• Little Miss Sunshine (2006)
• The Night Listener (2006)
• In Her Shoes (2005)
• The Last Shot (2004)
• Connie and Carla (2004)
• Japanese Story (2003)
• The Hours (2002)
• Dirty Deeds (2002)
• About a Boy (2002)
• Changing Lanes (2002)
• Dinner with Friends (2001)
• The Magic Pudding (2000)
• Hotel Splendide (2000)
• Shaft (2000)
• The Sixth Sense (1999)
• 8 ½ Women (1999)
• Velvet Goldmine (1998)
• The Boys (1998)
• Diana & Me (1997)
• The James Gang (1997)
• Clockwatchers (1997)
• "Frontline" (1 episode, 1997)
• Emma (1996)
• The Pallbearer (1996)
• Cosi (1996)
• Lilian's Story (1995)
• Muriel's Wedding (1994)
• This Marching Girl Thing (1994)
• The Princess and the Cobbler (1993)
• Spotswood (1992)

Awards

• Broadcast Film Critics Association Best Acting Ensemble “Little Miss Sunshine” 2007
• Screen Actors Guild Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture “Little Miss Sunshine” 2007
• Theatre World Award "The Wild Party" 1999
• Australian Film Institute Award Best Supporting Actress "The Boys" 1998
• Australian Film Institute Award Best Supporting Actress "Lilian's Story" 1996
• Australian Film and Television Award Best Actress "Muriel's Wedding" 1994
• Australian Film Institute Award Best Actress "Muriel's Wedding" 1994
• Film Critics Circle of Australia Award Best Actress "Muriel's Wedding" 1994
• Sydney Critics Circle Award Best Newcomer in a Play or Musical 1992