Femail.co.uk | December 31st 2002

Hot New Stars For 2003: Miranda Otto

MIRANDA OTTO
Vital statistics: Born December 16, 1967, in Brisbane, Australia
Star credentials: Miranda's career owes much to film director Peter Jackson, who cast her in the role of warrior princess Eowyn in his epic The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, last year. Jackson considers her to be a major element in the movie, and just as vital for the final instalment out at the end of this year.
But The Rings is by no means her only claim to fame. In all she has appeared in 20 movies, such as in the 2000 thriller What Lies Beneath, in which she plays Harrison Ford's murdered girlfriend and in The Thin Red Line in 1998, in which she plays the only woman.
Miranda's choice of profession is perhaps no surprise. Her background boasts star pedigree - she is the daughter of the Australian actor Barry Otto, who played Doug Hastings, the hen-pecked father in Strictly Ballroom, and she has been surrounded by actors since her childhood.
Where to see her next: In the last of the Tolkein trilogy The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, out in December, and Danny Deckchair, which stars Otto and Rhys Ifans, due for release in 2004.