Miranda Otto
Miranda Otto

Miranda Otto

Born: December 16, 1967 (58 years)
Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

Miranda Otto (born December 16, 1967) is an Australian actress. The daughter of actors Lindsay and Barry Otto and the sister of actress Gracie Otto, she began acting at age eighteen, and has performed in a variety of independent and major studio films. Her first major film appearance was in the 1986 film Emma's War, in which she played a teenager who moves to Australia's bush country during World War II. In 1996, director Shirley Barrett cast Otto as a shy waitress in the film Love Serenade. She starred in the 1997 films Doing Time for Patsy Cline and The Well, for which earned her third Australian Film Institute nomination. Her next project was the romantic comedy Dead Letter Office (1998). The film was Otto's first with her father, Barry, who makes a brief appearance. Later that year, she starred in the film In the Winter Dark, directed by James Bogle, for which she was nominated for her fourth Australian Film Institute Award. After a decade of critically acclaimed roles in Australian films, she gained Hollywood's attention after appearing in supporting roles in The Thin Red Line (1998) and What Lies Beneath (2000). In 2001, she was cast as a naturalist in the comedy Human Nature and appeared in the BBC adaptation of Anthony Trollope's The Way We Live Now, as a strong-willed American Southerner. Her breakthrough role came in 2002, when she portrayed Éowyn in The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Her character was introduced in the trilogy's second film The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers in 2002 and appeared in the third film, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, the following year. Her performance earned her an Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films nomination for Best Supporting Actress. Director Steven Spielberg, impressed by Otto's performance in The Lord of the Rings, called her to ask if she would play opposite Tom Cruise in the big-budget science fiction film War of the Worlds (2005). Otto, pregnant at the time, believed she would have to turn down the role, but the script was reworked to accommodate her. Her next project was playing the lead in the Australian film Danny Deckchair (2003). She then took on the Australian television miniseries Through My Eyes: The Lindy Chamberlain Story (2004). At the 2005 Logie Awards, Otto won Most Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series for her role. In 2007, Otto starred as Cricket Stewart, the wife of a successful director, in the television miniseries The Starter Wife. She had a starring role in the 2008 American television series Cashmere Mafia, and Australian films such as In Her Skin and Blessed (2009). She starred opposite Stephanie Sigman and Anthony LaPaglia in the horror prequel Annabelle: Creation. She portrayed Zelda Spellman in Netflix's Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (2018-2020). She made her theatrical debut in the 1986 production of The Bitter Tears of Petra Von Kant for the Sydney Theatre Company.[28] Three more theatrical productions for the Sydney Theatre Company followed in the late 1980s and early 1990s. In 2002, she returned to the stage playing Nora Helmer in A Doll's House opposite her future husband Peter O'Brien. Otto's performance earned her a 2003 Helpmann Award nomination and the MO Award for "Best Female Actor in a Play". Her next stage role was in the psychological thriller Boy Gets Girl (2005).

Movies as Actor (59)
The Fox

The Fox

as Liz

Oct 29, 2026

The Pout-Pout Fish

The Pout-Pout Fish

as Marin (voice)

Jan 1, 2026

The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim

The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim

as Éowyn (voice)

Dec 5, 2024

Revealed: Otto By Otto

Revealed: Otto By Otto

as Self

Jun 16, 2024

My Freaky Family

My Freaky Family

as Aneska Flood (voice)

Apr 19, 2024

At the Gates

At the Gates

as Marianne Barris

Nov 3, 2023

In the Grip of Terror: Making Talk To Me

In the Grip of Terror: Making Talk To Me

as Self

Oct 3, 2023

Talk to Me

Talk to Me

as Sue

Jul 26, 2023

The Portable Door

The Portable Door

as Countess Judy

Mar 23, 2023

Faith & Fear: The Conjuring Universe

Faith & Fear: The Conjuring Universe

as Self

Oct 23, 2020

Downhill

Downhill

as Charlotte

Feb 6, 2020

The Silence

The Silence

as Kelly Andrews

May 16, 2019

The Chaperone

The Chaperone

as Ruth St. Dennis

Mar 29, 2019

Zoe

Zoe

as The Designer

Jul 19, 2018

The Raid

The Raid

as Rebecca Ingram

Dec 12, 2017

Annabelle: Creation

Annabelle: Creation

as Esther Mullins

Aug 3, 2017

Dance Academy: The Movie

Dance Academy: The Movie

as Madeline Moncur

Apr 6, 2017

The Daughter

The Daughter

as Charlotte

Oct 9, 2015

The Homesman

The Homesman

as Theoline Belknap

May 18, 2014

I, Frankenstein

I, Frankenstein

as Leonore

Jan 22, 2014

The Turning

The Turning

as Sherry

Sep 25, 2013

Reaching for the Moon

Reaching for the Moon

as Elizabeth Bishop

Feb 9, 2013

Mabo

Mabo

as Margaret White

Jun 10, 2012

Locke & Key

Locke & Key

as Nina Locke

Jan 1, 2011

South Solitary

South Solitary

as Meredith Appleton

Jul 29, 2010

Blessed

Blessed

as Bianca

Sep 10, 2009

In Her Skin

In Her Skin

as Mrs. Barber

Mar 14, 2009

Schadenfreude

Schadenfreude

as Waitress

Feb 21, 2009

War of the Worlds

War of the Worlds

as Mary Ann

Jun 28, 2005

Flight of the Phoenix

Flight of the Phoenix

as Kelly

Dec 17, 2004

A Filmmaker's Journey: Making 'The Return of the King'

A Filmmaker's Journey: Making 'The Return of the King'

as Self

Dec 14, 2004

In My Father's Den

In My Father's Den

as Penny Prior

Jun 11, 2004

The Making of 'The Return of the King'

The Making of 'The Return of the King'

as Self

Apr 1, 2004

The Three-Legged Fox

The Three-Legged Fox

as Ruth

Feb 1, 2004

The Quest Fulfilled: A Director's Vision

The Quest Fulfilled: A Director's Vision

as Self

Dec 26, 2003

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

as Éowyn

Dec 17, 2003

Danny Deckchair

Danny Deckchair

as Glenda Lake

May 16, 2003

The Making of 'The Two Towers'

The Making of 'The Two Towers'

Apr 1, 2003

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

as Éowyn

Dec 18, 2002

Julie Walking Home

Julie Walking Home

as Julie Makowsky

Sep 4, 2002

Doctor Sleep

Doctor Sleep

as Clara Strother

Aug 16, 2002

Human Nature

Human Nature

as Gabrielle

Sep 12, 2001

What Lies Beneath

What Lies Beneath

as Mary Feur

Jul 21, 2000

Kin

Kin

as Anna

Jul 5, 2000

The Jack Bull

The Jack Bull

as Cora Redding

Apr 17, 1999

The Thin Red Line

The Thin Red Line

as Marty Bell

Dec 23, 1998

In the Winter Dark

In the Winter Dark

as Ronnie

Sep 10, 1998

Dead Letter Office

Dead Letter Office

as Alice Walsh

Aug 20, 1998

Doing Time for Patsy Cline

Doing Time for Patsy Cline

as Patsy

Sep 25, 1997

True Love and Chaos

True Love and Chaos

as Mimi

May 22, 1997

The Well

The Well

as Katherine

May 14, 1997

Love Serenade

Love Serenade

as Dimity Hurley

Oct 10, 1996

Sex Is a Four Letter Word

Sex Is a Four Letter Word

as Viv

Oct 1, 1995

The Nostradamus Kid

The Nostradamus Kid

as Jennie O'Brien

Oct 14, 1993

The Last Days of Chez Nous

The Last Days of Chez Nous

as Annie

Oct 8, 1992

Daydream Believer

Daydream Believer

as Nell Tiscowitz

Aug 7, 1992

The 13th Floor

The 13th Floor

as Rebecca

May 31, 1988

Initiation

Initiation

as Stevie

Jun 20, 1987

Emma's War

Emma's War

as Emma Grange

Dec 26, 1986