Sharp Objects Star Eliza Scanlen Holds Her Own Opposite Her Childhood Idol

Sharp Objects Star Eliza Scanlen Holds Her Own Opposite Her Childhood Idol

Full ScreenPhotos:Meet Australian Actress Eliza Scanlen, Sharp Objectss Up-and-Coming Star AGE: 19...

Full ScreenPhotos:Meet Australian Actress Eliza Scanlen, Sharp Objectss Up-and-Coming Star

AGE: 19.

PROVENANCE: Sydney, Australia.

THE BUG: “When I was seven, my mom took my twin sister and me to a play,” Scanlen recalls. “I remember being fascinated about life onstage.”

THE AMBITION: “When I got a bit older, I put on my own plays and forced my friends to perform.” In high school, she landed a role on Home and Away, the Australian soap and Hollywood launchpad for stars like Naomi Watts and the Hemsworth brothers.

THE GET: This month, Scanlen makes her American TV debut, in HBOs Sharp Objects, directed by Jean-Marc Vallée (Big Little Lies) and based on the best-seller by Gillian Flynn. “I was a fan of [Flynns] Gone Girl, but I didnt want to get my hopes up. I put myself on tape anyway and they flew me to L.A.—it was a whirlwind, but I got the part.”

THE CO-STARS: Playing the manipulative daughter Amma, opposite Oscar nominee Patricia Clarkson and five-time Oscar nominee Amy Adams, “was initially intimidating. My first scene was coming home drunk to Amy.”

THE ROLE MODELS: “I grew up watching Amy in Enchanted; I was told that if you had to meet your first famous person youd be lucky if it were Amy Adams.” Scanlen more than holds her own in the company of Hollywood heroines: “Im proud, but it wouldnt have been possible without Amy and Patricia.”

THE HORIZON: “It all came very quickly. Im still trying to process it.” With a career on the rise, its clear Scanlen will be processing a lot more.

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