The bestMiranda Ottomovies and TV shows include massive Oscar and box office champions, as well as highly rated releases, showing her immense talent. Otto grew up in both Hong Kong and Australia after her parents divorced, and it was in Sydney with her dad that she developed her love of acting. As a child, she acted in stage plays and then got her first break in the 1986 World War II dramaEmma’s War. She attended the National Institute of Dramatic Art and began taking on film roles before graduating.
Since then, she has caught fans' attention thanks to huge movies and big television shows. While her career was slow-moving in Australia,she got a small role in Terrence Malick’sThe Thin Red Line, which led to her getting more Hollywood offers.What Lies Beneathwas her first big break in 2000, leading to the biggest role of her career when Peter Jackson cast her asÉowyn inThe Lord of the Ringsfilm trilogy. Her career exploded after that, and Otto has become one of Hollywood’s best stars in the years since.
Annabelle: Creation
Cast
Annabelle: Creation is the sequel to the 2014 supernatural horror film centering around the demonic doll. Exploring the origins of Annabelle, Creation sees a family in mourning after their daughter dies tragically in an accident. Several years after the event, the family opens their doors to orphans, who become the targets of the mysterious doll - but the truth of Annabelle may be connected with their dearly departed daughter.
In 2014, Miranda Otto starred in the horror prequel filmAnnabelle Creation. The possessed doll, Annabelle, first appeared inThe Conjuring,and the prequel movies focused on the doll’s history.This specific entry was the best reviewed in theAnnabelleline of films, as it tells the actual origin of the demonic doll. When a dollmaker’s little girl dies in an accident after a car runs her over, he creates a doll, and it ends up possessed by a demon who targets several girls from an orphanage.
The Conjuringfranchise has made over $2.3 billion worldwide.
Miranda Otto plays Esther Mullins in the movie.She is the wife of the dollmaker and the mother of the human girl, Annabelle. It is Esther who explains how the demon got into the doll and how it tricked them into thinking they were bringing the spirit of their dead daughter back, only to learn too late it was pure evil. Esther and Samuel opened their home to orphans, which is how the doll initially targeted them. The film was another commercial hit for the franchise and has a 70% Rotten Tomatoes score.
24: Legacy
A spin-off of the original drama-thriller series on Fox, 24: Legacy follows a new protagonist, a former Army Sergeant named Eric Carter, who has returned from duty only to discover that a terrorist organization is hunting down him and his team. Having taken a flash drive with sensitive criminal information from them, the cell will stop at nothing to get them back. To survive and stop a colossal incoming threat, Carter reaches out to the CTU, the agency Jack Bauer worked for, to help him complete his new mission.
In 2017,24was working on new spinoffs that kept the franchise rolling, but it was also dropping in quality as Kiefer Sutherland’s Jack Bauer was phased out of the storyline.24: Legacyended up as the last season of the series,andFox canceled the future plans for more stories. This season followed a war hero and ex-Army Ranger, Eric Carter (Corey Hawkins), who learns his squad mates are being hunted down and killed. Carter seeks out the Counter Terrorist Unit to help protect him in exchange for his service.
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Miranda Otto stars as Rebecca Ingram,the former National Director of the Counterterrorist Unitwho is now the wife of Senator John Donovan (Jimmy Smits), who is running for President of the United States. While the critical reception was not as high as the franchise was used to, it still received a 60% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes. However, after over 20 million people tuned in for the premiere, the ratings dropped to about five million for most of the season, leading to the cancellation.
The Clearing
Loosely based on the true story and the novel by J.P. Pomare, The Clearing is a drama-thriller series that follows a woman named Freya, who, once a member of a cult known as The Kindred, has been since deprogrammed. When a local girl goes missing, Freya dives back into her past to save her and protect future children from being indoctrinated into the dangerous cult.
In 2023, Miranda Otto joined the cast of the TV showThe Clearing. This psychological thriller miniseries, which aired on Hulu, is based on the Australian cult group The Family. This real-life cult was formed in the 1960s by Anne Hamilton-Byrne, who claimed to be a reincarnation of Jesus Christ. In 1987, police raided their compound on child abuse allegations. The series is a fictionalized miniseries that is based on that cult and follows a woman who tries to stop a cult from kidnapping children.
Otto received high praise for herunsettling performance.
While Teresa Palmer takes on the lead role of the woman attempting to stop the cult,Miranda Otto stars as Adrienne Beaufort, the cult leader based on Anne Hamilton-Byrne. The series received high praise from critics, with an 89% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and Otto received high praise for her “unsettling performance.” The series ran for eight episodes and was nominated for Best Miniseries at the AACTA Awards, while Palmer was nominated for her performance as well.
War of The Worlds
As extraterrestrial invaders ravage Earth, divorced father Ray Ferrier (Tom Cruise) must protect his estranged children, Rachel and Robbie. Evading destruction and aliens, they encounter harrowing scenes of devastation in their desperate bid for survival. As the invaders' weaknesses are revealed, Ray fights to reunite his family and find refuge amidst the crumbling world.
In 2005, Steven Spielberg adapted the H.G. Wells science fiction novelThe War of the Worlds, which had previously been adapted as a radio play by Orson Welles and a movie in 1953 by producer George Pal. For Spielberg, he brought in a high-wattage cast, withTom Cruise in the lead role as Ray Ferrier, a father who searches for his children during the alien attack on Earth. Dakota Fanning and Justin Chatwin star as his kids, Rachel and Robbie, as Spielberg chose to focus on the family’s survival.
It holds a 75% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
Miranda Otto plays an important role in the film asMary Ann Ferrier, Ray’s pregnant ex-wife, drops the kids off with Ray before the alien attack. While she isn’t around much in the movie, Ray and his daughter Rachel are desperately searching for both Mary Ann and Robbie as they attempt to survive the devastating alien attack.War of the Worldswas a major box office hit while earning three Oscar nominations. It holds a 75% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
What Lies Beneath
What Lies Beneath is a supernatural thriller exploring Claire Spencer’s unsettling experiences with ghostly phenomena. As Claire attempts to discern the truth behind these eerie occurrences, she begins to suspect her husband might be concealing secrets, leading her to a chilling discovery.
What Lies Beneathwas Miranda Otto’s first major Hollywood role after her minor appearance inThe Thin Red Line. Robert Zemeckis (Forrest Gump) directed the movie, which stars Harrison Ford and Michelle Pfeiffer. This is a rare horror film for Ford and Zemeckis, a supernatural thriller where Claire (Pfeiffer) believes thatone of her new neighbors (James Remar) might have killed his wife, Mary (Miranda Otto). Soon, Claire starts to see Mary’s ghost, despite her husband saying she went to her mother’s after a fight.
However, Claire learns that it isn’t Mary’s ghost but that of a woman named Madison, and then her life spirals into twists that threaten to tear everything she knows apart. Critics only gave the movie a 47% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, while the audience awarded it a slightly higher 58% Popcornmeter score. Despite the lackluster reviews,What Lies Beneathwas a success as the box office while earning five Saturn Award nominations, including Best Horror Film.
The Thin Red Line
The Thin Red Line is a war film directed by Terrence Malick, based on James Jones' autobiographical novel. Released in 1998, it focuses on the Battle of Guadalcanal during World War II, exploring the psychological toll of combat on soldiers. The ensemble cast includes Sean Penn, Adrien Brody, and Nick Nolte, among others, and delves into themes of survival, fear, and the impact of war on human nature.
While she didn’t have a big role in the movie, Miranda Otto’s first major opportunity in America came when Terrence Malick cast her in his war movieThe Thin Red Line. Whilethe movie was slightly overlooked since it came out the same year asSaving Private Ryan, it is extremely different from Steven Spielberg’s release. Malick was more in touch with focusing on the feeling of being in a war as a soldier.The Thin Red Line’sstory occurs during the Battle of Mount Austen in World War II.
Otto appears in his memories, which leads him to a tragic ending.
The cast was incredibly impressive, with names like Sean Penn, Adrien Brody, John Cusack, George Clooney, and more. As for Miranda Otto, she stars as Marty Bell. It is a small role, butshe is Private Jack Bell’s (Ben Chaplin) wife who sends a letter to tell him she was leaving himwhile he was fighting in the war because she found someone else. Otto appears in his memories, which leads him to a tragic ending. With an 80% Rotten Tomatoes score, it picked up seven Oscar nominations.
Chilling Adventures of Sabrina
Based on the Archie comic series, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina is a Netflix supernatural horror series that follows Sabrina Spellman, a young half-witch, half-human that is coming into her powers in her teenage years. To protect her friends, family, and the world itself, Sabrina will have to harness her powers and ignore the calls from her darker side to embrace her evil potential fully and instead use her powers for good. Despite the series cancellation in 2020, the show’s story was continued in The Occult World of Sabrina, a comic book serial.You can buy the seasons for just $9.99 for Prime Day.
In 2018, Miranda Otto took on a major role in the Netflix rebootChilling Adventures of Sabrina. Based on the Archie Comics character, which previously was made into the show,Sabrina The Teenage Witch, this was a darker look at the source material. Kiernan Shipka stars as Sabrina Spellman, a half-human, half-witch teen beginning her dark magic education while trying to finish high school. As with the source material,she lives with her two aunts, who try to protect her and keep her out of danger.
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Chilling Adventures of Sabrina has not been renewed for season 5 - at least, not on Netflix. However, Sabrina’s story will continue in the comics.
Miranda Otto plays Aunt Zelda, while Lucy Davis (Shaun of the Dead) plays Aunt Hilda. Zelda is strict and often clashes with Hilda over their beliefs. The series had two seasons, but it was broken up into four parts and 36 total episodes. The series received mostly positive reviews, with the first and third releases ranking over 90% on Rotten Tomatoes and only the fourth part ranking lower, at 67%. The Netflix series was also nominated for several genre awards over its three-year run.
Talk to Me
While trying to cope with the death of her mother, Mia (Sophie Wilde) becomes enthralled with an embalmed hand that can conjure spirits. While Mia and her group of friends get a thrill out of communicating with spirits, things go too far when Mia doesn’t close the door to the other side.
Talk to Mewas a surprise horror movie hit in 2022. The Australian supernatural horror movie featured a story about a group of teenagers who learn they can contact spirits by using a severed and embalmed hand. The lore is that the kids can grasp the hand and communicate with the dead, but they have to let go before 90 seconds pass, or the dead will be able to bind themselves to that person’s body. As expected,one of the teens holds the hand for too long, and their friends start to die.
Critics also loved the horror film, awarding it a 95% Certified Fresh score on Rotten Tomatoes
Sophie Wilde is the lead character, Mia, the teen stuck with the spirit.Miranda Otto is one of the rare main adult characters in the movie as Sue, the mother of Jade and Riley, two of Mia’s closest friends. The movie was a surprise box office success on a small budget, which wasenough to warrant aTalk to Mesequel. Critics also loved the horror film, awarding it a 95% Certified Fresh score on Rotten Tomatoes. It went on to win eight AACTA Awards with 11 nominations.
Homeland
Homeland is a suspenseful drama series centered on CIA officer Carrie Mathison, portrayed as a top agent despite her bipolar disorder. Released on August 12, 2025, the series follows her as she navigates the complexities of intelligence work with the guidance of her mentor, Saul Berenson.
In 2015, Miranda Otto joined theHomelandcast in its fifth season.Homelandstarted with an American soldier who was presumed dead in Iraq and returned 10 years later. However, his return comes with suspicions and thoughts he was “turned” by the enemy. Claire Danes stars as Carrie Mathison, a CIA case officer assigned to the Counterterrorism Center. The fifth season starts two years after the fourth, with Carrie as head of security for a private charitable foundation, the Düring Foundation.
Miranda Otto stars as Allison Carr, the current Berlin Chief of Station, working directly with Saul Berenson (Mandy Patinkin). Her foundation asks Carrie to work with her former CIA colleagues to stop a terrorist attack on Berlin and lure out a CIA mole. It is a rare villain role for Otto, and the season garnered an 88% fresh rating from Rotten Tomatoes. The season also had four Primetime Emmy nominations, with Claire Danes picking up a nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series.
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
The final installment of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Return of the King concludes the epic saga of the Fellowship’s quest to destroy the One Ring and put an end to Sauron’s reign of terror. As Frodo and Sam continue on their way to Mordor and Mount Doom, accompanied by Gollom, the rest of the Fellowship work to defend Minas Tirith from Sauron’s forces. The film’s ensemble cast includes Elijah Wood, Sean Astin, Ian McKellen, Vigo Mortensen, Orlando Bloom, John Rhys-Davies, Billy Boyd, and Dominic Monaghan.
The biggest movies that Miranda Otto ever appeared in were part of Peter Jackson’sLord of the Ringstrilogy. In the second and third movies (The Two TowersandReturn of the King),Otto plays Éowyn, the daughter of the House of Eorl and King Théoden of Rohan’s niece. Her uncle raised her after her father died fighting orcs, but she plays a huge role in the final battle of the trilogy. While asked to run as a woman, she puts on armor and blends in, fighting alongside her army anyway.
It is Éowyn who kills the Witch-King inThe Return of the King, with one of the movie’s most memorable moments…
It is Éowyn who kills the Witch-King inThe Return of the King, with one of the movie’s most memorable moments where the demon says no man can kill him, and she declares she is not a man and strikes him dead. That thirdLOTRmovie won all 11 Oscars it was nominated for, including Brest Picture and Best Director. It also has a 94% Certified Fresh Rotten Tomatoes score.Miranda Ottoreturns to the franchise for the animatedThe War of the Rohirrimin 2024.
