From Ramsay Street Resident To Barbie's Big Star – The Rise And Rise Of Margot Robbie

Margot Robbie’s acting career has exploded in recent years, making her one of the biggest stars in Hollywood.

The Australian actor has been making a name for herself for the best part of 15 years after first hitting our TV screens in the Aussie soap Neighbours back in 2008.

Since then, she’s gone on to have breakout roles from starring alongside Leonardo DiCaprio in The Wolf of Wall Street and Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood, to landing Oscar nominations in I, Tonya.

Now, Margot is preparing to take the world by storm in the hotly anticipated Barbie film from Greta Gerwig, in which she takes on the role of everybody’s favourite doll.

While we await the release of the summer blockbuster, here’s a look back at Margot’s rise from Neighbours soap star to full blown Hollywood A-lister...

2008 – Humble beginnings on Ramsay Street

Like Kylie Mingoue, Russell Crowe, and Liam Hemsworth, Margot’s first major role was in the Australian soap Neighbours, in which she played groupie Donna Freedman.

Although Donna was originally planned to be a guest character, Margot was promoted to become a series regular shortly after arriving on Ramsay Street in 2008.

She spent nearly three years on the show, with storylines ranging from a same-sex kiss with Sunny Lee (Hany Lee), to marrying Sam Clark’s Ringo Brown before he was mowed down in a fatal motorbike accident one month later.

Eventually, Margot kissed goodbye to Neighbours in 2010 as she prepared to make her Hollywood break.

Her character Donna left Ramsay Street for a fashion design school in New York, later reappearing for a special cameo in what was then believed to be the show’s final episode, which aired in July 2022.

2013 – Transitioning from the small screen to the silver screen

After starring in short-lived US TV show PanAm, Margot soon caught the eye of film bosses. Her feature film debut came in 2013 when she starred in Richard Curtis’ romantic comedy About Time alongside Domhnall Gleeson and Rachel McAdams.

In the film, Margot adopted a British accent to play Domhnall’s unattainable teenage love interest.

2014 – Wolf Of Wall Street makes her a household name across the world

It was Margot’s appearance in Martin Scorsese’s biographical black comedy The Wolf Of Wall Street that really skyrocketed her to fame.

Starring opposite Leonardo DiCaprio in the 2014 film, she played Naomi Lapaglia, the wife of Wall Street fraudster Jordan Belfort (DiCaprio).  

Margot was just 22 at the time, but with her impressive Brooklyn accent she seamlessly ate every scene up, which helped catapult her to stardom.

Last year, Margot revealed she came close to quitting acting following the release of Wolf Of Wall Street because she struggled to deal with losing her privacy as a result of fame.

Speaking toVanity Fair, she said: “Something was happening in those early stages and it was all pretty awful.

“I remember saying to my mum, ’I don’t think I want to do this”. And she just looked at me, completely straight-faced, and was like, ‘Darling, I think it’s too late not to.’ That’s when I realised the only way was forward.”

2016 – Margot steps into the DC Universe as Harley Quinn

Margot received further widespread critical acclaim in 2016 when she arrived in the DC Extended Universe as Harley Quinn.

She made her first appearance as the Joker’s crazed partner in crime in the film Suicide Squad, in which she starred alongside Jared Leto and Will Smith.

Four years later in 2020, she reprised the role for Birds Of Prey, and again in 2021 for The Suicide Squad, a standalone sequel.

2017/18 – Margot makes her producing debut, and scores an Oscar nomination 

In 2017, Margot played figure skater Tonya Harding in the biopic film I, Tonya.

The role earned her an Oscar nomination for Best Actress at the 90th Academy Awards, as well as nods at the 75th Golden Globes and Critics’ Choice Movie Awards.

Last year at Bafta: Life In Pictures, Margot admitted that her performance in I, Tonya was the “first time I thought I was a good actor”.

During the event, she revealed it had been the moment in her career where she felt comfortable enough “to reach out to my idols” and approached director Quentin Tarantino soon after.

I, Tonya also marked the first time Margot served as a producer, after establishing her own production company – LuckyChap – with husband Tom Ackerley. 

The company has since gone on to produce many of Margot’s other films, including Dreamland, Terminal and the forthcoming Barbie.

2018 – Taking on a different role in her first period drama

Margot threw herself into the Josie Rourke’s historical drama Mary Queen Of Scots in 2018, playing Queen Elizabeth I.

The film marked her first period performance and it earnt her a Bafta nomination for Best Supporting Actress - though she almost turned down the role altogether.

Speaking to Today during the press run, Margot admitted: “It wasn’t just being scared of something other people had done, I just didn’t think I had anything in common with her.

“I’m not classically trained, I don’t know anything about the time period.” 

2019 – Her Tarantino debut

Two years after having approached Tarantino, Margot starred as Sharon Tate in his 2019 epic Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood.

The award-winning film, which had a cast that included Leonardo, Brad Pitt, Austin Butler, and Damian Lewis, secured eight Oscar nominations and two wins, including Best Supporting Actor and Best Production Design. 

While Margot found herself embroiled in criticism over her lack of screen time, she was unbothered. 

“I watched it and thought we got across what we wanted to get across,” Margot told Bafta: Life In Pictures.

2020 – A second Oscar nomination 

In late 2019 came the release of Bombshell – in which Margot shared the screen with Charlize Theron and Nicole Kidman – based on the accounts of the women at Fox News who exposed CEO Roger Ailes for sexual harassment. 

It would earn Margot her second Oscar nomination in 2020, this time for Best Supporting Actress. She lost out to Marriage Story’s Laura Dern, so here’s hoping it’s third time lucky for Margot. 

2023 – Bouncing back with Barbie 

Margot’s latest role is in Greta Gerwig’s forthcoming film Barbie, which is already breaking the internet.

The actor takes on the titular character in the live-action blockbuster alongside co-star Ryan Gosling, who plays Ken.

The movie sees Barbie leave the utopian Barbie Land after questioning her mortality and travelling to the real world with Ken.

The movie comes off the back of a few rocky releases for Margot, including Amsterdam and Babylon, both of which were not huge box office hits. 

In April, she revealed how she once worried Barbie’s script was too good to ever find its way out of the box.

In an interview with Bafta reported by IndieWire, Margot remembered thinking “ah! This is so good” but that studios were “never going to let us make this movie.”

Luckily, the project got the green light from toy giant Mattel and began filming in March 2022.

The press tour is currently underway – and it seems Margot has absolutely understood the assignment – ahead of the much-anticipated release on 21 July.