Rose Byrne is Hollywood's Secret MVP

Rose Byrne may not be a household name, but she's certainly a household face. The Australian actress has been in a lot of mainstream movies, ranging from horror to comedies to superhero movies to musicals. Byrne made herself into a reliable character actor, often being cast in versatile projects and being comfortable in all of them. Did you see X-Men: First Class? Or Insidious? Or Bridesmaids? Yup, she was in them. Or maybe you know her from five seasons of Damages with Glenn Close. Rose Byrne seems to be bursting under the surface, ready for A-list. And considering she's of major value to all her projects, Byrne has become Hollywood's secret MVP.

Rose Byrne made her name in Australia, in several well-regarded Australian movies. FYI I have not seen any of her movies from down under but according to Wikipedia she was good in them. Byrne's first major Hollywood role was in Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones. She played Dorme, handmaiden to Senator Amidala (Natalie Portman). She did more Hollywood movies, such as Troy, Wicker Park, Sunshine directed by Danny Boyle, Adam, and her pre-breakout movies Insidious and Get Him to the Greek. All Rose Byrne needed was a major breakout movie.

Bridesmaids

In 2011, Rose Byrne co-starred in the comedy Bridesmaids. The movie made over $280 million worldwide and sparked a national discussion about gender diversity in Hollywood (specifically in comedy). Byrne played the role of Helen, the seemingly perfect woman and chief rival to Annie (Kristen Wiig) for the affections of their mutual friend Lillian (Maya Rudolph). Played by a different actress, Helen would be a shrill, conniving, one-dimensional bitch. But Rose Byrne brought in her inherent sweetness and vulnerability to make Helen more complicated. It's quite a natural performance, with depth, charm, and just the right amount of manipulation.

Since Bridesmaids, Rose Byne did mostly supporting roles like CIA Agent Moira McTaggert in X-Men: First Class and X-Men: Apocalypse, the sweet small town girl in This Is Where I Leave You or Jamie Foxx's assistant in the Annie remake. She starred in the sequel to her horror smash hit Insidious, and played a Bond villain type in the action comedy Spy. Her highest profile role is probably Kelly in Neighbors and Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising. Byrne got some of the best reviews in her career for those movies. She does play Seth Rogen's wife but she's allowed to be funny and messed up and immature just like he is.

Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising

Looking at Rose Byrne's career, you can see her take on different genres and character types. And she she plays her characters with credibility and conviction, and her presence elevates weak material. She fits into different genres because she's so genial on screen but beneath that she's fierce and commanding. She has a girl-next-door beauty, which means she never looks out of place in different genres. The actress always looks like she fits in at all times. And honestly Rose Byrne is likable off screen as well and I am sure many people enjoy working with her.

Aside from the X-Men movies, Rose Byrne appears in mostly small or medium budget movies. And that means that a lot of her movies turn a profit. Bridesmaids, Get Him to the Greek, Neighbors, Insidious, Annie, Spy--these are movies that have either performed well, have great reputations with audiences or both. While no one would claim that Rose Byrne was the sole reason these movies performed well, she at least acts like an added value element. Maybe only a small number of people--myself included--go see a movie because she's in it. But I am sure most people are pleased to see her in a movie--even if they can't actually name that random actress who's in everything as Rose Byrne.

Insidious

With memorable performances in hit movies, Rose Byrne has established herself as Hollywood's secret MVP. I don't think she's quite A-list yet; she does need a major leading role in a major hit movie to become a household name. But the Australian Emmy nominee is quite comfortable living on the border between B-list and A-list. She's one of my favorite working actresses, especially because she's quite terrific in comedies, horror, action, and drama.

Like what you read? Please like my blog at Facebook.com/MathurMarquee. Also, follow me on Twitter @HippogriffRider. Agree? Disagree? Sound off in the comments below!