Margot Robbie Downplays Her Beauty in Vanity Fair: "My Girlfriends Are Better Looking Than Me!"

"I did not grow up feeling like I was particularly attractive," the Wolf of Wall Street star says

By Zach Johnson Jul 09, 2014 7:02 PMTags
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Margot Robbie is undeniably beautiful—but she's so much more than that.

"In my big group of girlfriends at home, I am definitely not the best-looking," the 24-year-old Australian actress says in the August 2014 issue of Vanity Fair. "I did not grow up feeling like I was particularly attractive. You should have seen me at 14, with braces and glasses, gangly and doing ballet! If I looked good in Wolf of Wall Street I cannot take full credit; it was because of hair extensions and makeup."

Martin Scorsese's casting director, Ellen Lewis, brought Robbie to the director's attention for The Wolf of Wall Street. She sums up the actress' appeal such: "As beautiful as she is, that's how talented she is."

Robbie comes from a farming family, and she didn't break into acting until her late teens. Luckily, she has a natural presence onscreen, according to those who've worked with her. Given that her home country has produced stars like Nicole Kidman and Russell Crowe, could she be the next big thing?

"People ask me all the time what it is about Australia that produces so many big stars," she says. "Honestly, I believe it is a combination of things. Our education standards are quite high, but our industry is very limited. Yet we're very aware of the industry—everyone goes to the theater, sees TV shows. The logical step is to make a move to America—America is getting the best of the best of us."

"You don't leave Australia unless you are passionate. Any Australian actor who comes to America is really  committed. There are no dabblers—it's all or nothing. If you've worked in Australia you can't get away with bad behavior, like showing up late," say Robbie, who will next appear in Z for Zachariah and Tarzan. "We take our work ethic seriously. So maybe that's why we have a good reputation."

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Robbie is no stranger to controversy, however. Last year, Star published photos of Robbie and Will Smith messing around in a photo booth while filming the movie Focus. The pics showed Smith shirtless and Robbie exposing her bra. "Everyone wants to link me up, make it seem like I have a thrilling love life. They tried to say [Leonardo DiCaprio} and I were a couple, too," she says. "Ideally, I'd want people to know nothing about my personal life. The truth is my love life is very dull. I'm in love with my job."