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During a revealing conversation, Miranda Otto reflects on topics ranging from her newest character as Queen of the Cuttlefish to the invaluable wisdom gleaned from onstage mishaps and meeting admirers.

Given the Chance to Become a Fish for a Day

Your latest role is the monarch of the cuttlefish in The Pout-Pout Fish; if you could be a fish for a day, which one would it be and why?

Straight away, that particular fish found at Clovelly beach – since it is a local landmark, and individuals visit to see it. It strikes me as remarkable that there’s a local fish that people actually go and see and discuss – it’s a special fish.

A Film Staple to Return To

What film do you repeatedly watch, and why?

The 1942 comedy To Be Or Not To Be. I adore this picture. When I was childhood, it would air on television occasionally, and one time I videotaped it. I found it was so funny. It stars Carole Lombard and Jack Benny. Recently they were playing it at the Ritz and it turned out that it was the preferred movie of an acquaintance, and so we attended and just laughed and laughed. It is a masterful work of comedy and the entire cast in it are superb. The director Mel Brooks did a remake in the 1980s – which was not successful. But the original film is an exceptional farce, to be watched regularly.

A Priceless Insight Learned From a Co-Star

What’s the best lesson you learned from someone you’ve worked with?

I was doing A Doll’s House with Pete – now my spouse, but back then we were not a couple. We portrayed characters opposite each other and on opening night I tripped up – I jumped ahead some dialogue in the script. I didn’t know what I’d done but I abruptly sensed things were off. I recall glancing toward him, and he expertly rescued the moment, and then the scene took off again and went really, really well. However, I believe the insight gained in that moment was, first, always trust the people in your scene. When you lose where you are, by looking and look at the actors sharing the stage with, you will find your correct position somehow. It is a profoundly communal thing, performing live. And secondly, to maintain a sense of fun regarding it. Sometimes when a mistake occurs, things actually spark off in a wonderfully positive way if you’re really present then. It can be an unexpected boon when things go absolutely the wrong way.

Memorable Exchanges with Fans

What’s been your most touching encounter with a fan?

There isn't a single specific meeting but when I meet fans of Lord of the Rings, especially female fans, I hear a lot of accounts about how that character meant to them when they were growing up … events that occurred in their lives and the extent to which Eowyn signified for them and was a form of support to them in those times.

What do you get asked most frequently by Lord of the Rings fans?

The most detailed question is always about the stew that Eowyn serves Aragorn. “Was the stew as terrible as it looked?” It’s become a running gag, the whole thing about the stew, and all fans wish to know the contents of the pot, and how was it made, and do you think her skills improved now, or do you think she really is a bad cook? People are, in my view, fascinated by the humour of that situation. And I provide great detail listing the ingredients that made up the concoction – because I remember the efforts made; such as adding pieces of colored thread to simulate the appearance like bits of veins in the meat. They went to great detail to render it as bad as they could.

A Cringeworthy Star Encounter

What’s been your most cringeworthy celebrity encounter?

I attended a fitness session and there was a woman on a mat exercising, and the instructor said to me, “Hello Miranda, this is Miranda.” And I attempted a lighthearted remark inquiring, “oh, are you a journalist?” Since Miranda is an uncommon moniker and often when someone’s a Miranda, they’re a journalist. I wasn’t really seeing who it was. And when she got up, it was Miranda Richardson. Then I didn’t know words. I still had to stay and do my class, and I felt intense awkwardness. I wished to explain: “Goodness, I do know who you are!” I think her talent is immense and I was simply too awestruck to utter a syllable.

The Origin of a Moniker

Articles have confidently claimed that you were named after Prospero’s daughter in Shakespeare’s The Tempest, and yet I’ve read stating otherwise – can you settle the matter once and for all?

Yes – I was named after a district in Sydney. My mother heard on the radio that they were opening a shopping centre at that location, and the name seemed a pleasant choice.

Chaos on Location

What’s the most chaotic thing that’s ever happened on set?

While working in Brazil for the film Reaching for the Moon I experienced the most chaotic set I’ve ever worked on, and yet the film emerged incredibly well. But the local crew operated in such a different way. Their concept of time there is really different. In Australia, you receive a schedule and you have to be on set by a certain time. But this was rather flexible – one would appear at one's convenience. It was a novel approach for me. All aspects were all coming together at the final moment, and sometimes the plan was unclear the next location the next day how we were going to do it. And then I would be in the middle of a scene and wondering, “What was that noise that disturbed the scene? Oh, it’s a crew member popping open a bottle during filming, to start a party.” It turned out excellent, but goodness, it’s a really different approach to film-making.

A Secret Talent

Do you have a secretly good at?

I naturally possess an aptitude for numbers. I retain numbers easier than I memorise words often, I simply have that kind of a brain. So I think if I hadn’t ended up in acting, I likely might have worked in involving numbers, like mathematics or finance.

The Best Guidance Given

What is the greatest piece of advice you have ever received?

When I was in high school, someone addressed us as we were graduating and stated, “have no fear to fail” … an idea I consider is the best piece of advice, since one gains so much more from setbacks than you learn from triumph. Success, one rarely comprehends precisely why it happened. Failure, the lessons are so much more.