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During a revealing conversation, Miranda Otto reflects on subjects as varied as her latest role as a regal sea creature to the profound lessons learned through onstage mishaps and fan interactions.

If You Could Be a Fish for a Day

The most recent character portrays Queen of the Cuttlefish in The Pout-Pout Fish; if you could be a fish for a day, which one would it be and why?

Without hesitation, that particular fish residing near Clovelly beach – because it’s a local landmark, and people go there to see it. I just think it’s cool that a resident aquatic creature that people actually go and see and talk about – it holds a unique status.

A Cinematic Favorite to Return To

Which movie do you always return to, and why?

Ernst Lubitsch's 1942 film To Be Or Not To Be. I love this film. When I was childhood, it would air on television occasionally, and once I recorded it. I just thought it was so funny. It’s Carole Lombard and comedian Jack Benny. Recently they were showing it at the Ritz and it turned out that it was also the favourite film of an acquaintance, and so we attended and simply chuckled and laughed. It is a masterful work of comedy and all the actors in it are fantastic. The director Mel Brooks remade it in the 1980s – which was not successful. But the original film is an exceptional farce, to be watched regularly.

The Best Insight Learned From a Fellow Actor

What’s the best lesson you learned from someone a colleague?

I was doing A Doll’s House with Pete – now my spouse, but back then we were not together. We were playing as scene partners and on opening night I stumbled – I skipped forward some dialogue in the script. I didn’t know what I’d done but I abruptly sensed something wasn’t right. I remember glancing toward him, and he completely saved me, and then the scene regained momentum and went really, really well. However, I believe the insight gained in that moment was, first, always trust the people you’re working with. If you don’t know where you are, by looking and look at the people you’re with, you can rediscover your correct position in some way. It is a profoundly collaborative endeavor, performing live. And secondly, to maintain a lighthearted attitude regarding it. Sometimes when a mistake occurs, things actually spark off in a wonderfully positive way provided you are fully engaged in that moment. It may become an unexpected boon when things go absolutely awry.

Heartening Exchanges with Fans

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

It’s not a single specific meeting but when I meet fans of Lord of the Rings, particularly women, I hear a lot of stories about how that character meant to them when they were younger … things that had happened in their lives and how much Eowyn meant to 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 specific inquiry concerns invariably regarding that infamous meal that Eowyn serves Aragorn. “Was the stew really that bad?” It has evolved into a running gag, the whole thing about the stew, and all fans wish to know what was in the pot, and how was it made, and in your opinion she’s a better cook now, or do you think she really is a bad cook? People are, in my view, obsessed with the humour of that scene. And I go into lengthy descriptions describing the ingredients that made up the concoction – because I remember the efforts made; such as put bits of red cotton to simulate the appearance like bits of veins in the meat. They went to great detail to make it look as bad as they could.

An Awkward Star Meeting

What was your most cringeworthy run-in with a famous person?

I was at a pilates class and there was a woman lying down exercising, and the instructor said to me, “Hello Miranda, this is Miranda.” And I made some joke about, “might you be a journalist?” Because it’s an unusual name and most of the time when I meet another Miranda, they work in media. I wasn’t really seeing who it was. And as she rose, it was the actress Miranda Richardson. At that point, I was at a loss for what to say. I was obliged to stay and do my class, and I experienced so embarrassed. I wished to explain: “Goodness, I am aware of who you are!” I think she’s so fabulous and I was just too starstruck to utter a syllable.

The Source of a Moniker

Articles have confidently claimed that you were named after Prospero’s daughter in Shakespeare’s The Tempest, and yet you've mentioned you saying otherwise – can you clarify this once and for all?

Yes – I was christened for a district in Sydney. Mum learned via broadcast that they were inaugurating a shopping centre at that location, and she thought seemed a pleasant choice.

Chaos on Location

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

When I was working in Brazil for the film Reaching for the Moon that was the most chaotic set of my career, and yet the final product emerged incredibly well. But they just work in a distinct manner. Their concept of time there is unique. In Australia, you normally have a schedule and must arrive on set by a certain time. But this was sort of open ended – you come on set whenever you happen to be ready. It was a novel approach for me. All aspects were being assembled at the very last minute, and sometimes the plan was unclear where they were shooting the next day the methodology. And then you’d be in the middle of a scene and be like, “What was that noise that just interrupted the scene? Ah, it was a crew member opening a bottle on set, because he’s making a party.” It turned out excellent, but goodness, it’s a really different approach to film-making.

A Secret Skill

What are you secretly good at?

I’ve always been good with numbers. I retain numbers easier than I learn dialogue often, I’ve just got that kind of a brain. So I believe had I not pursued acting, I probably would have worked in something to do with numbers, like mathematics or accounting.

The Best Guidance Given

What’s the best piece of advice you have ever received?

When I was in secondary school, someone came to speak when we were graduating and they said, “don’t be afraid to fail” … which I think is supremely valuable counsel, since one gains far more from failure than you learn from success. Success, you never really understand exactly how it happened. With failure, you learn so much more.