Sharni Vinson

Sharni Vinson
Vinson in 2012
Born	(1983-07-22) 22 July 1983 Sydney, Australia
Occupation	Actress, dancer, singer and model
Years active	2001–present

Sharni Vinson (born 22 July 1983) is an Australian Model, Actress and Dancer best known for her roles in Home and Away, Bait 3D, Step Up 3D and You're Next.

Early Life

Born in Sydney, Vinson grew up in the southern beach suburb of Cronulla. As a teenager, Vinson trained and competed at a national level in swimming, holding a total of four state records throughout high school. Vinson began singing, dancing and acting at a young age, becoming the third generation in her family of performers. In 1945 Vinson's grandmother was the youngest ballerina to be offered a scolarship in the Brovansky Ballet Company in England. At the age of twelve years, Vinson enrolled as a student at the Brent Street School of Performing Arts in Sydney.

Career

Vinson's introduction into the entertainment industry was initially as a musician, before a transition to acting. At seventeen years old, Vinson and three other girls were grouped together in a Pop/R&B girl group Foxfire IV. The group's first and only single to date "Roses" failed to make an impact and the group disbanded shortly after.

Following Vinson's short-lived stint in Foxfire IV, Vinson made her acting debut as minor characters in two episodes on the Australian Soap Opera Home and Away in both 2001 and 2003. Vinson left an impression on the Home and Away casting agent whom requested for a regular role on the series. Initially Vinson auditioned for the role of Martha MacKenzie, however fellow cast member at the time Jodi Gordon instead received the role. Vinson portrayed the role of Cassie Turner, a troubled teenager who is taken into foster care after troubles with the law. Vinson quickly proved popular with the show's audience receiving a nomination for "Most Popular New Female Talent" for her portrayal of Cassie Turner at the Logie Awards of 2006. In July 2007, speculation arose Vinson had intentions to leave the series to pursue an acting career in Los Angeles.^[1] In November that same year, Vinson confirmed she would be leaving the series.^[2] Vinson's final appearance on the Soap Opera was on the 2 of April 2008.

The year following her Home and Away departure, Vinson made her American debut on the TBS sitcom My Boys. Vinson has since appeared on other American network television series such as NCIS and CSI: NY alongside previous boyfriend A.J. Buckley. Vinson's last television role to date was a guest appearance on the final season of the CBS Crime television series Cold Case which aired in 2010. Vinson also appeared in Matchbox Twenty's Put Your Hands Up.

In March 2009, Vinson was cast as the female lead Natalie in Step Up 3D, the third installment of the Step Up film trilogy. Vinson's appearance in the film was marked as her breakout role, having been her most high-profile role since relocating to America. Vinson's character Natalie is a talented and mysterious dancer, who faces a hard decision between love and family, joining her boyfriend's dance crew that is rivals with her brother's dance crew. Filming took place in New York City. Despite mixed reviews, the film was a box office success going on to gross over $159 million worldwide and being the highest-grossing installment of the trilogy.^[3]

Vinson's follow-up role was in Universal Pictures Straight-to-DVD film Blue Crush 2, a sequel to the 2002 Drama/Romance film Blue Crush which starred Kate Bosworth and Michelle Rodriguez. Vinson portrayed the role of the film's villain Tara, an internationally successful pro-surfer. The film was released in June 2011. In October 2010 Vinson returned to Australia to begin production on Vinson's first role in an Australian film in the Paramount Pictures horror film Bait 3D as Tina, the protagonist's ex-girlfriend.^[4] The film follows a group of people trapped inside a supermarket, followed by a freak tsunami, with a 12-foot great white shark. Vinson was reunited with former Home and Away cast member Lincoln Lewis. The film was shot in Brisbane on a $20 million budget. The film which was released in September 2012, was released to mixed reviews and failed to make an impact on the domestic box office. However the film's found international box office success in China, Italy and Thailand, with the film returning its budget earning $29 million worldwide.^[5]

Following Bait 3D, Vinson was cast in another horror film project, which went on to be Vinson's most critically acclaimed role to date. You're Next centers on a family reunion, that goes terribly wrong once a group of mysterious masked killers start killing off each person one by one. Vinson portrayed the role of the film's protagonist Erin, the girlfriend to one of the family's son's. Vinson was able to portray Erin with her natural Australian accent. Initially an independent film, the film's premiere at the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival secured the film with a distribution deal with Lionsgate.^[6] However the film was not released till almost two years later following the festival, securing a North American release date in August 2013. The film received mostly positice reviews from critics, with Vinson's performance praised with Total Film placing her character in the number one spot on its '50 Most Bad-Ass Female Horror Leads'.

In March 2014 Vinson appeared in the Australian independent film Patrick, a remake of the 1978 film of the same name.^[7] Another horror project for Vinson. Vinson portrayed the role of a nurse Kathy Jacquar, whose comatose patient Patrick uses his psychic powers to stalk her. In July 2013, the film premiered at the Melbourne International Film Festival and received a limited theatrical release in March 2014, in both Australia only. The film is Vinson's most critically acclaimed film to date, receiving 83% on Rotten Tomatoes based on eighteen film reviews.^[8] In 2015, Vinson will appear alongside John Cusack and Jackie Chan in Dragon Blade.

Personal life

Between 2007 and 2008, Sharni was in a relationship with actor A.J. Buckley.^[9][10][11] From September 2011 until mid 2013 she was in a relationship with actor Kellan Lutz.^[12][13]

Filmography

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sharni Vinson.

• Sharni Vinson at the Internet Movie Database
• Sharni Vinson on Twitter