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Ruby Rees has never been
more thankful for her youthful
looks – after all, they helped
the 22-year-old actress land the
role of prepubescent schoolgirl
Edith Horton in Foxtel’s highly
anticipated reimagining of
Picnic at Hanging Rock.
“Edith was the clear pick
from casting when they took
a look at me!” she tells Foxtel
magazine. “Edith’s 13. The
other girls are almost women,
on the cusp of 18, but Edith’s
a junior, still a child really.”
Fortunately, Rees didn’t
have to look far for inspiration
playing someone nine years
her junior, with the ensemble
cast made up of real-life
teenagers aged from 13 to 16.
“I was never stuck on what
teenage girls do – I just had to
look to my left to see a bunch
of them,” Rees explains. “While
they didn’t know that I was
using them every day to inspire
me to find that 13-year-old self
again, I was really grateful
they were there – especially
Inez [Curro], who plays
Sara Waybourne, because she
really is 13 and there are a lot
of scenes with Edith and Sara.”
Though this isn’t the young
actress’s first role, it’s by far
the biggest – and one that will
no doubt put her on the map.
“I say all the time that it was
one of the most challenging
roles I’ve ever done,” Rees
admits. “It’s the age diference
but also the writing being so
good you want to do it justice.”
As for her character’s
relationship to Natalie Dormer’s
Headmistress Mrs Appleyard,
Rees admits Edith is the
proverbial thorn in her side.
“Edith is definitely annoying
to the older girls but, man, is
she annoying to the teachers,
too!” she laughs. “Natalie’s
a total powerhouse. She was
generous and just awesome
to be around.”
Picnic at Hanging Rock
makes its world television
premiere Sunday May 6 at
8.30pm on showcase [114].
Picnic at Hanging Rock star Ruby Rees
reveals why she could only ever play Edith
SNEAK
PEEK
YOUNG
AT HE A RT
4 Foxtel APRIL