Viola Lynn Collins was born June 1, 1979, in Houston, Texas, but spent her formative years in Singapore. It was there, thousands of miles away from home, that she was first bitten by the acting bug when she played Mrs. Claus in a Christmas pageant.
lynn collins attends juilliard
By the time she returned to the United States, Lynn Collins had no doubt that she wanted to become a professional actress. She relocated to New York City where she received her Bachelor of Arts from Juilliard. The school provided her with a solid foundation in the dramatic arts. She made her television debut in 1999 in an episode of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. She then spent the next two years refining her skills in the theater where she enjoyed an outstanding run as Ophelia opposite Liev Schreiber in Hamlet, followed by a turn as Juliet in Romeo and Juliet.
lynn collins appears in 50 first dates and 13 going on 30
Lynn Collins returned to the small screen in 2001 with roles in the short-lived sitcom The Education of Max Bickford and in the made-for-TV movie Earth Angels. Although neither production vaulted her into stardom, they did help her get her foot in the door. She continued her upward ascent the following year when she scored a recurring role on the spooky TV series, Haunted. The show gave Lynn Collins’ career a much-needed shot in the arm, and she soon cashed in with small parts in the romantic comedies Down with Love starring Renee Zellweger and Ewan McGregor, 50 First Dates with Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore and 13 Going on 30 featuring Jennifer Garner and Mark Ruffalo.
lynn collins breaks through in the merchant of venice
Lynn Collins finally graduated from supporting parts to a lead role in 2004 when she beat out hundreds of other actresses to play Portia in The Merchant of Venice. The film, which also starred Oscar winners Al Pacino and Jeremy Irons, beautifully showcased her ability to carry a production. “I think it happened sort of at the right time,” she says. “My personal life and my professional paralleled each other. I've heard some actors say that, that only happens once, maybe twice, in a career. And I think that's what this was for me.” Her outstanding performance earned her a Golden Satellite Award nomination along with plenty of lucrative offers for additional films.
lynn collins appears in true blood
After taking some time off to consider her options, Lynn Collins returned in 2006 with substantial roles in Bug, starring Ashley Judd, The Lake House with Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock and The Dog Problem featuring Giovanni Ribisi. Her performances since have been consistently excellent, even if the projects she’s chosen have sometimes fallen flat. 2007’s The Number 23, for instance, was largely panned by critics, and 2008’s Eavesdrop, Life in Flight and Uncertainty all flew well under the radar. Fortunately, Lynn Collins did score one major critical success in 2008, thanks to her well-received recurring role on HBO’s True Blood, an inventive dramatic series created by Oscar winner Alan Ball.
lynn collins stars in x-men origins: wolverine
Lynn Collins can be seen next playing Hugh Jackman’s love interest in X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Unlike some of her other films, this particular project required very little preparation. “[My costars] were all on super-buff diets, and I had pizza most of the time,” she says. “They were so jealous of me. I didn't have to beef up in this movie. I just had to wear skimpy clothes.” The eagerly anticipated film opens everywhere on May 1, 2009.