Melanie Lynskey is a New Zealand actress who currently plays Shauna on Showtime’s Yellowjackets (2021–present).

Born May 16, 1977, in New Plymouth, New Zealand, to Kay Lynskey, a former nurse, and Tim Lynskey, an orthopedic surgeon, Lynskey is the oldest of five children. She has three brothers and one sister. Her surname is Irish.

During her childhood, Lynskey’s family moved to England for one year before returning to New Zealand. She attended New Plymouth Girls’ High School, where she was involved in the drama department and school plays. She later studied at Victoria University of Wellington.

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The 45-year-old is the recipient of two Critics’ Choice Awards, a Gracie Award, a New Zealand Film Award, a Hollywood Film Award and a Sundance Special Jury Award, as well as Gotham, Golden Nymph, Screen Actors Guild, and Primetime Emmy Award nominations.

Her film debut was as a teenage murderess in Peter Jackson’s Heavenly Creatures (1994).

After moving to the United States, she built a career playing supporting parts in several big-budget and small-scale features, such as Ever After (1998), Detroit Rock City, But I’m a Cheerleader (both 1999), Coyote Ugly (2000), Abandon, Sweet Home Alabama (both 2002), Shattered Glass (2003), Flags of Our Fathers (2006), Away We Go, Up in the Air, The Informant!, Leaves of Grass (all 2009), Win Win (2011), Seeking a Friend for the End of the World, The Perks of Being a Wallflower (both 2012), They Came Together (2014), and Don’t Look Up (2021).

In 2012, she received critical acclaim and a nomination for the Gotham Award for Breakthrough Performer for her role as a depressed divorcee in Hello I Must Be Going.

She played lead roles in Happy Christmas, We’ll Never Have Paris, Goodbye to All That (all 2014), The Intervention, Rainbow Time, Little Boxes (all 2016), I Don’t Feel at Home in This World Anymore, And Then I Go (both 2017), Sadie (2018), and Lady of the Manor (2021).

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Outside of film, Lynskey achieved fame with her recurring portrayal of Rose on the CBS sitcom Two and a Half Men (2003–2015). From 2015 to 2016, she starred as Michelle Pierson on the HBO series Togetherness. She was nominated for a Critics’ Choice Television Award for Togetherness.

She provided the voices of Beatrice for Cartoon Network’s Over the Garden Wall (2014) and Megan for Disney XD’s Future-Worm! (2016–2018).

Lynskey appeared as Rosemary Thomson in the FX miniseries Mrs. America (2020), and as Betty Gore in the Hulu miniseries Candy (2022). She won the 2022 Critics’ Choice Award for Best Actress in a Drama Series for Showtime’s Yellowjackets.

She is married to actor Jason Ritter, with whom she has a daughter.