A closer look at some of the homegrown talent currently commanding television screens around the globe.
The new season of The White Lotus hit our screens this week, and with it a familiar face in New Zealand actor Morgana O’Reilly. To secure a role in one of the world’s most highly anticipated series is a huge achievement, but O’Reilly is far from the only New Zealander in a big international television production right now: Melanie Lynskey is back for a third season of Yellowjackets, Urzila Carlson has a starring role in Amy Schumer’s new Netflix rom-com, and Thomasin McKenzie is popping up all over the place, outshining acting legends like Bill Nighy. And there’s even more to come, with Jay Ryan and Bailey Poching both starring in North of North, an upcoming Netflix comedy series set in the Arctic.
These talented New Zealanders join the likes of Anna Paquin, KJ Apa, Rhys Darby and Temuera Morrison, who also began their careers in Aotearoa before making it big on a variety of international hit shows – but have we ever had so many New Zealanders on international television shows at the same time?
Let’s take a closer look at some of the homegrown talent currently commanding television screens around the globe.
Morgana O’Reilly, The White Lotus (Neon)
After starring in local dramas like Friends Like Her and Inside, Morgana O’Reilly’s latest performance will be seen by millions in the critically acclaimed, award-winning satire The White Lotus. As part of an impressive international ensemble cast, O’Reilly plays Pam, a staff member working at the five-star resort who must cater to every whim of her spoiled guests. The season three premiere broke rating records, and O’Reilly recently told The Spinoff that the role is a career highlight. “It was such a joy,” she said. “It’s one of those shows where you always ask people ‘have you seen White Lotus’ and if they say ‘no’ you just feel so jealous that they still get to watch it all for the very first time.”
Melanie Lynskey, Yellowjackets (Neon)
Award-winning HBO psychological drama Yellowjackets recently returned for a third gripping season, with Melanie Lynskey continuing to steal every scene as plane crash survivor Shauna. The role won Lynskey a Critics’ Choice Award for best actress, as well as two lead actress Emmy nominations, but it’s not the only international hit show Lynskey has starred in in recent months – she also wowed audiences for her performances in recent dramas like The Last of Us, Candy and The Tattooist of Auchswitz.
Luciane Buchanan, The Night Agent (Netflix)
After New Zealand-Tongan actor Luciane Buchanan burst onto screens around the world as Rose in political thriller The Night Agent, her name reportedly became one of the most searched names on IMBD. While Buchanan was known in Aotearoa for her roles in shows like Filthy Rich and The Blue Rose, as well as writing and starring in the award-winning short film Lea Tupu’anga/Mother Tongue, it was Night Agent – one of Netflix’s most watched shows – that bought her a new level of stardom. “With Netflix being so global, work like this is seen by so many people. I think a lot of people were like ‘Who’s this random girl? Where is she from? We’ve never seen her’”, Buchanan told RNZ last month.
Rose Matafeo, Junior Taskmaster (TVNZ+)
Not only has comedian, writer and actor Rose Matafeo competed in British comedy series Taskmaster, she’s done what no other contestant has done before: ended up in charge of her own Taskmaster spinoff. As the Taskmaster in Taskmaster Junior, Matafeo is responsible for judging the creative, unpredictable efforts of young contestants aged between nine and 12 as they compete in a series of pointless and ridiculous tasks. As Matafeo told The Spinoff in an upcoming My Life in TV, her time in the Taskmaster universe was “as fun as you’d imagine it would be. I know you always read interviews with people who’ve done Taskmaster who say that, and it’s like ‘surely not’. But for me, it was just the best.”
Martin Henderson, Virgin River (Netflix)
Virgin River recently finished its sixth heartwarming season on Netflix, and with a seventh on the way, the cosy small-town drama has become one of the platform’s longest running English language shows. New Zealander Martin Henderson (Shortland Street, Grey’s Anatomy, Britney Spears’ ‘Toxic’ music video) has been there since the first episode, playing marine-turned-bar owner Jack, lover of both a soft check shirt and the town’s new nurse-practitioner Mel. Henderson also made his directorial debut on the show in season six.
Grace Palmer, Animal Control (TVNZ+)
Grace Palmer (Good Grief, Shortland Street) pulls off a rare feat in American sitcom Animal Control: she speaks with a New Zealand accent. Palmer stars alongside Joel McHale as an animal control officer who has to deal with an endless array of animal-related predicaments, and she told the NZ Herald that not only has the breakthrough role changed her life, but it’s also one of the most fun jobs she’s ever had. “When you’re working on a comedy you laugh all day, every day. Or you are trying not to laugh and you’re trying to make other people laugh. It is such a joy.”
Urzila Carlson, Kinda Pregnant (Netflix)
The South African-born New Zealand comedian delivers loads of laughs as the outrageous school guidance counsellor in Netflix’s new romantic comedy Kinda Pregnant, a film created by, written and starring Amy Schumer. After being offered the job through a late-night social media DM from Schumer, Carlson puts her latest global success down to years of dedication: “This is sort of the reward, almost, of a lot of hard work by a lot of people in my team to get me to this point,” she said in a recent interview. “There is no luck… it’s just grabbing opportunities and working really hard at those opportunities as they come up.”
Rose McIver, Ghosts (TVNZ+)
Titirangi-born Rose McIver is the star of Ghosts, the US adaptation of the BBC comedy about a couple who inherit a country house full of lively ghosts. Now in its fourth season, and available to watch on TVNZ+ McIver plays Sam, a journalist who has a near-death experience and then realises that she can communicate with a variety of ghosts from American’s history. Having also played the main role in iZombie for five seasons, McIver reflected on her international success in this interview with The Wrap. “I’ve been incredibly lucky to be signed on shows with great creators who have ideas that have longevity,” she said. “We’re all so insanely appreciative for the jobs we have.”
Anthony Starr and Karl Urban, The Boys (Prime Video)
Not one, but two New Zealanders star in Prime Video’s The Boys, with both Anthony Starr (Outrageous Fortune, Banshee) and Karl Urban (Star Trek, Dredd) going head-to-head as enemies in the superhero drama. “We’re a couple of Kiwis on this show, but we’ve come to this point from different trajectories,” Starr said to Urban, as they discussed their journeys from becoming actors in New Zealand to appearing in one of TV’s most action-packed series. “What’s great about this show is that we’re finally here.”
Simone Kessell, The Night Agent (Netflix) and Yellowjackets (Neon)
As well as playing Luciane Buchanan’s aunt in the Night Agent, Kessell has also impressed viewers as the adult Lottie Andrews in seasons two and three of HBO’s Yellowjackets (in which she appears alongside fellow New Zealander Melanie Lynskey). It’s a role Kessell secured after decades of hard work both in Aotearoa and the US, appearing in shows and films like Our Flag Means Death, Obi-Wan Kenobi and Muru. “I really feel like I’ve come into my own as an actress after working for 30 years,” Kessell told Vanity Fair in 2023. “You know, I’m not new here.”
Cliff Curtis, Kaos (Netflix)
Kaos burst onto screens late last year as a clever retelling of classical mythology in a contemporary setting, with a cast that included Jeff Goldblum, David Thewles, Janet McTeer, Billie Piper – and our own Cliff Curtis. The star of Fear of the Walking Dead and Once Were Warriors delivered a mesmerising performance as the “chill yet stressed Poseidon”, according to The Spinoff’s own Kaos super-fan Claire Mabey. “Great acting, super storylines, highly recommend.” In an act surely to enrage both Kaos fans and the god of the sea, Kaos was cancelled after only one season.
Thomasin McKenzie, Joy (Netflix)
Thomasin McKenzie continues her impressive run of international roles with the lead in recent Netflix film Joy. Starring alongside James Norton and Bill Nighy, McKenzie plays Jean, a real-life nurse-turned-researcher who had a pivotal role in creating the world’s first “test-tube baby”. “Joy is a cosy British biopic celebrating a turning point in human history that many in the community tried to erase,” Alex Casey wrote, praising McKenzie’s compelling performance. “McKenzie is the heart of the film, and should probably win a Nobel Prize for out-sassing Bill Nighy alone.”