MELANIE GETS PERSONAL 'I HAD TO TEACH MY DAUGHTER ABOUT BOTOX'

Still a heavenly creature after decades in the States, Pike River actress Melanie Lynskey opens up about fame, family, wrinkles and returning to New Zealand

- 

She might be one of Hollywood's hottest stars, but Kiwi actress Melanie Lynskey swears that beyond the film sets, leading roles and red carpets, she's really just an ordinary mum.

Yes, she's the Emmy-nominated star of hit shows like Yellowjackets and The Last Of Us, her face beams down from billboards and she spends her days working alongside some of the industry's biggest names.

But at home in Los Angeles, New Plymouth-born Melanie's more likely to be found volunteering at her daughter's school, juggling drop-offs and pickups with her actor husband Jason Ritter or cleaning up after her two cats.

Glamorous? “Only sometimes!” she laughs, insisting her favourite role is simply being mum to Kahikatea, six.

“I have one child, so I’m really aware I’m only doing this once,” she says.

“I feel so honoured to get to be her mum - I really do.”

Melanie, 48, has spoken before about her heartbreaking miscarriage and IVF journey, and it’s clear little Kahi, as she’s known, is the absolute light of her life. She loves being immersed in her world.

“I do a lot of volunteering,” she smiles. “I go to assembly, I do pizza Fridays, I work in the library and, this year, I'm co-chair of the art fair, which is a big job! But I love it.

“We have such a wonderful school - it’s inclusive, there’s a great group of parents. It’s lovely to be able to see her at school and be part of all that.”

Melanie's speaking to Woman's Day about Pike River, the heart-wrenching new Kiwi film that tells the real-life story of Anna Osborne and Sonya Rockhouse’s fight for justice after the West Coast mining disaster of 2010.

Melanie plays Anna, while