Holding Court

Driven, passionate and whip-smart, actress Jessica McNamee is fast proving she can hold her own both onand off-screen

- Elle McClure

First appearing on our screens in beloved Aussie dramas Home And Away and Packed To The Rafters, Jessica McNamee made the move to Los Angeles six years ago to put herself through the Hollywood paces. This month, she hits her stride alongside Emma Stone and Steve Carell in Battle Of The Sexes – centred around Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs’ iconic 1973 tennis match and King’s fight for gender pay equality in the sport. McNamee plays Margaret Court, the Australian tennis legend who’s stirred controversy of late with her views on same-sex marriage. It put McNamee in a unique position to make her own voice heard, using Instagram to declare that, “This ‘Margaret Court’ believes in marriage equality and supports any corporation that does the same.” We soon discovered that’s not all she feels passionate about.

THIS ROLE WAS A REAL DEPARTURE IN TERMS OF MY IDEOLOGIES.