Jillian Nguyen is an Australian actress. She has played main roles in the 2022 film '' Loveland'' and the 2022

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

television series ''

Barons Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knigh ...

'', as well as supporting roles in the 2020 SBS ensemble drama ''

Hungry Ghosts Hungry ghost is a concept in Buddhism, and Chinese traditional religion, representing beings who are driven by intense emotional needs in an animalistic way. The terms ' literally "hungry ghost", are the Chinese translation of the term ''pret ...

'' and the 2022 film ''Millie Lies Low''.

Early life and education

Nguyen was born Nguyen Tran Huyen Dieu in a camp for Vietnamese refugees in

Sungai Besi Sungai Besi (formerly known as ''Sungei Besi'') (English: Steel River) is a town and suburb within the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur. It was also a federal constituency in Kuala Lumpur from 1974 to 1995. Sungai Besi was a historical mining ...

, Malaysia. Her parents had fled Vietnam separately, met in the camp in 1990 and were married, then stayed in the camp until the family was granted refugee status in Australia in 1994. Nguyen was 14 months old when the family arrived in Australia. She grew up in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, graduated from the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb nor ...

, and pursued additional acting training at Melbourne's 16th Street Actors Studio.

Career

After acting on stage in a 2018 production of the

Daniel Keene Daniel Keene (born 1955) is an Australian playwright whose work has been performed throughout the world. Career Keene's plays have been performed in Australia, France, Poland and the United States. Many of his plays have been published in Fr ...

play ''The Serpent's Teeth'', Nguyen began her screen career with a brief appearance in the 2019 film ''

True History of the Kelly Gang ''True History of the Kelly Gang'' is a novel by Australian writer Peter Carey, based loosely on the history of the Kelly Gang. It was first published in Brisbane by the University of Queensland Press in 2000. It won the 2001 Booker Prize and ...

''. In 2020 she appeared as Sophie Tran in ''

'', a four-episode ensemble drama about the lives of Vietnamese families in Australia that was written by Vietnamese-Australian screenwriters and starred several Vietnamese-Australian actors. Her first larger roles came in 2022. In the science-fiction film '' Loveland'', Nguyen played April, a nightclub singer who forms a mysterious relationship with the protagonist Jack. The ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' called ''Loveland'', which was released under the title ''Expired'' in the US, "an art-house fugue disguised as a genre flick". In the

television series ''

'', about the early days of a fictional Australian surfwear company modeled after

Quiksilver Quiksilver is a brand of surf-inspired apparel and accessories that was founded in 1969 in Torquay, Australia, but is now based in Huntington Beach, California. It is one of the world's largest brands of surfwear and boardsport-related equipm ...

, Nguyen played Tracy Dwyer, the fiancée, and later wife, of the company's founder. Louise Rugendyke of the ''

Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper i ...

'' noted that in comparison to the rest of the main characters, Tracy is "smarter than all of them". In the film ''Millie Lies Low'', directed by Michelle Savill, Nguyen played Carolyn, the duplicitous best friend of the main character, who was played by Ana Scotney. In a review for ''

Screen Daily ''Screen International'' is a British film magazine covering the international film business. It is published by Media Business Insight, a British B2B media company. The magazine is primarily aimed at those involved in the global film business. ...

'', Tara Judah noted that Nguyen was "tasked with playing a two-faced bestie in too little screen time" and criticized the director for focusing too much on the main character rather than the supporting cast. Nguyen joined the voice cast of the animated film ''Scarygirl'' in the lead role of Arkie, with the film scheduled to be released in 2023. She also joined the cast of ''Shayda'', directed by Noora Niasari, with whom Nguyen had previously worked on the short film ''Tâm''.

Filmography

Film

* ''

'', 2019 * '' Loveland'', 2022 * ''Millie Lies Low'', 2022 * '' Shayda'', TBA

Television

* ''

'', SBS, 2020 * ''

'',

, 2022

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nguyen, Jillian 21st-century Australian actresses 1990s births Living people Actresses from Melbourne Australian people of Vietnamese descent University of Melbourne alumni