Scottish Daily Record – November 18th 2012

Aussie actress Isla Fisher on starring as the Tooth Fairy in festive film

FISHER stars in Rise of the Guardians, which sees her Tooth Fairy join forces with Santa Claus, Jack Frost and the Easter Bunny.

ISLA FISHER has told of her delight at hitting the big screen as the toughest Tooth Fairy ever.

She is part of a stellar cast voicing characters in Rise of the Guardians, an animation adventure in which Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, the Sandman, Jack Frost and Isla’s fairy unite to fight evil Pitch Black.

He wants to destroy Christmas and Easter and replace the innocent dreams of childhood with nightmares.

Her cartoon version of the Tooth Fairy is half-human, half-hummingbird.

Isla said: “She’s tiny but with these gorgeous teal blue and green wings and big, big eyes.

“She’s quite militant in the way she collects teeth but she has a soft side and gets extremely excited when she sees pearly white incisors.”

The 36-year-old was delighted to join Hugh Jackman, Alec Baldwin and Jude Law in the big-budget animation feature because she is a fan of William Joyce’s The Guardians of Childhood – the books the film is based on.

She also enjoyed the opportunity to tackle a role that did not involve a hair and make-up department. Isla said: “I am not a glam person in real life. When I do the school run, I am in my sweats.”

The actress, whose parents are Scottish, says there are distinct advantages in doing voiceover work.

She added: “You are in a sound booth, dressed in your sweat pants, getting to try a hundred different ways of doing something. If it doesn’t work, they just delete it – so there is no fear of failure.”

When she met to discuss her portrayal of the Tooth Fairy, Isla – who was in London for the premiere on Thursday – wasn’t clear about what sort of voice she’d be expected to deliver.

The star, who grew up in Australia, said: “I specialise in silly voices so I was ready to do 20 options of ridiculous voices. But they said they just wanted me to do me but with an American accent”.

In another of her forthcoming movies, Isla plays a female answer to legendary escapologist Houdini in the big-screen caper Now You See Me.

She was taken aback by her enthusiasm for this daredevil role.

She said: “When I got the job, I thought it would be good for me because it would make me more courageous.

“The director told me he had worked with actors who had not wanted to do the amount of stunts I felt comfortable doing. So I was quite pleased with myself.”

Being chained underwater sounds scary but Isla insists she wasn’t frightened.

She said: “I was not scared because you run through the stunt so many times and practise and build up your lung capacity and know where the quick release is on the handcuffs.”

The star is married to film funnyman Sacha Baron Cohen, of Borat fame, and they have two daughters, five-year-old Olive and Elula, who is two.

Isla, who is dressed in a figure-hugging mini dress when we meet, laughs when I ask about the secret of regaining her shape after two kids.

She said: “I believe in breastfeeding. I know some women say it doesn’t help them lose weight. But it does burn an extra 250 calories a day. I think breastfeeding helps everything shrink back.”

She also reveals that special undies can be particularly useful.

She said: “Spanx help. I’m wearing them now. It is like a very tight elastic band, like a girdle.

“I have also been lucky enough to afford to have help with the kids while I go for a hike, do yoga or work out.

“Also, I try to make healthy choices with what I eat. It’s an uphill battle after 30.”

Isla has no plans to let her daughters see Rise of the Guardians – because she reckons they are too young.

She said: “Some of the images in it are quite scary.”

In fact, her girls have yet to see any of their famous mum’s films.

Isla added: “They don’t know what I do. I have been so lucky and strategic in the way I have chosen to work that I work quite rarely. So everyone thinks I am a stay-at-home mum.”

When she finally gets round to showing her films to her kids, there will be a few cartoons for the girls to enjoy because Isla has starred in animation hits Rango and Horton Hears A Who. She also reveals with a laugh that there is the cartoon that got away – when her role was cut out of The Simpsons Movie.

She said: “Heartbreakingly, I was axed. I thought that was the end of my career in animation. I am a huge Simpsons fan so I was seriously disappointed.”

Isla, who will next be seen alongside Leonardo DiCaprio in a remake of The Great Gatsby, first grabbed the
limelight when she starred in Aussie soap Home and Away.

Her films have ranged from period romp Burke And Hare and Scooby-Doo to hit comedy Wedding Crashers.

But after the box office success of the latter, she was brought down to earth when she was out of work for a year.

Isla said: “It was quite a hard period, emotionally. But if you have been an actor for a long time, you learn to appreciate the highs and lows and that you go in and out of fashion.

“I’ve been pretty frugal throughout my career so I have saved for a rainy day.”

Rise of the Guardians is released on November 30 .