Toni Collette celebrated the 30th anniversary of Muriel’s Wedding by surprising fans at special screening of her breakthrough film.
The Mickey 17 star crashed the Friday, March 7, event at the Glasgow Film Festival, dancing through the crowd and onto the stage during a pre-screening singalong to ABBA’s “Dancing Queen.”
In video from the screening posted by The Scotsman, Collette, who played the title character in the 1994 Australian comedy, explained that she’d been invited to record an intro for the screening.
“I said, ‘Yeah, yeah, sure, absolutely. But actually, I’m filming in London, which is just down the road, so if I happen to have the day off maybe I can just find my way there,’ ” she said. “And I did happen to have the day off!”
The actress jokingly apologized for “intruding” upon the dance break with her impromptu entrance. “I just had to get up and be a part of it,” she said. “It wasn’t what was discussed.”
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Collette, 52, noted that she turned 21 while filming Muriel’s Wedding, which was only her second feature film. “It just really amazes me that an experience that changed my life profoundly still resonates with people, and this character means so much to people and continues to inspire people,” she said. “I’m quite moved and tempted to stay, but I won’t because I’ve seen it so many f—— times!”
On Saturday, March 8, the Hereditary star shared video of her entrance at the screening via Instagram.
“I was invited to make a wee intro video for a screening of Muriel’s Wedding at the Glasgow Film Festival tonight,” she wrote in the post’s caption. “Instead, I hopped on a train from London, and joined the dance!”
“I had no idea how much love would be in that room,” she continued. “Love for Muriel. Love for the film. And love for me. It was outrageously fun, and quite moving. When I was twenty I had no idea how this story would resonate all these years later. Wow wow wow. Thank you for having me. I’m truly touched.”
During a recent IMDB interview with Mickey 17 costar Naomi Ackie, Collette was asked whether people still quote the film’s most memorable line, “You’re terrible, Muriel,” to her.
“Not as much anymore,” she admitted, as Ackie quoted the line. “I used to get it a lot. But I do, and it makes me feel really good, yeah, because it just means people still love — people love that character. And that film has really stayed with people, and that’s rare.”
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