IN one of the year's biggest Hollywood movies, one Australian accent stands out.
The twang in question belongs to Tasmanian-born actor Rachael Taylor, who scored a major break with a role in the action blockbuster Transformers, directed by Michael Bay.
Taylor plays computer data analyst Maggie, whose skills are put to the test by the US Government when Earth is invaded by two races of robotic aliens – the Decepticons and Autobots.
"In the third or fourth workshop I did with Michael, I was reading in an American accent and he said 'let's just mix it up, let's do it with your Australian accent'," Taylor says. "When we did, he found it more comical and thought that it made Maggie's status as an outsider more acute."
Maggie believes she may have an answer to the mysterious events the government and army are struggling to understand. Yet, no one wants to listen to her computer geek theories.
"She's a female in a man's world, so there's a story within the story about a girl who's trying to stand up and be heard," Taylor says. "The environment is fast-paced and frenetic. It's difficult for her to be believed."
Director Bay is known as LA's $2 billion dollar man. His films, which include Bad Boys, The Rock, Armageddon, Pearl Harbor, Bad Boys II and The Island, take vast amounts of money, yet the director's take-no-prisoners style is both abhorred and adored.
He likes car chases, explosives, tough guys and sexy women. Bay also has a reputation as being an extremely tough director to work with. In a press conference this week, he made no effort to hide his impatient, blunt manner. He also claimsto be unfazed by criticism.
He's passionate about his work, he makes millions and with Steven Spielberg as one of the executive producers on Transformers, his worries lie elsewhere.
It was important, he says, that the film didn't go over its $145 million budget. "I shoot very, very fast," Bay says. "I'm into everything on that set. What does the wallpaper look like?"
Taylor, diplomatically, says that Bay is a victim of "something we know about in Australia, it's a bit of tall poppy syndrome".
"It was a privilege to work with someone who is absolutely at the top of their game," she says.
"Michael is extremely smart and he certainly can be challenging, but all the sweat and tears that he puts into making a film, you see that right up there on the screen. I don't know anyone that creates image like he does."
Making a film about Transformers, the popular cartoon and Hasbro toy franchise which began in 1984 with the release of a range of toys which changed from cars to robots, was an idea Spielberg had been keen on for years.
He approached Bay and asked him to direct the film version. Transformers still has a huge following worldwide, but the phenomenon, born in the same year as Taylor, understandably passed her by.
"I didn't know much about it when I started the film," she says. "I thought the interest in it was a cult underground following, but I didn't realise how far-reaching it was.
"In fact it's not underground at all. People are really passionate about it, especially boys from about 22 to 30. They're obsessed."
In the film, Taylor stars alongside Shia LaBeouf and sultry 21-year- old Megan Fox.
While LaBeouf is a familiar name from films such as Disturbia and Bobby, Transformers is a huge leap for Fox and Taylor.
The actress, who broke into the industry with a role in the short- lived Australian TV drama Headland, says the move to try her luck in Hollywood "just made sense" to her.
"I was a little daunted," Taylor says. "You certainly hear the horror stories about how challenging it can be, but I was very committed and very determined to make it work.
"I also believe in taking risks. I had no plan. I don't think I even knew where I was staying when I got on that plane. I just thought I should throw my hat into the ring." She has recently finished shooting a movie in Tokyo with Dawson's Creek star Joshua Jackson. Shudder is a psychological thriller about a newlywed American couple (Jackson and Taylor) who have a car accident while travelling through Japan on their honeymoon.
"All these sort of supernatural, mythical things start to happen," she says.
"The accident has terrible ramifications for their relationship and my character discovers who the man she's married to really is.
"It's a creepy, tense, psychological drama and my first leading role. I'm really proud of it." While the Transformers team travels the world promoting the film, Taylor is happy to go along for the ride.
"Then, who knows what's next?" she says.
"I keep crossing my fingers that I can continue doing different things.
"I'm not a very thick-skinned person. I'm a sensitive little creature, but I just try and remain upbeat and positive.
"You can't take yourself too seriously. Same with the film. It's about duelling races of aliens fighting on planet Earth.
"Really, it's hilarious."
Transformers opened on June 28.
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