that Bob was possibly born as a result of his mother Norma's (née McWhinney) having an extramarital affair with a US Navy chief petty officer stationed in Australia during and after World War II.

[3] She started at National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) in early 1991, but left after 18 months to appear as Sonya in Uncle Vanya (August–September 1992), directed by Neil Armfield, alongside Rush in the title role.

[17] In 1992, she made her feature film debut in the ensemble comedy drama Spotswood (known in the US as The Efficiency Expert), which starred Anthony Hopkins and included a then-newcomer Russell Crowe.

[22] Filmnews' Peter Galvin observed, "it's here that the film finds real warmth, vigour, and pain, all contained in [her] expressive face; she's terrific and so is Mendelsohn simply because we believe them.

[3][28] James Berardinelli of Reelviews called her "vibrant and energetic", while Peter Stack of the San Francisco Chronicle opined that Collette played the lead role with "disarming earnestness".

[37] Although Velvet Goldmine (1998), returned less than half its production budget at the box office,[38] Metacritic reports a 65% score based on 25 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

[52] Kam Williams of African American Literature Book Club noticed, "Collette lends the film some convincing and welcome dramatic weight as the frightened, conflicted Diane.

[64] Collette's only film in 2005, In Her Shoes, was a comedy drama about the relationship between two sisters (Rose and Maggie Feller) and their estranged grandmother, co-starring Cameron Diaz and Shirley MacLaine.

Robert Bianco of USA Today said that it was, "inexcusably tasteless, tone deaf... and dull", and Brian Lowry of Variety remarked that the film, "[grasps] for higher ground that it never reaches.

Bernadete McNulty, writing for The Daily Telegraph, wrote, "[her] presence may have got this Australian debut from writer/director Cathy Randall off the ground [but] her slight role is insufficient to make it fly the distance.

[64] The film received "mixed or average reviews";[64] James Plath of Movie Metropolis called her "terrific" but John DeFore of The Hollywood Reporter felt that she was severely underutilised.

Despite giving the film a negative review, Gary Goldstein of the Los Angeles Times said that the actor "rips into her woolly role as if channeling a leftover personality from her United States of Tara days.

[110] In the comedy drama Lucky Them (2013), which debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival, Collette portrayed Ellie Klug, a music critic assigned to write about a disappeared musician and childhood sweetheart, and tasked herself to track him down.

[112] David Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter wrote that it was "centered by smart, soulful work by the wonderful Toni Collette" and that she played her character "with warmth, realness and emotional transparency that make you stay with her even when she's pushing people away.

[115] After a 14-year absence, Collette returned to Broadway in 2014, starring as Jennifer Jones in Will Eno's play The Realistic Joneses alongside co-stars Marisa Tomei, Michael C. Hall, and Tracy Letts.

"[117] Variety's Marilyn Stasio called her work "terribly funny",[118] while Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter claimed, "Collette, whose naturalness can cut through even the very deliberate theatrical artifice of Eno's dialogue and scene construction, anchors the play with her somber restraint and deadpan delivery.

Her sole release of 2016 was the crime thriller Imperium, opposite Daniel Radcliffe, she portrayed Angela Zamparo, an FBI analyst targeting a white supremacist group.

Despite its limited release, the film garnered positive reviews, with Gary Goldstein of the Los Angeles Times calling it "impressively dimensional...tense, gripping and disturbing," and found her to be "excellent" as Radcliffe's character's supervisor.

The action film, XXX: Return of Xander Cage, starring Vin Diesel, was a commercial success, grossing $346.1 million[125] and earned mixed reviews, though Mick LaSalle of the San Francisco Chronicle praised her for "embrac[ing] the cold-blooded extremes of her role" as a CIA operative.

[127] Although both of these gathered "mixed or average reviews",[64] the actor's work was appreciated, particularly in the former, with the Los Angeles Times critic taking note of how she, and co-star Jennifer Aniston, "deliver uniformly naturalistic performances.

[133] Collette is set to play the female lead role, Angelina Brown, who is described by Anita Busch of Deadline as, "an intelligent and strong-willed woman... who taught [Adam] what it meant to find—and then lose—love.

"[135] In 2018, Collette gave what some critics considered to be one of her best performances in the horror film Hereditary, in which she played Annie Graham, the matriarch of a family haunted by the supernatural following the death of her mother.

[143] Ben Travers of IndieWire wrote "[she guides] the [series] through turbulent emotional seas with assurance" and Jen Chaney of Vulture remarked that the show was worth watching solely for her performance.

"[148] She played a supporting role as Joni Thrombey in Rian Johnson's mystery thriller Knives Out, alongside an ensemble cast including Daniel Craig, Ana de Armas, Jamie Lee Curtis, Michael Shannon, and Christopher Plummer.

[149] Critics highlighted the performances of the cast: Joe Morgenstern wrote that Collette "nails her character's style with elan" and David Rooney considered her to be "divine as a deeply sincere phony".

In 1996 she sang three cover versions for the soundtrack of the film, Cosi: "Don't Dream It's Over" (originally by Crowded House), "Stand By Me" (Ben E. King) and "Throw Your Arms Around Me" (Hunters & Collectors).

[167] For the soundtrack of Connie and Carla (2004), Collette, and her co-star Nia Vardalos, recorded duets of several show tunes including, "I'm Gonna Wash That Man Right Outa My Hair", "Maybe This Time" and "Cabaret".

[182] She expressed her support for PETA and, in July 2005, wrote a letter to then Australian Prime Minister John Howard, asking him to ban the practice of mulesing and the live export of sheep.

[189] She took part in the promotion of the documentary The Lazarus Effect (2010), being featured in a small clip which sought to raise awareness of the positive impact of free antiretroviral drug therapy for those living with HIV in Africa.

In an analysis of Collette's acting style, Rilla Kingston compared her to character actress Thelma Ritter who was widely praised for her supporting roles, and repeatedly typecast as the female comic second.