Australian actress Charlee Fraser plays an iconic role in George Miller’s 2024 spin-off/prequel movie Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga. Although a new face to many movie audiences, Fraser isn’t entirely new to the entertainment world. Charlee Fraser is cast as Furiosa’s mother, Mary Jo Bassa.
Although only a supporting character in the Furiosa movie, Fraser’s role and beauty is one not easily overlooked. As Furiosa’s mother in the origin story, she does her best to save her daughter from Warlord Dementus and his bikers. For more about the actress, here’s everything to know about Charlee Fraser’s life and career.
Charlee Fraser Comes From An Indigenous Australian Heritage
Charlee Fraser was born in Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia, on Christmas Day, December 25, 1995. Fraser has both Caucasian and Awabakal Australian heritage. The Awabakal people are Aboriginal Australians associated with the clans and tribes that inhabit the coastal areas of what is known today as the Hunter Region of New South Wales. Fraser’s mother was raised as part of the Worimi tribe.
Charlee Fraser Dropped Out Of School
Like many kids her age at the time, Charlee Fraser had little to no clue what she wanted to do with her life after High School. She knew she was required to further her studies, so she enrolled at TAFE. While at TAFE, Fraser studied business and beauty. Business felt generic and would always come in handy in the future. Although she was drawn to beauty, she had yet to figure out how to make a successful career. When a modeling opportunity came, Fraser dropped out of TAFE to become a model.
She Was Scouted By Photographer Rob Eyre
Modeling wasn’t a career choice Charlee Fraser ever considered growing up. Fraser was tall and slender as an adolescent. Although she did have the body for it and was told about prospects of modeling by family and friends, she never believed it was something she could do professionally. However, all that changed when she met photographer Rob Eyre, an expert in the modeling world with a natural eye for raw talent. Rob Eyre first met Fraser and scouted her modeling in 2013, when she was 18. Understanding the possibilities, Charlee Fraser dropped out of her TAFE course to focus on her new modeling career. More than half a decade later, it’s one decision she has never regretted.
Charlee Fraser Moved to New York In 2016
After having relative success modeling in Australia, Charlee Fraser moved to the United States. Understanding the opportunities New York offered to her modeling career, it’s no surprise she chose the state as her new home. Living in New York helped push and promote Charlee Fraser’s modeling career.
About four years later, in March 2020, she returned to Australia and became an ambassador for First Nations Fashion and Design (FNFD). Although she had to remain in Australia because of the COVID-19 pandemic, in retrospect, it was a blessing in disguise. As an FNFD ambassador, Fraser fulfilled an age-long dream of mentoring and becoming a fashion, environmental, and cultural activist.
She Made Her International Modeling Debut With Alexander Wang
After moving to New York, Charlee Fraser spent her time meeting and making industry connections and networking. Although her early modeling career wasn’t entirely rosy, she stayed focused on her budding career. Fraser had come out of Australia with incredibly beautiful, long hair. However, at some point, she felt it was limiting. Alexander Wang made Fraser an exclusive offer to walk the runway at that year’s New York Fashion Week (NYFW), which became her international debut. Thanks to hairstylist Guido Palau, Fraser’s hair was chopped into a bob cut to give her a look that captivated headlines throughout the fashion week.
Charlee Fraser’s First Magazine Cover Was In 2017
The highlight of her 2016 was making her international debut with Alexander Wang. The next year, she appeared on the cover of her first magazine. Charlee Fraser posed for Vogue Ukraine’s September issue. By this time, Fraser’s career had been fast-rising and had gained the needed attraction, nationally and internationally. By May 2018, Charlee Fraser was named among the fashion industry’s Top 50 models.
She Found A New Love In Acting
Charlee Fraser remains grateful for the opportunities modeling provided and how it changed her life for good. Even with a budding acting career, she believes modeling is something she will always be a part of. As though fated to become an actress, the audition for her first move coincided with when she decided to take a break from modeling. Charlee Fraser made her film debut in 2023 in Anyone but You. Although cast as a secondary character, Fraser was more excited about her new adventure in film and working with director Will Gluck.
Thanks to the cast and production crew, Fraser enjoyed every minute of filming. In Anyone but You, she was cast as Ben’s (Glen Powell) former girlfriend, Margaret. In her sophomore feature project, Fraser leaves the world of romance into George Miller’s post-apocalyptic action movie as a desperate mother looking to save her captured daughter. Charlee Fraser isn’t resting on her oars with her acting career but dreams big of landing bigger roles and working with top Hollywood filmmakers. If you enjoyed reading about Charlee Fraser, read about the Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga cast and the characters they play.
