You may not think you know who New Zealander Amie Donald is, but chances are, you do. The 15-year-old dancer/actress has appeared in two different iconic roles since 2021, with her first role being that of Maya Monkey in Netflix series Sweet Tooth.
But her biggest role was her second, as she appeared as the title character in the 2022 film M3GAN. While M3GAN’s voice was provided by a different actor, Jenna Davis, it was Donald’s physical performance that made the character go viral before the film had even been released. Remember that crazy, creepy dance? That was Amie Donald.
The M3GAN dance went social media famous first by virtue of the film clip, then by the pop-up hordes of dancers that showed up everywhere, including Universal’s Halloween Horror Nights.
Donald’s incredible physicality really made people take notice, and the character quickly became iconic. Even those who didn’t love the film had to admit that M3GAN was a force to be reconned with, and the sequel, M3GAN 2.0 released in June.
1428 Elm had the opportunity to ask Amie Donald a few questions about her experience, and she was kind enough to respond.
1428 Elm: You have appeared as Maya Monkey in Sweet Tooth, and as M3GAN in both of the M3GAN films. You’re also a dancer, tell us how you went from dancing to acting.
AD: Well my dance teacher, Kylie Norris, asked my mother to find me an agent as she said I could express myself well through movement. So my mother found me an agent, and it kind of went from there!
1428 Elm: I understand that you have won some medals for your dancing, tell us about that.
AD: Yes, I have won the Nationals in both Australia and New Zealand. I also represented New Zealand at the Dance World Cup in Portugal, where I placed Silver in Jazz and Bronze for Contemporary.
1428 Elm: Both Maya and M3GAN use body movement as important parts of their characters, how did your dance experience help with that?
AD: You learn quickly to take directions in dance, and I think this helped with what was required in movement for both roles.
1428 Elm: As a young actress, how do you balance your acting career with school and personal life?
AD: So, we have schooling when filming which is just the teacher and myself. When I’m not filming, I go to college where I’m with my friends, and we are always meeting up either at dance or on the weekends.
1428 Elm: The trailer for M3GAN went viral almost as soon as it came out, and a lot of its popularity was because of M3GAN’s crazy dance. How was it choreographed, and did you help with the choreography?
AD: My dance teacher Kylie did the choreography for this. We put some test tapes together one afternoon and sent them to Gerard Johnstone, the Director, and he chose what he liked from that.
1428 Elm: Another viral advertising campaign involved “flash mobs” of dancers dressed as M3GAN that showed up at places such as Universal’s Halloween Horror Nights. Tell us what it’s like to watch these flash mobs, knowing it’s a character you created.
AD: I couldn’t believe how viral the dance went! To see people in costume and doing the dance was so cool. It was just fabulous to see them enjoying it.
1428 Elm: On M3GAN, you worked with another young actor, Violet McGraw. What was it like working together? Did you become friends?
AD: Violet is very special to me. We became best friends straight away, and it is lovely working on and off set with her.
1428 Elm: People are really excited about M3GAN 2.0, which is releasing on June 27. Are there any scenes you are most proud of that you can tell us about? And what was the most fun about filming the sequel?
AD: I think the scene I was most proud of was the fight scene with Amelia. Not only did I get to use my stunt skills, I was also able to work with Ivanna (Sakhno, who played AMELIA). I love her! She is my role model.
1428 Elm: Do you have any other films coming up that you are allowed to tell us about?
AD: I have some things in the works but I can't share details yet. Hopefully soon!
1428 Elm: Amie, thank you so much for taking the time to answer my questions, I can’t wait to see what is coming up for you next!