All about Isla Fisher: from her shocking place of birth to her religious conversion

Although Isla Fisher is well known as an Australian actress, many may not realize that Isla wasn't born in Australia and didn't move to the country until she was six years old. What else can we say about Isla Fisher? Join us as we take a look at her road to fame!

Isla was born on February 3rd, 1976, in Muscat, Oman, to Scottish parents Elspeth Reid and Brian Fisher. The family lived in Oman due to Isla's father's job as a banker for the United Nations.

Pictured: Isla, her mother, and her brothers.

(Photo: Instagram / islafisher)

When Fisher was six years old, the family moved to Australia, where the actress and her four siblings would spend the rest of their childhood. Growing up in Perth in Western Australia, Isla enjoyed the outdoors with her family, and although she wasn't born there, the actress considers herself to be very much Australian.

Pictured: Isla as a child with her two brothers.

(Photo: Instagram / islafisher)

As a child, Isla went to Swanbourne Primary School in Perth and completed her secondary education at Methodist Ladies College, where she landed the lead in many a school play.

Pictured: Isla, siblings, and her father.

(Photo: Instagram / islafisher)

Isla Fischer got started acting at a young age, appearing in her first Australian tv commercial when she was only nine years old. When she was seventeen years of age, she landed two guest-starring roles on the Australian children's tv shows 'Bay City' and 'Paradise Beach.'

Pictured: Isla at 17 on 'Paradise Beach.'

Isla had also always enjoyed expressing herself through writing, so when she was eighteen, she published two young adult novels titled 'Bewitched' and 'Seduced by Fame.' In interviews, the actress has said that if she hadn't been successful as an actress, her second career choice would have been to be an author.

In 1994 Isla landed the role that would change her life and make hers a household name: Shannon Reed on the Australian soap opera 'Home and Away.' From 1994 to 1997, Fisher played this complex role with a character that was quite a troubled young woman.

Isla Fisher was a talented actress, and her performance on the soap earned her recognition. She received nominations for 'Most Popular New Talent' in 1995 and for 'Most Popular Actress' at the 1997 'Logie Awards.'

Pictured: Isla in 1995.

After leaving 'Home and Away' Isla decided to go to Paris to study at L'École Internationale de Théâtre Jacques Lecoq. There she was able to fully immerse herself in her passion and study clown, mime, and theater.

Pictured: Isla in 1999.

Following her time studying in Paris, Isla partook in several acting opportunities within Europe. In the musical 'Summer Holiday', she toured with Darren Day (pictured), then she landed a role in the London production of 'Così,' and in 2001 she even appeared in a German horror film called 'Swimming Pool'.

In 2002 Isla finally got her shot at breaking into the Hollywood scene when she landed a role on 'Scooby-Doo.' Even though her role as Shaggy's love interest in the film was minor, the movie's commercial success drew the attention of agents, and soon Fisher had several offers of representation.

Photo: screenshot from 'Scooby-Doo'

Thanks to her role on 'Scooby-Doo,' Fisher was able to land a variety of supporting actress roles in films like 'Dallas 362' (2003), 'The Wannabees' (2003), and 'I Heart Huckabees' (2004).

Isla Fisher also met Sacha Baron Cohen around this time, at a party in 2002. The famous couple got engaged in 2004, but it would be some years before they would get married.

(Photo: Instagram / islafisher)

In 2005, Fisher really caught the industry's eye thanks to her role in 'Wedding Crashers.' She acted alongside comedy stars Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson in the role of a politician's uninhibited daughter trying to hook up with one of the wedding crashers. The role earned her an MTV Movie Award and two Teen Choice Awards.

From 2005 onwards, Isla Fisher worked consistently in lead roles alongside some of Hollywood's biggest stars. Her films included: 'London'(2005), 'Wedding Daze' (2006), 'The Lookout' and 'Hot Rod' (2007), Definitely, Maybe' (2008), and 'Confessions of a Shopaholic' (2009).

Isla also has been the voice of some animated characters in films such as 'Horton Hears a Who' (2008) and 'Rango' (2011). She even won an award for 'Best Animated Female Character' from the Alliance of Women Film Journalists.

In March of 2010, Isla and Sacha Baron Cohen finally got married. The wedding came after a long, six-year engagement. Part of the wait to get married was due to Isla converting to Judaism to be able to be married in a Jewish ceremony, an aspect that was very important to Sacha.

After studying the religion for three years, Isla converted to Judaism and took the Hebrew name, Ayala. The couple married in Paris, France. They have three children together which they are raising in Sydney, Australia.

Although she was a busy and successful actress, it wasn't until 2013 that one could say that Isla Fisher became a household name. Her role in two films, 'The Great Gatsby' and 'Now You See Me.' Both films were hugely successful, and Fisher was nominated for 'Best Supporting Actress' by the Australian Film Critics Association for her role in 'The Great Gatsby.'

Given her popularity, Isla got the opportunity to appear on 'Arrested Development' in 2013 and 2018. The actress considers it one of the highlights of her career. After appearing in nine episodes of the series's first season, Isla and the rest of the cast earned a SAGA nomination for 'Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series.'

Photo: screenshot 'Arrested Development'

In 2016, Isla and her husband Sacha were able to work together on a film for the first time. The duo appeared in the British comedy-action film 'Grimsby' with Isla playing the handler of a secret agent.

Fisher also starred in the dark thriller 'Nocturnal Animals' in 2016, an artistic success that won the 'Grand Jury Prize' at the 73rd Venice International Film Festival.

Isla's most recent films have been comedies such as 'The Beach Bum' and 'Greed' in 2019 and 'Blithe Spirit', 'Godmothered' in 2020, and 'Back to the Outback' in 2021.

Photo: screenshot from 'Blithe Spirit'

Perhaps having her own children inspired Isla to return to her love of writing. In 2016 her third book was published, a children's novel called 'Marge in Charge.'

Photo: Instagram / islafisher

The book, about a naughty, rainbow-haired babysitter, was well-received, and Isla wrote three follow-ups to the original story: 'Marge and the Pirate Baby,' 'Marge and the Great Train Rescue,' and 'Marge in Charge and the Stolen Treasure.'

Photo: Instagram / islafisher

Isla Fisher and Sacha Baron Cohen have shown in recent years that they are a generous couple. In 2015 the couple donated $500,000 to 'Save the Children' for the Syrian measles vaccination campaign and another $500,000 to the 'International Rescue Committee' to aid Syrian refugees.

Isla Fisher has had a long and successful acting career thus far, and we look forward to seeing the projects this actress and author will embark on next!