Unlike a lot of young Australian actresses, Teresa Palmer didn't grow up pretending to be Nicole Kidman. In fact, the 22-year-old Adelaide native grew up in government housing and made pocket money by dressing up as Strawberry Shortcake at a local mall. "I came from rather humble beginnings," Palmer muses. "Still, I was really happy." Just after high school graduation, Palmer's life took an unexpected turn. "This director of a local student film called me up to be in his movie. At first, of course, I thought it was a bit dodgy," she admits. Still, Palmer slipped seamlessly into the role of Melody, a suicidal young rape victim impregnated by her brother. The film, 2:37 (2006), went all the way to Cannes, and, at 18, Palmer went all the way to Hollywood. Now she's starring in the Adam Sandler comedy Bedtime -Stories, in which she plays yet another character with few similarities to herself. "My character is really famous and has great clothes," she says. "In real life, I'm always in tracksuits, and I never wear makeup." Palmer continues to deal in extreme fantasies with a role in Kids in America, a post--collegiate party romp, and is rumored to be cast in the highly anticipated superhero showdown Justice League of America. Looks like mall work is starting to pay off. -Sarah Wilson