Maria Makarena Owen (born 22 July 1962), known professionally as Rena Owen, is a New Zealand actress in theatre, television and film. Owen is best known for her leading role as Beth Heke in Lee Tamahori's Once Were Warriors and as Taun We in George Lucas's Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones.
Early life Born in the New Zealand Bay of Islands, Owen is of Welsh, English, Irish, and Māori descent. One of nine children, she grew up in Moerewa, raised Catholic in a small rural town in the North Island's Bay of Islands.Johnson, Brian D. "Ogopogo gets drawn Down Under", Maclean's, 31 July 2006, vol. 119, issue 29, page 56. She regularly performed in local Māori culture groups and in dramas and musicals while in high school. Owen pursued a medical career and trained as a nurse at Auckland Hospital for three and a half years. Once she qualified as a registered nurse, Owen moved to London, United Kingdom.
Career Owen trained at the Actors Institute in London in the mid-1980s and worked extensively in British theatre. Highlights include Voices From Prison for the Royal Shakespeare Company, Co-Existences for the Elephant Theatre and Outside in for Theater New Zealand, which debuted at the Edinburgh Festival. Owen wrote and starred in Te Awa i Tahuti (The River That Ran Away), which had a successful London tour and was later published by NZ Playmarket in 1991.
Upon her return to New Zealand in 1989, Owen acted in two dramas for Television NZ's E Tipu E Rea series. A first of its kind, the series was written, acted, directed, and produced by Māori, telling Māori stories. She worked extensively in theatre; acting, writing, directing, working as a dramaturge, and was a founding member of Taki Rua Theatre. Owen wrote and starred in Daddy's Girl, while also playing reoccurring roles in two TV series; Betty's Bunch & Shark in the Park. Recent theatre credits include starring in the classic NZ plays, Haruru Mai for the NZ International Arts Festival and The Pohutukawa Tree for ATC. In the USA, she has acted in multiple stage readings for Native Voices at the Autry in LA, and a charity stage reading of Vagina Monologues for the City of West Hollywood. She also played the lead in a Hawaiian play called Fine Dancing, adapted and directed Toa Fraser's play Bare for the Asian American Theatre Company in San Francisco (AATC).
In Once Were Warriors, Owen portrayed the leading role of Beth Heke alongside Temuera Morrison, who played her husband. Once Were Warriors is predominantly narrated from Beth's perspective, and her performance was praised as "classic". Owen reprised the role in the film's sequel, What Becomes of the Broken Hearted? (1999).
Owen portrayed Taun We in George Lucas' Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones, Nee Alavar in Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith, and a cameo role in Steven Spielberg's A.I. Whilst playing a reoccurring role in WB's Angel, Owen played supporting and cameo roles in multiple international independent films. Highlights include the NZ Canadian co-production, Nemesis Game, Garth Maxwell's When Love Comes, Rolf de Heer's acclaimed Dance Me to My Song, Vincent Ward's acclaimed Rain of the Children, and US thrillers Alyce Kills & The Well. She played leading roles in the Australian TV drama series Medivac in 1998 and recently in ABC's The Straits, a multi-ethnic crime-family drama. She also appeared in A&E's Longmire.
In 2011, as part of the 2011 Rugby World Cup, Owen took part in a televised concert called Mika's Aroha Mardi Gras. Owen played the part of the story teller at the event, hosting 15,000 people in the outdoor event which featured two concerts.
In 2014, Owen and Morrison completed work on a documentary celebrating the 20-year anniversary of Once Were Warriors.
In 2016, Owen was cast in the Freeform thriller series Siren as Helen, which was premiered on March 29, 2018.
Star Wars Owen portrayed Taun We in Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones (2002) (in which Temuera Morrison played Jango Fett) and returned in Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith (2005) as Nee Alavar. She also worked with the Star Wars Expanded Universe when she reprised her role as Taun We in the video game Star Wars: Republic Commando. In 2021, Owen reprised her role as Taun We in Star Wars: The Bad Batch.
Awards Her role in Once Were Warriors earned Owen rave reviews and multiple international awards including Best Actress at the Montreal World Film Festival, Oporto Film Festival, San Diego International Film Festival, and the Cannes Film Festival Spirit Award. In New Zealand, she was awarded a Special Benny Award for Excellence in Film, and the Toastmasters Communicator of the Year Award.
Further acting accolades include a Best Supporting Actress nomination for her role in the 1997 New Zealand TV Series, Coverstory and an AFI Best Supporting Actress nomination in 1998 for her role in Rolf de Heer's film, Dance Me to My Song. She won the Best Supporting Actress Award at the 2012 Aotearoa Film and Television Awards (AFTA) for her role as Hine Ryan in the New Zealand soap opera Shortland Street. She was nominated for Best Supporting Actress for her recurring role as Mere Hahunga in the award-winning Australian TV series, East West 101, at the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts, and nominated for Best Actress at the Montecarlo International Television Festival.
Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Award nomination (2012): Best Guest or Supporting Actress in a Television Drama- East West 101 New Zealand Film and TV Awards Winner (2011): Best Supporting Actress- Shortland Street Film Critics Circle of Australia Awards Nomination (1999): Best Supporting Actress- Dance Me to My Song Australian Film Institute Awards Nomination (1998): Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role- Dance Me to My Song NZ Film & TV Awards nomination (1997): Best Supporting Actress- Cover Story Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress (1994): Once Were Warriors Montreal World Film Festival Winner (1994): Best Actress- Once Were Warriors San Diego International Film Festival (1994): Best Actress- Once Were Warriors New Zealand Māori Queen, Dame Te Atairangikaahu Literary Award, 1992
Filmography
Film Year Title Role Notes1994Hinekaro Goes on a Picnic and Blows Up Another ObeliskHinekaroShort1994Rapa NuiHitirenga1994Once Were WarriorsBeth Heke1995Emily Broughton1995Savage PlayTakiora1998Dance Me to My SongRix1998When Love Comes AlongKatie1999I'll Make You HappyMickie1999What Becomes of the Broken Hearted?Beth Heke19999 AcrossShort2000Her IliadLena2001A.I. Artificial IntelligenceTicket Taker2001Soul AssassinKarina2002Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the ClonesTaun We (voice)2002sIDneyClarissaShort2003Red ZoneMac's Mom2003Nemesis GameEmily Gray2004Warrior Woman2005Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the SithNee Alavar2005Mary2005Mee-Shee: The Water Giant'Crazy' Norma2005FreezerburnLee2006LeelaMotherShort2006Linda2006Dolores2008Ocean of PearlsAnna Berisha2008Sam2008AmusementPsychiatrist2008Finding Red CloudBarfly2009Veronika Decides to DieNurse Josephine2009Prison Break: The Final BreakShu C.O.Video2009SpoutOmaShort2011Alyce KillsDanielle2011Absolute KillersJudge Irwin2014Claire2014Grandmother2015Glaeser2016Lost GirlsCopShort2017AsomatousMordeya2022WhinaOlder Whina Cooper2024A MistakeTessa2026MoanaGramma TalaTBANarratorDocumentary
Television Year Title Role Notes1990Betty's BunchShirley Gardner1990–91Shark in the ParkNgaireRecurring role1995High TideKara GibsonEpisode: "Regarding Joey"1996Cover StoryMairangaEpisode: "The Cult"1996G.P.Hilary HarperEpisode: "Fire and Water"1996–1998MedivacMacy FieldsMain role2000All-American Girl: The Mary Kay Letourneau StorySoona FualauTV film2000Dark KnightRock Witch"Golden Bird"2001Gideon's CrossingTara"Flashpoint"2002AngelDinza"Ground State"2009Piece of My HeartKatTV film2009Prison BreakSHU C.O."Free"2009Fear ClinicBrett's MomEpisode: "Hydrophobia"2009–2011East West 101Mere HahungaEpisodes: "Ice in the Veins", "The Price of Salvation"2011Shortland StreetHine RyanRecurring role2011Mika's Aroha Mardi GrasHerself (Story Teller)TV special2012Kitty MontebelloMain role2014–15LongmireMedicine WomanEpisodes: "Counting Coup", "The Calling Back"2015Medicine Woman"Graves"2016JoyKayleeEpisode: "California Soul2017–2022The OrvilleHeveenaRecurring role (Episodes: "About A Girl", "Sanctuary", "A Tale of Two Topas", “Midnight Blue”)2018–2020SirenHelen HawkinsMain role2020The GloamingGrace CochranTV series 2021Star Wars: The Bad Batch Taun We Voice; Episode: "Bounty Lost" 2022Super Giant Robot Brothers Sarge Voice; Episode: "Upgrades"
Video games Year Title Role Notes2005Star Wars: Republic CommandoTaun We (voice)
Theatre Lead Role: Pohutukawa Tree, Auckland Theatre Company, New Zealand (2009)
References
External links Official site
ScreenTalk Interview with Rena Owen – December 2008. Requires Flash Video software (60.4 MB). Rena's NZ On Screen profile