The stars are aligning for GERALDINE VISWANATHAN

In another universe, Geraldine Viswanathan got her big break on the Disney Channel. "I think about it all the time," she says.

- Savannah Walsh

"I came to LA when I was 18 and had a dodgy manager who was operating out of a Vietnamese restaurant. I got very close to a Disney Channel movie, and it really broke my heart when I couldn't do it because I didn't have a visa." Your loss, Teen Beach Movie 2.

Instead, the 29-year-old Australian actor broke out as John Cena's scene-stealing daughter in 2018's Blockers. Since then, she's drawn raves in both mainstream comedies and offbeat indies. She investigated Hugh Jackman's corrupt superintendent in Bad Education, romanced Margaret Qualley in Drive-Away Dolls, and verbally sparred with Steve Buscemi's God on Miracle Workers.

As we chat she's sipping from a mug covered in black-and-white photos of Buscemi's distinctive face. "This was a season one wrap gift from Daniel Radcliffe," she says, "and it's my favorite thing in the world." This January Viswanathan stars alongside Reese Witherspoon and Will Ferrell in You're Cordially Invited, then enters the Marvel Cinematic Universe with Thunderbolts next spring.