MOVIE TALK

Mysterious Third Olsen Sister Headed to the Big Screen

by Caryn Ganz · September, 2010

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen's last marquee movie roles were in 2004's "New York Minute," when they were 18 years old, but another Olsen will be arriving on the big screen soon. The twins' younger sister Elizabeth Olsen has been cast in an independent drama called "Martha Marcy May Marlene," according to The Wrap.

The film will also star John Hawkes (an Oscar contender for his work in the acclaimed "Winter's Bone"), Sarah Paulson and Hugh Dancy. Director Sean Durkin has already started production in upstate New York on the movie, which follows the story of a young woman who escapes from a cult (run by Hawkes) and moves in with her older sister.

21-year-old Elizabeth broke into acting when she was just a toddler alongside her famous big sisters. From 1993 to 1996, when she was kindergarten-age, she appeared in a series of "The Adventures of Mary-Kate and Ashley" films including "The Case of the Christmas Caper" and "The Case of the U.S. Space Camp Mission." In 2005, she popped up in Natasha Bedingfield's video for "I Bruise Easily," and two years later, she starred in the band Carlotta's music video for "The Queen." Last year, she made a big impression on one of the U.K.'s biggest style magazines and was named Elle U.K.'s "New Fashion Crush."

Photos: The Olsen twins smile (and pout) for the red carpet

The younger Olsen sister is also currently filming "Peace, Love & Misunderstanding," a fish-out-of-water story about a buttoned-up lawyer who takes her teens to meet their groovy grandmother in Woodstock. Jane Fonda, Catherine Keener, and Chace Crawford also star in the Bruce Beresford-directed film. Fonda blogged about the movie in July, gushing about her young co-star, who will play one of her grandchildren: "Lizzie Olsen ... lives in NY and does theatre, although I think when her face is seen on the screen in this movie it'll be hard for her to not do more films."

Photos: Most successful child stars include Scarlett, Reese

Mary-Kate and Ashley also have an older brother, Trent - who also appeared in a handful of "The Adventure" films - and a pair of half-siblings, Taylor and Jake. While Ashley Olsen doesn't appear to have any upcoming acting projects on the horizon, Mary-Kate is set to star in Daniel Barnz's "Beastly" as well as Laurie Collyer's "Story of a Girl" alongside Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick.

Become a Fan of YahooMovies on Facebook >>
Follow @YahooMovies on Twitter >>