“For me, progress is a journey that requires a purpose,” says Australian actress Madeleine Madden, who demonstrated beyond any shadow of a doubt her willingness to speak up for something she believed in when she became the youngest Australian to deliver a televised address to the nation at the age of just 13.

The address on behalf of indigenous employment group Generation One, was broadcast on all free-to-air channels around the country in October 2010 and was an impassioned plea to Australians to help end indigenous inequality.

The address garnered tremendous national attention – both good and bad – but Madden took it all in her stride with what has become a trademark calm that now sees the girl from the Sydney suburb of Redfern, striding the world stage as a role model for the very thing she spoke about in that landmark address.

One of the stars of the Amazon adaptation of Robert Jordan’s The Wheel of Time novels, the 24-year-old has received critical and popular acclaim for her portrayal of Egwene al’Vere in the hugely successful series. It is her biggest role to date in a career with a steep upward trajectory, but one that started with her first role when she was just eight. 

She has gone on to win roles in film and television in Australia, from the award-winning Redfern Now series putting a spotlight on the challenges facing aboriginal people in contemporary Australia, to the country’s first indigenous teen series Ready for This. 

Roles in the likes of 2018’s Picnic at Hanging Rock, Tomorrow When the War Began and Mystery Road have seen her work with some of the country’s biggest names including Judy Davis, Jack Thompson, Vince Colosimo, Barry Humphries and Guy Pearce.

Having built an impressive list of local credits, Madden’s international breakthrough came with her role in the Nickelodeon film Dora and the Lost City of Gold in 2019 and the rest as they say, is a work in progress.

But while the burgeoning career and prominence on the world stage seem from a distance to have been effortless for Madden, every step of the way has been underpinned by hard work and a dedication to purpose that has been instilled in Madeleine from a young age.

The daughter of the late Lee Madden and writer Hetty Perkins, her grandfather was the late Charles Perkins AO, the indigenous activist and sportsman and the first indigenous Australian to graduate from university. 

Her grandmother was Arrernte elder Hetty Perkins and with her aunt, director Rachel Perkins and half-sister Miah also an actor, it is fair to say that both the arts and politics have been key components of her life from the very start.

It is perhaps this combination along with a strong connection to country that have kept Madeleine so grounded as her career and public exposure have grown and it is her upbringing too that has reinforced the importance of her using her position for the greater good and ‘making it count’.

“It’s been instilled in me since I was young that I have to use my platform to change the world,” she said in an interview with The Guardian last year.

“That’s something that’s part of my DNA,” she says. “I think also that just being born as an Aboriginal woman, my life is politicised, so that’s something I’ve dealt with every day of my life.”

Just as it was as a 13-year-old speaking to the rest of the country, the importance of purpose means just as much to Madden now. And therein lies her guiding view on progress and how it must be driven by real purpose.

From advancing the cause of equality in Australia and beyond, to protecting the fragile environment and promoting sustainable practices, her career represents not only advancement in her chosen field but also the chance to spread the message and use her platform, just as she has been taught.

Just by being an indigenous actor in her current international role in The Wheel of Time is a practical example of creating positive change.

“As an actor, nothing has been as important for me as seeing diverse people on screen,” she says. Now Madden is herself a role model for a legion of aspiring actors and film professionals.

“I'm incredibly proud of my family's legacy and the positive change and progress that they've made. It's definitely something that, you know, it kind of stokes the fires in my belly. And I think that having that inspiring history really gives me the strength to want to make change in the world.”

“We absolutely all have a part to play in ensuring a better future,” she says. “You know, the positive decisions that we make today influence a better tomorrow.”

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