Aussie Margot Robbie cast opposite Will Smith in Focus

Australian actress Margot Robbie is continuing her meteoric rise in Hollywood after Variety exclusively reported that she has snagged a big starring role opposite Will Smith.

Known locally for her work on Neighbours, Robbie left Australia to make it big and her first two major starring roles are coming up later in 2013: the female lead in Martin Scorsese’s The Wolf Of Wall Street and a big part in Richard Curtis’ latest romantic comedy About Time.

Focus looks set to offer her highest profile project yet; a con-man film written and directed by Glenn Ficarra and John Requa, the team behind Crazy, Stupid, Love.

Will Smith reportedly spent weeks testing a number of big name actresses for the part before Robbie was finally decided on.

Ben Affleck and Kristen Stewart were previously attached to star.