Mia is an Australian actress, born and raised in the country's capital,Canberra. She is the daughter of photographers Marzena Wasikowska andJohn Reid. Her mother is Polish and her father is an Australian ofBritish ancestry. She has an older sister, Jess, and a younger brother,Kai. At age eight, her family moved to Poland for a year.

At age nine, Mia took ballet classes with dreams of becoming aprofessional ballerina. However, an injury prevented this fromhappening and she quit at age fourteen. Mia turned to acting, havingbeen excited by European and Australian cinema. She was attendingCanberra High School, but left to pursue her career as an actor.

She had just turned 15 when she landed the role of Lilya inSuburban Mayhem (2006). Herbreakthrough role came when she was cast as Alice inTim Burton'sAlice in Wonderland (2010).