John Jarratt
| John Jarratt | |
|---|---|
 Jarratt (left) in a Joker Poker promotional shot |
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| Born | 5 August 1951 Wongawilli, New South Wales, Australia |
John Jarratt (born 5 August 1951) is an Australian actor.
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[edit] Early life
Jarratt was born and grew up in Wongawilli, a small rural town near Wollongong, New South Wales and later in the Snowy Mountains area. Jarratt's father was a coal miner and later concreter, who worked on the Snowy Mountains hydroelectric scheme. His 5x great grandfather, George Jarratt, born 1833, came from Croxton in Cambridgeshire, England, his son, John, married a Mary Kelly from Ireland. While in high school Jarratt directed and acted in a school play which was a great success and led to his school principal recommending him for an acting career.[1]
[edit] Career
[edit] Early work
Jarratt graduated from NIDA, the Australian national drama school in 1973. His screen debut was in The Great Macarthy. He also appeared in Peter Weir's Picnic at Hanging Rock in 1975 and Summer City in 1977 with Mel Gibson. Jarratt had the lead role in the mini series The Last Outlaw playing Ned Kelly In 1979. He played a major supporting role as a young Aussie soldier in Vietnam war movie The Odd Angry Shot, 1980. In the later 1980s Jarrat recognised he a had problem with binge drinking and related violence[1] and joined Alcoholics Anonymous, an organisation in which he continues to be active.
[edit] Television
In the 1990s, he was a presenter on the lifestyle show Better Homes and Gardens with then-wife Noni Hazlehurst. He had guest roles in Inspector Morse, Police Rescue, Blue Murder, Water Rats and Blue Heelers in the 1990s and 2000s. He joined the cast of McLeod's Daughters in 2001, and left the show in 2006. In 2010 Jarratt appeared in a commercial for the global leaders in outdoor power equipment, Husqvarna. Despite popular belief, John never appeared as a presenter nor guest on ABC'S Play School.
[edit] Return to cinema
In 2005, he had a major role in the Australian film Wolf Creek, playing the villain Mick Taylor.[2] In 2007, he appeared in two films, Rogue and The Final Winter. Jarratt also had a small role in the 2008 film, Australia as a soldier.
In 2008, Jarratt has launched his own film production company, Winnah Films. Winnah's first feature film, Savages Crossing (originally carrying the working title Flood) went into Principal Photography outside Ipswich in Queensland in February. Savages Crossing is a fast paced thriller set in the Australian outback and stars John Jarratt, and Craig McLachlan amongst a sterling cast of Australian actors. In 2009, he appears as the father of a teenage girl via phone in Telstra's "Next G" commercials.[3]
In 2010, Jarratt is to star in the upcoming ensemble exploitation extravaganza, Bad Behaviour, written and directed by Joseph Sims.[4] Principal Photography wrapped on 5 February 2010 and is set to be released in cinemas later in the year. In the same year Jarrat also has a role in the supernatural horror movie Needle.
He is currently set to reprise his role as Mick Taylor in a sequel to Wolf Creek due to go into production in 2011 with Matt Hearn producing and Greg McLean directing.
[edit] Personal life
Jarratt has been married three times. With his first wife, Rosa, he had two children, Zadia and Ebony. He was married to actress Noni Hazlehurst,[5] with whom he had two more children, Charlie and William. Most recently, he remarried to Cody Jarrett, whom he met as a producer on Better Homes and Gardens, and had a further two boys, Jackson and Riley. Cody and John separated in late 2011/early 2012 and John has reunited with first wife Rosa.
John Jarratt is now living at Doonan on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, after living in the Blue Mountains, NSW
[edit] Filmography
| Year | Film | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1975 | The Great Macarthy | Mccarthy |
| Picnic at Hanging Rock | Albert Crundall | |
| 1977 | Summer City | Sandy |
| 1979 | The Odd Angry Shot | Bill |
| 1982 | We of the Never Never | Dandy |
| 1995 | All Men Are Liars | Barry |
| 2005 | Wolf Creek | Mick Taylor |
| 2007 | Rogue | Russell |
| The Final Winter | Colgate | |
| 2011 | Bad Behaviour | Ricky |
| 2012 | Wolf Creek 2 | Mick Taylor |
