Andy Serkis
Andy Serkis | |
|---|---|
 Andy Serkis in Wellington, 2003 | |
| Height | 5'8' (1.73m) |
| Spouse(s) | Lorraine Ashbourne (July 22, 2002 - present) |
Andy Serkis (born April 20, 1964) is a British actor and director.
Biography
Early life & acting career
Serkis was born and brought up in Ruislip, Middlesex, England. His father is an Iraqi doctor; the family surname was originally "Serkisian". He attended Lancaster University where he originally studied visual art. His most memorable and critically acclaimed roles have been Gollum in The Lord of the Rings movie trilogy (2001–2003) and Kong in the 2005 version of King Kong, in which he provided the voice and movements for the CGI characters.
His acclaimed work on the trilogy set off a debate on the legitimacy of CGI-assisted acting. Many critics felt Serkis should have been nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance but some believed incorrectly that the Academy ruled that he did not qualify because he never physically appeared onscreen. There is no such prohibition and, as a matter of fact, Serkis appeared onscreen as Sméagol before he became Gollum.
Continuing the development of Performance capture as an art form, Serkis is working with game developers Ninja Theory on the 2007 release of Heavenly Sword.
He has played over 30 other roles in film and television productions throughout his career.
Serkis was cast as the Moors Murderer, Ian Brady in Longford, co-starring Samantha Morton as Myra Hindley and Jim Broadbent as Lord Longford. The film was attacked by relatives of the victims [1]. The mother of Keith Bennett, whose body has never been found, blasted Serkis when he requested a meeting with Brady in preparation for the role.
One of his earliest feature film appearances was alongside Sacha Baron Cohen in "The Jolly Boys Last Stand" [2] - Now considered a British cult comedy classic.
In 2006 Serkis appeared in the role of Mr Grin in the film rendition of Anthony Horowitz's Alex Rider novel Stormbreaker. Also in 2006, he appeared in the film version of The Prestige as Mr Alley, assistant to Nikola Tesla, played by David Bowie and as the voice of Spike, one of the henchrats in the latest Aardmann Animation film Flushed Away.
Serkis is currently filming Inkheart, based on the novel of the same name by Cornelia Funke, in which he plays the villan Capricorn. The film also stars Brendan Fraser, Helen Mirren and Paul Bettany. Directed by Iain Softley, it is due for release in 2008.
Personal Life
Serkis lives in North London with his wife, actress Lorraine Ashbourne and their three young children Ruby, Sonny (b.2000) and Louis (b.2004).
Trivia
- He went to St Benedict's School, London, UK.
- Is a vegetarian.
- Owns one of two prop rings used in Lord of the Rings. The other went to Elijah Wood, who played Frodo Baggins.
- He was ruled ineligible for a Best Supporting Actor nomination at the 2003 Academy Awards because his character Gollum in Lord of the Rings onscreen was computer generated.
- Based the voice of Gollum on the sounds his cats made while coughing up furballs.
- His family name, Serkis, is of Armenian descent like Mikhail Vartanov's and Sergei Parajanov's but originally would have been Sarkisian, Vartaniantz and Parajanian (respectively)
- Uses his "Gollum" voice on his children, for fun and/or when they misbehave.
- His performance as Gollum in Lord of the Rings trilogy is ranked #10 on Premiere Magazine's 100 Greatest Movie Characters of All Time.
Selected filmography
- Muybridge (2007) as Erickson
- Simon Schama's Power of Art (2006) as Vincent Van Gogh
- Inkheart (2006) as Capricorn
- Sugarhouse Lane (2006) as Hoodwink
- Rendition (2006)as Lead Interrogater
- Longford (British TV drama) (2006) as Ian Brady
- Stormbreaker (2006) as Mr. Grin
- The Prestige (2006) as Mr. Alley
- Flushed Away (2006) (voice) as Spike
- King Kong (2005) as King Kong and Lumpy the cook
- Stories of Lost Souls (2005) as Granny, Rastafarian and Hunter Jackson
- Blessed (2004) as Father Carlo
- 13 Going on 30 (2004) as Richard Kneeland
- Standing Room Only (2004) as Granny, Rastafarian and Hunter Jackson
- Spooks (2004 - series 3, episode 8) (TV) as Riff
- The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) as Sméagol (aka Gollum), Witch-king of Angmar (voices)
- The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) as Sméagol (aka Gollum)
- Deathwatch (2002) as Pvt. Thomas Quinn
- 24 Hour Party People (2002) as Martin Hannett
- The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) as Sméagol (aka Gollum)
- The Escapist (2001) as Ricky Barnes
- Jump (2000) as Shaun
- Shiner (2000) as Mel << Nude scene
- Pandaemonium (2000) as John Thelwall
- The Jolly Boys' Last Stand [3] (2000) as Spider
- Arabian Nights (2000) (TV) as Kasim
- Oliver Twist (1999) (TV) as Bill Sikes
- Topsy-Turvy (1999) as John D'Auban
- Shooting the Past (1999) (TV) as Styeman
- Five Seconds to Spare (1999) as Chester
- Touching Evil III (1999) (mini) TV Series as Michael Lawler
- The Tale of Sweety Barrett (1998) as Leo King
- The Jump (1998) (TV) as Steven Brunos
- Among Giants (1998) as Bob
- Clueless (1998) as David
- Insomnia (1998) as Harry
- Mojo (1997) as Potts
- The Pale Horse (1997) (TV) as Sergeant Corrigan
- Career Girls (1997) as Nick Evans
- Loop (1997) as Bill
- Stella Does Tricks (1996) as Fitz
- The Near Room (1995) as Bunny
- Finney (1994) TV Series as Tom
- Grushko (1994) (TV) as Pyotr
- Prince of Jutland (1994) as Torsten
- Pie in the Sky (TV episode 'Passion Fruit Fool) (1993) as Maxwell
- The Darling Buds of May (TV episode 'Le Grande Weekend) (1992) as Greville
- Morris Minor and his Marvellous Motors (1989) (TV) as Sparky Plugg
- Streetwise (1989) (TV) as Owen
Other works
- Heavenly Sword, a Playstation 3 title planned for release at the during the first quarter of 2007. He stars as King Bothan, voicing him and providing a basis for his in-game face. He also acts as the dramatic director on the project.