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Lawrence Makoare

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Lawrence Makoare
Makoare in 2003
Born (1968-03-20) 20 March 1968 (age 56)
Bastion Point, Auckland, New Zealand
OccupationActor
Known for

Lawrence Makoare (born 20 March 1968) is a New Zealand Māori actor. He is most known for his roles in The Lord of the Rings film series as several prominent antagonists, including Lurtz the Uruk-Hai and the Witch King of Angmar.

Career

Makoare was a road construction builder who drifted into acting after he accompanied a girlfriend to a drama class and was picked out by the teacher to perform because of his impressive height. He began his career performing as a stuntman.[1] Makoare is best known for his roles in The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit film trilogies. In The Fellowship of the Ring, he portrayed the Uruk-hai leader Lurtz, and in The Return of the King, he portrayed the Witch-king of Angmar as well as Gothmog, the Orc commander at the Battle of the Pelennor Fields. In The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, he portrayed the Orc commander Bolg, son of Azog. Due to filming commitments on Marco Polo, Makoare was unavailable during the pick-ups shooting of The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies, in which Bolg is portrayed by John Tui instead.

Makoare is also popular among Xena: Warrior Princess fans, having played two memorable characters in the third season: a Barbarian leader in episode "The Quill Is Mightier..."; and Maecanus (a minion of Aphrodite) in episode "Fins, Femmes and Gems". In 2002, he portrayed Mr. Kil in the James Bond film Die Another Day. The director of The Dead Lands, Toa Fraser, was not enthusiastic about using Makoare as the warrior, but was won over by the way he managed, after a few directing hints, to turn in a performance that made him weep.[2]

Makoare with a fan cosplaying as Lurtz, his character from The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.

Filmography

Year Title Role Notes
1994 Rapa Nui Atta
1999 What Becomes of the Broken Hearted? Grunt
Greenstone Rameka TV series
2000 The Feathers of Peace Pemako
The Price of Milk Nephew
2001 Crooked Earth Kahu Bastion
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring Lurtz
2002 The Maori Merchant of Venice Pirihina o Morako
(The Prince of Morocco)
Die Another Day Mr Kil
2003 The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King Witch-King of Angmar / Gothmog
2007 The Ferryman Snake
2012 L'oncle Charles Ratu
Fundamental J.T.
2013 The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug Bolg
2014 Marco Polo Za Bing TV series
The Dead Lands The Warrior
2021 Occupation: Rainfall Gary

References

  1. ^ Stephen Dowling, 'Taking a break with a Rings monster,'BBC News 17 September 2003
  2. ^ Steohen Saito,'Interview: Toa Fraser on Bringing His Life to “The Dead Lands” ,' The Moveable Fest 11 December 2014.
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