Andy Serkis
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| Andy Serkis | |
 Andy Serkis in Wellington, 2003 |
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| Born | April 20, 1964 Ruislip, Middlesex, England |
| Spouse(s) | Lorraine Ashbourne (July 22, 2002 - present) |
Andy Serkis (born April 20, 1964) is a English actor and director.
Contents |
[edit] Biography
[edit] Early life & acting career
Serkis was born and brought up in Ruislip Manor, Middlesex, England. His father is an ethnic Armenian doctor from Iraq; the family surname was originally "Serkisian", which is a variant of one of the most common Armenian surnames in the world. 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 since the movie used his voice, body language, and facial expressions. There is the argument that some of his CGI actions were partially, or in some cases fully animated, without his own movements, but the same can be said for actors in a traditional movie involving CGI. Some believed incorrectly that the Academy ruled that he did not qualify because he never physically appeared onscreen. There is no such prohibition, and in 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 has completed filming Inkheart, based on the novel of the same name by Cornelia Funke, in which he plays the villain Capricorn. The film also stars Brendan Fraser, Helen Mirren and Paul Bettany. Directed by Iain Softley, it is due for release in 2008.
Serkis is currently filming The Cottage, about two brothers who kidnap an underworld figure and then stumble on a dark rural secret. Directed by Paul Andrew Williams and co-stars Reece Shearsmith with Jennifer Ellison and Steve O'Donnell lending support.
Serkis will soon be tackling the life of Albert Einstein in a new movie. The actor will be taking on the role of one of the 20th century's greatest minds in Einstein and Eddington', a joint venture between HBO and BBC.
The movie will follow Einstein's development of his theory of relativity, and also show how Brit scientist Sir Arthur Eddington became the first person to understand the work of genius.
Eddington's role will be played by Doctor Who star David Tennant.
[edit] 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).
[edit] Trivia
- He went to St Benedict's School, London, UK.
- He is a vegetarian.
- He owns one of two prop rings used in The Lord of the Rings film trilogy. The other went to Elijah Wood, who played Frodo Baggins. Prop rings were given to each of the ring bearers at the end of filming.
- 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)
- His performance as Gollum in The Lord of the Rings is ranked #10 on Premiere Magazine's 100 Greatest Movie Characters of All Time.
[edit] Selected filmography
- The Cottage (2008)
- Einstein and Eddington (British TV film) (2007) as Albert Einstein
- Heavenly Sword (2007) as King Botan
- Muybridge (2007) as Erickson
- Sugarhouse Lane (2007) as Hoodwink
- Simon Schama's Power of Art (TV Series) (2006) as Vincent Van Gogh
- Inkheart (2006) as Capricorn
- 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
[edit] 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.
