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Andy Serkis (born April 20, 1964) is a British actor and director.

Early life & acting career

Serkis was born and brought up in Ruislip, 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, 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. 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" - 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 villain 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.

* 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. Both of them thought that they got the only one.

* 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.

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 (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

Latest news about Andy Serkis

Creative Minority Reader: Andy Serkis: From Gollum to Screwtape Andy Serkis, the actor whose voice and mannerisms drove the character of Gollum in Peter Jackson's film adaptation of Lord of the Rings, has now taken on another unsavory character sprung from the well of imagination that was the ... Continue reading Jamie Bell and Andy Serkis look ridiculous Empire Online posted this "first filming" picture back in April, and I've not seen it posted on any english sites of importance - the French websites are going batshit spreading this around, though, but Tintin is way more popular over ... Continue reading London 2009: Ben Whishaw, Jane Campion, Andy Serkis Composer Mark Bradshaw, Producers Caroline Hewitt, Jan Chapman, Samuel Roukin, Edie Martin (front), Director Jane Campion, Ben Whishaw and Antonia. Continue reading Ninja Theory: exclusivity is "draining" News | PS3 | Eurogamer The story, written by Alex Garland (The Beach), follows an unlikely partnership between Monkey (Andy Serkis) and Trip. It's loosely based on the old Chinese tale Journey to the West. Head over to our full interview with Tameem ... Continue reading Enslaved Interview | Eurogamer This is Monkey, voiced by Andy Serkis, in pain caused by the circlet Trip put on his head. Hardly the strongest foundations for a relationship. Eurogamer: Are there any online plans for the game? Tameem Antoniades: Enslaved is meant to ... Continue reading Andy Serkis' Screwtape Letters Update | Hobbit Movie News and ... Kevin writes: Andy Serkis — known and loved the world over for his portrayal of Gollum — has been working on an audio release of CS Lewis' book, The. Continue reading Middle Earth Returns: Andy Serkis Bio The most popular role Andy Serkis has played has been that of Smeagol/Gollum from the Lord of the Rings trilogy. He landed this role in 1999. This part required Serkis to perform in a skin-tight CGI suit with markers that allowed ... Continue reading :: The Playlist ::: First Look: Andy Serkis As Ian Dury In 'Sex ... As we reported in April, Andy Serkis, erstwhile CGI-facialist for Peter Jackson (Golem in the "LOTR"series, "King Kong") is playing Dury and the supporting cast — Ray Winstone, Olivia Williams, Naomie Harris, Noel Clarke, Toby Jones, ... Continue reading Creative Minority Report: Gollum as Screwtape Andy Serkis who played Gollum is taking on Screwtape. I gotta' admit. He kind of freaks me out. Check it out. Bookmark and Share. Posted by matthew archbold at 7:51 PM. Labels: cs lewis, gollum. Your Ad Here ... Continue reading Wait, What?! 50 Worst Oscar Snubs of the 00's Andy Serkis as Gollum: Oscar snub or Oscar justice? You know that feeling you get on that winter morning when they announce the Oscar nominations–that, “How could [insert name/title] not be nominated?!!� You keep checking the list to ... Continue reading Hollywood Actors Jessica alba Andy Serkis pictures and Andy Serkis biography

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