Category: Andy Serkis
Actor Andy Serkis was languishing in showbiz obscurity until he landed the role of Gollum in Lord of the Rings. He provided the character’s voice and movements but only briefly appeared on screen himself. He repeated his CGI antics as the great big monkey in King Kong, out on DVD now. [More]
He had the biggest role in the movies last year, but Andy Serkis doesn’t have to worry about fans and paparazzi. Serkis, as you well know, created the title character in King Kong, Peter Jackson’s giant movie. Before that, Serkis — wearing a motion-capture suit, as he did for Kong — played and voiced Gollum, the twisted creature in Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy. But Serkis isn’t entirely unrecognizable. “It’s funny — with Gollum and now Kong, I always thought that I’d be completely anonymous,” says the 41-year-old British actor, “but because of DVDs and behind-the-scenes stuff and Kong Diaries, yeah, people do recognize me, not to an unhealthy extent. I have a certain amount of anonymity, and certainly professionally I’m not typecast. Well, it’s not that you can be typecast, because there aren’t that many roles for 25-foot gorillas.” [More]
Sherry writes: Andy Serkis has just donated a painting he has done, to WAVE for their Art WAVE charity event. Serkis’ piece can be viewed at artwavni.com. Pre-auction bidding is available on the website. [More]
Andy Serkis helped to create two of filmdom’s most celebrated characters, but most people probably wouldn’t recognize him. That’s because the veteran actor’s breakthrough performances — as Gollum in “Lord of the Rings” and the big, misunderstood ape in the 2005 “King Kong” remake — were created using digital technology. Although computer animators relied on Serkis’ performance for the emotional center and movements of both characters, he doesn’t get any face time (aside from a small, secondary role in “Kong”). Serkis is fine with that. [More]
We admire Tom Hanks and Meryl Streep as legends-in-waiting, committing performances to film that might be referenced by future generations alongside Marlon Brando and Katharine Hepburn. We praise the lengthy careers of Steve Martin and Bill Murray, wondering if their work will live on like the Marx Brothers or Peter Sellers. However, the most significant contemporary cinematic figure of our time might be launching a career even more monumental, but we’re too busy eating popcorn and enjoying the ride to fully appreciate it. It’s OK, says Andy Serkis, because until recently, he was equally unaware. [More]