NEW YORK (AP) — He’s been in the “Matrix” and “Lord of the Rings” trilogies, which grossed a mere $4 billion-plus in worldwide box office. Lines he’s uttered infuse the pop-culture lexicon. Yet, he’s pulled off being a successful movie actor while remaining relatively anonymous. “Shhh. Shhh,” Hugo Weaving hushes, laughing conspiratorially. That’s the way he likes it. The 45-year-old Weaving has always maintained that becoming famous or making it big in Hollywood was never a goal. And his career choices bear that out, typically low-budget Australian films. [More]

At noon, Hugo Weaving slid into the worst table for two in the Odeon, next to the wet coats, and ordered himself a three-egg omelet. He sported a massive beard, close to but far fuller than Trotsky’s, really more like Marx’s, though not white or quite as bushy. With his jeans and short-sleeve T-shirt over long-sleeve shirt, he looked like a naughty hippie-surfer daddy. The beard also made his Agent Smith face invisible. That suits Weaving — 46 in a few weeks — who on film always is, and always wants to be, something slightly less present than a ghost. [More]