Hugo Weaving
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| Hugo Weaving | |
|---|---|
 Hugo Weaving, December 2003 |
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| Born | Hugo Wallace Weaving 4 April 1960 Nigeria |
| Years active | 1980 - present |
Hugo Wallace Weaving (born 4 April 1960) is an Australian actor.
Contents |
[edit] Biography
[edit] Early life
Weaving was born in Nigeria to English parents Anne, a tour guide, and Wallace Weaving, a seismologist.[1] He spent his childhood in South Africa and then moved to the United Kingdom in his teens. While in England he attended the prestigious boarding school Queen Elizabeth's Hospital, commonly known in Bristol as QEH. He moved to Australia in 1976, where he attended Sydney's Knox Grammar School. Weaving later graduated from Australia's National Institute of Dramatic Art in 1981.
[edit] Career
Weaving's first major role was in the television series Bodyline in 1984, as the English captain, Douglas Jardine. Weaving appeared in the Australian miniseries The Dirtwater Dynasty in 1988 and starred opposite Nicole Kidman in the 1989 film Bangkok Hilton. In 1991, Weaving received the Australian Film Institute's award for "Best Actor" for his performance in the low-budget Proof. He also appeared as Sir John in the 1993 Yahoo Serious comedy, Reckless Kelly, a lampoon of the famous Australian outlaw Ned Kelly. However, Weaving first received attention overseas with the international hit Priscilla, Queen of the Desert in 1994. In 1998 Weaving received the award for "Best Actor" from the Montreal Film Festival for his performance in The Interview. Weaving was also a voice actor in the cartoon film The Magic Pudding.
He earned further international attention with his performance as the enigmatic Agent Smith in the 1999 blockbuster hit The Matrix. Weaving later reprised the role of Smith in that film's 2003 sequels: The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions.
He also garnered much popular attention in the role of the Elven Lord, Elrond in Peter Jackson's three-film adaptation of The Lord of the Rings, released between 2001 and 2003. Weaving was the main actor in Andrew Kotatko's Everything Goes (2004). He also starred as a heroin addict in the 2005 Australian indie film Little Fish, opposite Cate Blanchett. He also played the title role as V in the 2006 film V for Vendetta, in which he was reunited with the Wachowski brothers, creators of The Matrix trilogy, who wrote the adapted screenplay. Actor James Purefoy was originally signed to play the role, but he pulled out six weeks into filming. Weaving appeared in the majority of V for Vendetta, and reshot all of James Purefoy's scenes as V apart from a couple of minor dialogue-free scenes early in the film. Stuntman David Leitch performed all of V's stunts.
Weaving also reprised his role as Elrond for the video game, The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-Earth II. He regularly appears in productions by the Sydney Theatre Company. In 2006, he worked with Cate Blanchett on a reprise of the STC production of Hedda Gabler in New York City. In a controversial move[citation needed] by director Michael Bay, Weaving was chosen as the voice of the Decepticon leader Megatron in the 2007 live-action film Transformers, rather than using the original voice created by the classic voice actor, Frank Welker. Bay stated on the DVD release of the film that he wanted Megatron to have a physicality similar to Weaving's, and that Welker's voice didn't fit the new interpretation of the character.
[edit] Personal life
When he was 13 years old, Weaving was diagnosed with epilepsy.[2] Due to the prospect of seizures, Weaving does not drive cars. He has never married and lives with his partner Katrina Greenwood. They have two children, Harry (b. 1989) and Holly (b. 1993).
A notable pescatarian, Weaving is also the primary ambassador for Australian animal rights organization Voiceless. Hugo attends events and promotes Voiceless in interviews. He also assists Voiceless in their judging of annual grant's recipients.
[edit] Filmography (partial)
| Year | Film | Role | Other notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | ...Maybe This Time | Student 2 | |
| 1983 | The City's Edge | Andy White | |
| 1984 | Bodyline | Douglas Jardine | |
| 1986 | For Love Alone | Johnathan Crow | |
| 1987 | Melba | Charles Armstrong | |
| The Right Hand Man | Ned Devine | ||
| 1988 | Dadah Is Death | Geoffrey Chambers | |
| The Dirtwater Dynasty | Richard Eastwick | ||
| 1989 | Bangkok Hilton | Richard Carlisle | |
| 1990 | ...Almost | Jake | |
| 1991 | Proof | Martin | |
| 1992 | Road to Alice | Morris | |
| 1993 | Frauds | Jonathan Wheats | |
| Reckless Kelly | Sir John | ||
| The Custodian | Det. Church | ||
| Seven Deadly Sins | Lust | ||
| 1994 | Exile | Innes | |
| The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert | Anthony 'Tick' Belrose/Mitzi Del Bra | ||
| What's Going On, Frank? | Strange Packer in Supermarket | ||
| 1995 | Bordertown | Kenneth Pearson | |
| Babe | Rex the Male Sheepdog | voice | |
| 1996 | Naked: Stories of Men | Martin Furlong | Episode "Coral Island" |
| The Bite | Jack Shannon | ||
| 1997 | True Love and Chaos | Morris | |
| Halifax f.p: Isn't It Romantic | Det. Sgt. Tom Hurkos | ||
| Frontier | Governor Arthur | ||
| 1998 | Babe: Pig in the City | Rex the Male Sheepdog | voice |
| Bedrooms and Hallways | Jeremy | ||
| The Interview | Eddie Rodney Fleming | ||
| The Kiss | Barry | ||
| 1999 | Strange Planet | Steven | |
| Little Echo Lost | Echo Man | ||
| The Matrix | Agent Smith | ||
| 2001 | The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring | Elrond | |
| Russian Doll | Harvey | ||
| The Old Man Who Read Love Stories | Rubicondo (Dentist) | ||
| 2002 | The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers | Elrond | |
| 2003 | The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King | Elrond | |
| The Matrix Reloaded | Agent Smith | ||
| The Matrix Revolutions | Agent Smith | ||
| After the Deluge | Martin Kirby | ||
| 2004 | Peaches | Alan | |
| Everything Goes | Ray | ||
| 2005 | Little Fish | Lionel Dawson | |
| 2006 | Happy Feet | Noah | voice |
| V for Vendetta | V | ||
| 2007 | The Key Man | Vincent | |
| Transformers | Megatron | voice | |
| 2008 | The Tender Hook | McHeath | post-production |
| 2009 | The Wolf Man | Detective Aberline[3] | post-production |
[edit] Awards
- 2007 - The Constellation Awards, Best Male Performance in a 2006 Science Fiction Film, TV Movie, or Miniseries: V for Vendetta
[edit] References
- "The Dictionary of Performing Arts in Australia — Theatre . Film . Radio . Television — Volume 1" — Ann Atkinson, Linsay Knight, Margaret McPhee — Allen & Unwin Pty. Ltd., 1996
- "The Australian Film and Television Companion" — compiled by Tony Harrison — Simon & Schuster Australia, 1994
[edit] External links
| Preceded by Frank Welker 2007 Video Game |
Voice of Megatron/Galvatron 2007 Live-Action Film |
Succeeded by Corey Burton 2008- Animated |
