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 Since his screen debut as a young Amish farmer in Peter Weir's Witness (1985), Viggo Mortensen's career has been marked by a steady string of well-rounded performances.Mortensen was born in New York City, to Grace Gamble (Atkinson) and Viggo Peter Mortensen, Sr. His father was Danish, his mother was American, and his maternal grandfather was Canadian. His parents met in Norway. They wed and moved to New York, where Viggo, Jr. was born, before moving to South America, where Viggo, Sr. managed chicken farms and ranches in Venezuela and Argentina. Two more sons were born, Charles and Walter, before the marriage grew increasingly unhappy. When Viggo was seven, his parents sent him to a a strict boarding school, isolated in the foothills of the mountains of Argentina. Then, at age eleven, his parents divorced. His mother moved herself and the children back to her home state of New York.Viggo attended Watertown High School, and became a very good student and athlete. He graduated in 1976 and went on to St. Lawrence University in Canton, New York. After graduation, he moved to Denmark - driven by the need for a defining purpose in life. He began writing poetry and short stories while working many odd jobs, from dock worker to flower seller. In 1982, he fell in love and followed his girlfriend back to New York City, hoping for a long romance and a writing career. He got neither. In New York, Viggo found work waiting tables and tending bar and began taking acting classes, studying with Warren Robertson. He appeared in several plays and movies, and eventually moved to Los Angeles, where his performance in "Bent" at the Coast Playhouse earned him a Drama-logue Critic's Award.He made his film debut with a small part in Witness (1985). He appeared in Salvation! (1987) and married his co-star, Exene Cervenka. The two had a son, Henry Mortensen. But after nearly eleven years of marriage, the couple divorced.In 1999, Viggo got a phone call about a movie he did not know anything about: "The Lord of the Rings." At first, he didn't want to do it, because it would mean time away from his son. But Henry, a big fan of the books, told his father he shouldn't turn down the role. Viggo accepted the part and immediately began work on the project, which was already underway. Eventually, the success of "The Lord of the Rings" made him a household name - a difficult consequence for the ever private and introspective Viggo.Critics have continually recognized his work in over thirty movies, including such diverse projects as Jane Campion's The Portrait of a Lady (1996), Sean Penn's The Indian Runner (1991), Brian De Palma's Carlito's Way (1993), Ridley Scott's G.I. Jane (1997), Tony Scott's Crimson Tide (1995), Andrew Davis's A Perfect Murder (1998), Ray Loriga's My Brother's Gun (1997), Tony Goldwyn's A Walk on the Moon (1999), and Peter Farrelly's Green Book (2018).Mortensen is also an accomplished poet, photographer and painter.
Bio:
Since his screen debut as a young Amish farmer in Peter Weir's Witness (1985), Viggo Mortensen's career has been marked by a steady string of well-rounded performances.Mortensen was born in New York City, to Grace Gamble (Atkinson) and Viggo Peter Mortensen, Sr. His father was Danish, his mother was American, and his maternal grandfather was Canadian. His parents met in Norway. They wed and moved to New York, where Viggo, Jr. was born, before moving to South America, where Viggo, Sr. managed chicken farms and ranches in Venezuela and Argentina. Two more sons were born, Charles and Walter, before the marriage grew increasingly unhappy. When Viggo was seven, his parents sent him to a a strict boarding school, isolated in the foothills of the mountains of Argentina. Then, at age eleven, his parents divorced. His mother moved herself and the children back to her home state of New York.Viggo attended Watertown High School, and became a very good student and athlete. He graduated in 1976 and went on to St. Lawrence University in Canton, New York. After graduation, he moved to Denmark - driven by the need for a defining purpose in life. He began writing poetry and short stories while working many odd jobs, from dock worker to flower seller. In 1982, he fell in love and followed his girlfriend back to New York City, hoping for a long romance and a writing career. He got neither. In New York, Viggo found work waiting tables and tending bar and began taking acting classes, studying with Warren Robertson. He appeared in several plays and movies, and eventually moved to Los Angeles, where his performance in "Bent" at the Coast Playhouse earned him a Drama-logue Critic's Award.He made his film debut with a small part in Witness (1985). He appeared in Salvation! (1987) and married his co-star, Exene Cervenka. The two had a son, Henry Mortensen. But after nearly eleven years of marriage, the couple divorced.In 1999, Viggo got a phone call about a movie he did not know anything about: "The Lord of the Rings." At first, he didn't want to do it, because it would mean time away from his son. But Henry, a big fan of the books, told his father he shouldn't turn down the role. Viggo accepted the part and immediately began work on the project, which was already underway. Eventually, the success of "The Lord of the Rings" made him a household name - a difficult consequence for the ever private and introspective Viggo.Critics have continually recognized his work in over thirty movies, including such diverse projects as Jane Campion's The Portrait of a Lady (1996), Sean Penn's The Indian Runner (1991), Brian De Palma's Carlito's Way (1993), Ridley Scott's G.I. Jane (1997), Tony Scott's Crimson Tide (1995), Andrew Davis's A Perfect Murder (1998), Ray Loriga's My Brother's Gun (1997), Tony Goldwyn's A Walk on the Moon (1999), and Peter Farrelly's Green Book (2018).Mortensen is also an accomplished poet, photographer and painter.
Tivia:
Purchased the horses he rode in the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy and Hidalgo (2004) after the films were completed.Broke two toes during the filming of The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002), in the scene where he kicks an Orc helmet.Speaks fluent English, Spanish, Danish, and French, but he also speaks yet not fluently Catalan, Swedish, Norwegian, Italian and Arabic.He actually painted the large murals in his artist's studio in the film A Perfect Murder (1998).Is also a jazz musician - he has released three CDs so far.At first, turned down the part of Aragorn of Lord of the Rings. His son convinced him to do the part.While filming "The Lord of The Rings" trilogy in New Zealand, he would go surfing with the other actors in their spare time. One day he suffered an accident which left a bruise on the right side of his face. As a result, director Peter Jackson had to shoot only the left side of his face in the entire Moria sequence.Got so into his character of Aragorn that director Peter Jackson once addressed him as Aragorn for over half an hour, and Mortensen didn't even realize it.While working on the Lord of the Rings trilogy, he asked writer/director Peter Jackson to revise scripts so that his character Aragorn would be speaking in the Elvish language in several scenes of all three movies.A skilled horseman, he did all his own stunts in Hidalgo (2004), including a breakneck bareback ride that even the stuntman couldn't handle.Elijah Wood said of him: "Everyone talks about how much integrity he has and how brilliant he is. And it's true. He's also completely insane.".He became good friends with the close-knit stunt men on the "Lord of the Rings" films, but they were wary of doing fight scenes with him because, carried away with the intensity of his character Aragorn, he would frequently "really go at them" and leave the other combatants in bruises. Massive actor Lawrence Makoare, playing Lurtz under heaps of make-up which restricted his vision, also got carried away during their fight scene at the conclusion of The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) and, for once, Mortensen was left more bruised than the other actor.Was on April 16th 2010 knighted by Queen Margarethe II of Denmark. He is now one of five knights from "The Lord of the Rings" production; the others being Ian Holm, Ian McKellen, Christopher Lee and Peter Jackson.Worked as a translator for the Swedish hockey team during the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid and was at the 'miracle' game between the Soviet Union and United States.Wore a Montreal Canadiens jersey under his costume during the filming of The Lord of the Rings films.He's made movies where he spoke in English, Danish, French, Spanish, Arabic, and Italian.In 1998, he appeared in two remakes of Alfred Hitchcock films: A Perfect Murder (1998), a remake of Dial M for Murder (1954), and Psycho (1998), a remake of Psycho (1960).He did all of his own stunts in the 1988 horror thriller "Prison." Stunt coordinator Kane Hodder even gave him a "Stunt Crew" T-shirt after filming wrapped.Owner of publishing company Perceval Press.Mortensen did not participate in the pre-production stunt and sword training given to the actors in "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy as he was cast as a replacement only two days prior to the start of filming. However, at the end of filming, the film's swordmaster, the legendary Bob Anderson, stated that Mortenson was the best swordsman he'd ever trained.An accomplished horseman in his spare time, Mortensen requested that his "Rings" character Aragorn be given more saddle time than was originally scripted. He also kept his on-screen horse nearby during the entire principal photography schedule in order to ride in his off-hours and strengthen his relationship with the horse.Broke a tooth while filming a fight sequence for The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002); he asked the crew if they would glue it back on so he could finish the scene.Graduated from St. Lawrence University in Canton, New York in 1980 with a degree in Government and Spanish.Replaced Stuart Townsend in the role of Aragorn/Strider in The Lord of the Rings, after filming began.Had a book of poetry printed before he was known. The title: "Ten Last Night."His "Lord of The Rings" co-star Billy Boyd described him as 'mad as a fish.'.Worked as a truck driver while living in DenmarkWrites poetry in his spare time.Lived in South America from age two to age 11.Although their divorce only became final in 1998, he and his former wife, Exene Cervenka, separated in late 1990/early 1991 after less than 3 years of marriage but remain close friends often working together and co-parenting their son.Spent a couple weeks in Russia prior to filming Eastern Promises (2007) to research his role and better understand his character.Admitted in an interview that when he first started out as an actor, his agents encouraged him to change his name to "Vic Morten." Obviously, he refused.His father was Danish. His mother was American, born in Watertown, Jefferson, New York, in upstate NY. She was of English, and more distant Scottish, ancestry. Viggo's maternal grandfather, Walter Sidney Atkinson, was from Parrsboro, Cumberland, Nova Scotia, Canada, and his maternal grandmother, Mary Annis (Gamble), was from New York, and had deep roots in NY and Connecticut.Has two younger brothers, Walter and Charles. They are both geologists.He was among the actors considered for the role of Wolverine in X-Men (2000) before Hugh Jackman was cast.He was cut from his first two movies (Swing Shift (1984) and The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985)), without being told by the filmmakers. He had encouraged his family to go see them in theaters, only to be told his scenes were not in the film, and he didn't appear in the credits. Viggo's mother became concerned that he had been caught up in New York's crack epidemic and was lying about his lifestyle.He has dual American and Danish citizenship.Speaks fluent French.On December 4th, 2009, for the Montr��al Canadiens centennial celebration at the Bell Center, Viggo Mortensen - a long-time Canadiens fan - came out in his red Habs jersey to introduce Guy Lafleur, "my all-time hero," in French.After his parents divorced when he was 11, he moved to New York with his mother and two younger brothers.Has been photographing for years, recently debuted with an exhibition at the Robert Mann Gallery in NYC. -- American Photo, July/August 2000.As Viggo lived in Argentina as a child, he is a fan of Argentine soccer team San Lorenzo (real name of the team: "San Lorenzo of Almagro," from Buenos Aires City). Viggo usually wear clothes and accessories with this team's colors (red and blue) the last time in public, at the Rome Festival, in the "Alatriste" Premiere.He received the scar on his upper lip after scratching his face on a barbed wire fence at a Halloween party.Replaced Christoph Waltz in the role of Sigmund Freud in A Dangerous Method (2011) after Waltz backed out of the project in order to film Water for Elephants (2011).Was invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in June 2004.Is a big fan of the New York Mets and the Montreal Canadiens. When filming A History of Violence (2005), he showed up on the Toronto set wearing a Canadiens' jersey.For his role in Eastern Promises (2007), he stated that part of his performance was inspired by Russian hockey player Alexei Kovalev.Became a father for the 1st time at age 29 when his [now ex] wife Exene Cervenka gave birth to their son Henry Mortensen on January 28, 1988.In 2003 he visited Denmark and had a booksigning, an art exhibition opening and The Lord of The Rings premiere.In a relationship with Ariadna Gil since 2009. |
| Name: |
Viggo Mortensen |
Type: |
Actor,Producer,Director (IMDB) |
| Area: |
All World |
Platform: |
IMDB |
| Category: |
|
Business scope: |
Actor,Producer,Director |
| Products for sale: |
Actor,Producer,Director |
| Model rank: |
11 |
| Last update: |
2024-07-01 03:01:58 |
| Height: |
5' 11' (1.80 m) |
| Biography: |
Since his screen debut as a young Amish farmer in Peter Weir\'s Witness (1985), Viggo Mortensen\'s career has been marked by a steady string of well-rounded performances.Mortensen was born in New York City, to Grace Gamble (Atkinson) and Viggo Peter |
| Trivia: |
Purchased the horses he rode in the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy and Hidalgo (2004) after the films were completed.Broke two toes during the filming of The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002), in the scene where he kicks an Orc helmet.Speaks fluent English, Spanish, Danish, and French, but he also speaks yet not fluently Catalan, Swedish, Norwegian, Italian and Arabic.He actually painted the large murals in his artist's studio in the film A Perfect Murder (1998).Is also a jazz musician - he has released three CDs so far.At first, turned down the part of Aragorn of Lord of the Rings. His son convinced him to do the part.While filming "The Lord of The Rings" trilogy in New Zealand, he would go surfing with the other actors in their spare time. One day he suffered an accident which left a bruise on the right side of his face. As a result, director Peter Jackson had to shoot only the left side of his face in the entire Moria sequence.Got so into his character of Aragorn that director Peter Jackson once addressed him as Aragorn for over half an hour, and Mortensen didn't even realize it.While working on the Lord of the Rings trilogy, he asked writer/director Peter Jackson to revise scripts so that his character Aragorn would be speaking in the Elvish language in several scenes of all three movies.A skilled horseman, he did all his own stunts in Hidalgo (2004), including a breakneck bareback ride that even the stuntman couldn't handle.Elijah Wood said of him: "Everyone talks about how much integrity he has and how brilliant he is. And it's true. He's also completely insane.".He became good friends with the close-knit stunt men on the "Lord of the Rings" films, but they were wary of doing fight scenes with him because, carried away with the intensity of his character Aragorn, he would frequently "really go at them" and leave the other combatants in bruises. Massive actor Lawrence Makoare, playing Lurtz under heaps of make-up which restricted his vision, also got carried away during their fight scene at the conclusion of The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) and, for once, Mortensen was left more bruised than the other actor.Was on April 16th 2010 knighted by Queen Margarethe II of Denmark. He is now one of five knights from "The Lord of the Rings" production; the others being Ian Holm, Ian McKellen, Christopher Lee and Peter Jackson.Worked as a translator for the Swedish hockey team during the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid and was at the 'miracle' game between the Soviet Union and United States.Wore a Montreal Canadiens jersey under his costume during the filming of The Lord of the Rings films.He's made movies where he spoke in English, Danish, French, Spanish, Arabic, and Italian.In 1998, he appeared in two remakes of Alfred Hitchcock films: A Perfect Murder (1998), a remake of Dial M for Murder (1954), and Psycho (1998), a remake of Psycho (1960).He did all of his own stunts in the 1988 horror thriller "Prison." Stunt coordinator Kane Hodder even gave him a "Stunt Crew" T-shirt after filming wrapped.Owner of publishing company Perceval Press.Mortensen did not participate in the pre-production stunt and sword training given to the actors in "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy as he was cast as a replacement only two days prior to the start of filming. However, at the end of filming, the film's swordmaster, the legendary Bob Anderson, stated that Mortenson was the best swordsman he'd ever trained.An accomplished horseman in his spare time, Mortensen requested that his "Rings" character Aragorn be given more saddle time than was originally scripted. He also kept his on-screen horse nearby during the entire principal photography schedule in order to ride in his off-hours and strengthen his relationship with the horse.Broke a tooth while filming a fight sequence for The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002); he asked the crew if they would glue it back on so he could finish the scene.Graduated from St. Lawrence University in Canton, New York in 1980 with a degree in Government and Spanish.Replaced Stuart Townsend in the role of Aragorn/Strider in The Lord of the Rings, after filming began.Had a book of poetry printed before he was known. The title: "Ten Last Night."His "Lord of The Rings" co-star Billy Boyd described him as 'mad as a fish.'.Worked as a truck driver while living in DenmarkWrites poetry in his spare time.Lived in South America from age two to age 11.Although their divorce only became final in 1998, he and his former wife, Exene Cervenka, separated in late 1990/early 1991 after less than 3 years of marriage but remain close friends often working together and co-parenting their son.Spent a couple weeks in Russia prior to filming Eastern Promises (2007) to research his role and better understand his character.Admitted in an interview that when he first started out as an actor, his agents encouraged him to change his name to "Vic Morten." Obviously, he refused.His father was Danish. His mother was American, born in Watertown, Jefferson, New York, in upstate NY. She was of English, and more distant Scottish, ancestry. Viggo's maternal grandfather, Walter Sidney Atkinson, was from Parrsboro, Cumberland, Nova Scotia, Canada, and his maternal grandmother, Mary Annis (Gamble), was from New York, and had deep roots in NY and Connecticut.Has two younger brothers, Walter and Charles. They are both geologists.He was among the actors considered for the role of Wolverine in X-Men (2000) before Hugh Jackman was cast.He was cut from his first two movies (Swing Shift (1984) and The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985)), without being told by the filmmakers. He had encouraged his family to go see them in theaters, only to be told his scenes were not in the film, and he didn't appear in the credits. Viggo's mother became concerned that he had been caught up in New York's crack epidemic and was lying about his lifestyle.He has dual American and Danish citizenship.Speaks fluent French.On December 4th, 2009, for the Montr��al Canadiens centennial celebration at the Bell Center, Viggo Mortensen - a long-time Canadiens fan - came out in his red Habs jersey to introduce Guy Lafleur, "my all-time hero," in French.After his parents divorced when he was 11, he moved to New York with his mother and two younger brothers.Has been photographing for years, recently debuted with an exhibition at the Robert Mann Gallery in NYC. -- American Photo, July/August 2000.As Viggo lived in Argentina as a child, he is a fan of Argentine soccer team San Lorenzo (real name of the team: "San Lorenzo of Almagro," from Buenos Aires City). Viggo usually wear clothes and accessories with this team's colors (red and blue) the last time in public, at the Rome Festival, in the "Alatriste" Premiere.He received the scar on his upper lip after scratching his face on a barbed wire fence at a Halloween party.Replaced Christoph Waltz in the role of Sigmund Freud in A Dangerous Method (2011) after Waltz backed out of the project in order to film Water for Elephants (2011).Was invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in June 2004.Is a big fan of the New York Mets and the Montreal Canadiens. When filming A History of Violence (2005), he showed up on the Toronto set wearing a Canadiens' jersey.For his role in Eastern Promises (2007), he stated that part of his performance was inspired by Russian hockey player Alexei Kovalev.Became a father for the 1st time at age 29 when his [now ex] wife Exene Cervenka gave birth to their son Henry Mortensen on January 28, 1988.In 2003 he visited Denmark and had a booksigning, an art exhibition opening and The Lord of The Rings premiere.In a relationship with Ariadna Gil since 2009. |
| Trademarks: |
Cleft chin
Quiet, methodical style of speaking
Often plays rugged but reluctant heroes
Frequently cast by David Cronenberg
Relaxed naturalistic acting style |
| Quotes: |
On the role of an actor in film: "It comes down to the fact that you supply the blue, and they supply the other colors and mix them with your blue, and maybe there's some blue left in the painting and maybe there isn't. Maybe there wasn't supposed to be any there in the first place. So have some fun and make a good blue and walk away."
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<hr>
I don't plan [my career]; I wait and hope the right thing will find me.
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<hr>
Photography, painting or poetry those are just extensions of me, how I perceive things, they are my way of communicating.
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<hr>
I'm the one who said yes to these movies, and now I'm having to pay the price for it. I mean if I had my druthers, I wouldn't do any movies anymore, frankly.
<br />
<hr>
I was on my way out of a Sunday rehearsal. When I was walking out of the gym, all sort of sweaty, half in street clothes and half in Aragorn's clothes, waving the sword around, trying to keep a mental picture of what we've just done. Just walking down the street, down to where my car was parked, on a Sunday afternoon, waving the sword around, looking like some desperate Rasputin character. Cops car comes: there's been some report... |
| Salaries: |
Hidalgo (2004) - $2,000,000 |
| Job title: |
Actor,Producer,Director |
| Others works: |
Has released two poetry/jazz/organized-chaos CDs: "Don't Tell Me What to Do" and "One Less Thing to Worry About".
Has published book available at Amazon.com or BarnesandNoble.com called 'Recent Forgeries'. Included in t |
| Spouse: |
Exene Cervenka (July 8, 1987 - March 13, 1998) (divorced, 1 child) |
| Children: |
Henry MortensenHenry Mortensen |
| Parents: |
Grace Gamble Mortensen (Atkinson)
Viggo Peter Mortensen Sr. |
| Relatives: |
Walter Mortensen (Sibling)
Charles Mortensen (Sibling) |
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