Andy Serkis Gollum              Full Name: Andrew Clement G. Serkis Birthplace: Ruislip Manor, London, England Birth Date: 20th April, 1964 Marital Status: He is married to Lorraine Ashbourne         Trivia: Studied visual arts at Lancaster University and chose theatre as his second subject so he would use his art skills designing posters. He later changed his major subject to acting Is a pescetarian Is one of five children, with three brothers and a sister His ancestors original surname is "Serkissian" Has directed motion capture performances for video games such as Heavenly Sword and Enslaved In 2002, he married his partner, actress Lorraine Ashbourne Was a member of County College, a constituent of Lancaster University. He was also part of the student radio station Bailrigg FM Owns a One Ring prop, one of only two used in The Lord of the Rings In 1985, whilst still at college he joined Dukes Playhouse and earned his equity card working backstage. After leaving college, he stayed for a further 18 months as an actor Has toured in many productions and performed in nearly every major theatre in the UK. He has performed as the Fool in King Lear and as the MC in Cabaret Lives in Crouch End, London Was a vegetarian but began eating fish during the filming of The Lord of the Rings For ten years during his childhood, his family spent time travelling and living in the Middle East Made his TV debut in 1987 During breaks from filming The Lord of the Rings he appeared in stage productions in the UK and also made his directorial debut with Snake (2001) Has three children. Ruby born in 1998, Sonny in 2000, and Louis in 2004 Due to his ground breaking performance as Gollum, using the motion capture technology and his own acting ability, a debate was started as to whether he would be allowed to be nominated in the Best Supporting Actor category, as although not physically seen by the audience, everything on screen was performed and acted by him. Eventually it was decided that as he was not actually visible, he was not eligible for the nomination Educated at St. Benedict's School in Ealing, a Roman Catholic school in a Benedictine Abbey Is a keen mountaineer. While at university, he climbed all the peaks in the Lake District, and has been climbing in the Alps since his 20's. In 1996, he climbed Matterhorn, which had been a childhood dream Devised the voice of Gollum, after seeing one his cats coughing up a fur ball Joined Nuffield Studio while at university, designing and producing plays and occasionally acting Is regarded as the leading expert on performing with and using motion capture technology With his wife, he once made a road trip from London to Sicily in a camper van His mother Lylie taught disabled children and his father Clement was an Iraqi-born gynaecologist of Armenian descent Made his Hollywood debut in 13 Going on 30 (2004) Is an accomplished amateur painter Parents were Catholic, but he became an atheist during his teenage years Founded The Imaginarium, a performance capture studio that creates films and video games. It also has an academy which teaches actors how to work with and perform using motion capture Notable Projects: Arthur Christmas (2011) The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn (2011) Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011) Burke and Hare (2010) Little Dorrit (TV Series) (2008) Inkheart (2008) Flushed Away (2006) The Prestige (2006) King Kong (2005) 13 Going on 30 (2004) Oliver Twist (TV Series) (1999) Current Projects: The Spider (2012) The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013) Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014) The Adventures of Tintin: Red Rackham's Treasure (2015) Selected Awards: 2012: Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor (Rise of the Planet of the Apes) 2004: Empire Award for Best British Actor (The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King) 2004: SAG Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture (The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King) 2003: Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor (The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers)   < <Back to cast biographies index