Dean Lance O'Gorman (born 1 December 1976) is a New Zealand actor, artist, and photographer. He played the dwarf Fíli in the Hobbit trilogy and the Norse God Bragi/Anders Johnson in the fantasy series The Almighty Johnsons. He also portrayed Kirk Douglas in Trumbo (2015).
Dean O'Gorman | |
|---|---|
 O'Gorman at Boston Comic-Con in 2013 | |
| Born | Dean Lance O'Gorman 1 December 1976 Auckland, New Zealand |
| Occupation(s) | Actor, photographer, artist |
| Years active | 1990–present |
| Spouse | Sarah Wilson (m. 2016) |
| Children | 1 |
| Website | deanogorman |
Early life edit
O'Gorman was born in Auckland, New Zealand, to parents Lance, a landscape painter, and Christine O'Gorman. He has a younger brother, Brett, who is also an actor as well as a comedian. He has Irish and English ancestry; his maternal grandfather was a British paratrooper in the Second World War.[1]
O'Gorman earned a black belt in karate by the age of ten,[2] and attended Rangitoto College in Auckland. He initially planned to study graphic design.[3]
Career edit
Film edit
At 12 years old, O'Gorman was discovered by a casting agent during a school speech competition.[4] After acting in a number of television roles and the Australian film The Rogue Stallion, he got a starring role in 1995 teen romance Bonjour Timothy, a performance which earned him a nomination for Best Actor at the Giffoni Film Festival in Italy.[3]
Subsequent roles included co-starring as Mark in the ensemble drama When Love Comes and playing opposite Melanie Lynskey in the road movie Snakeskin, the latter of which received five awards at the 2001 New Zealand Film and Television Awards.[3]
In April 2011, O'Gorman was cast as the Dwarf Fili in Peter Jackson's three-part film adaptation of The Hobbit.[5] He later made a cameo appearance in an advertisement for Air New Zealand.[6]
In Jay Roach's 2015 film Trumbo, O'Gorman plays the part of Kirk Douglas,[7][8] including a re-creation of filming the movie Spartacus. He plays a demoralized writer in the 2017 film Pork Pie, winning praise at Cannes.[9]
Television edit
O'Gorman began acting in television in the early 1990s. His career took off in the middle of the decade, when he won the role of Harry Martin in popular New Zealand soap opera Shortland Street and appeared in locally-shot shows Hercules: The Legendary Journeys and Xena: Warrior Princess multiple times. O'Gorman also held a regular role as Iolaus in the short-lived Young Hercules opposite Ryan Gosling,[3] and in Australian hit McLeod's Daughters, as Luke Morgan, a love interest of Jodi Fountain McLeod.
He has made multiple guest appearances on several television shows including The Cult, Go Girls and Legend of the Seeker. From 2011 to 2013, O'Gorman played the role of Anders Johnson in New Zealand fantasy series The Almighty Johnsons.[3] He played mountaineer George Lowe in 2016 mini-series Hillary.
Art and photography edit
In addition to acting, O'Gorman is also a photographer and artist. In an interview with Tom Cardy, he confessed to difficult times finding work during his first year in Los Angeles.[10] He was almost broke, but was soon discovered by his friend's agent and thus began to receive more work, dividing his time among painting, photography and acting.
In June 2012, he held his first exhibition at the Page Blackie Gallery in Wellington, New Zealand.[10] The theme of the exhibition focused on the Vietnam War. In order to obtain accuracy in his work, O'Gorman sought the advice of a New Zealand Vietnam veteran.[10] Preferring to dress and set up shoots himself, the models for this gallery included other cast members from The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey[10] and The Almighty Johnsons. O'Gorman's photographs were also displayed at the 2015 Berlin B3 Biennial.[11]
Personal life edit
O'Gorman married his long-time girlfriend Sarah Wilson in January 2016.[12]
In May 2019, his daughter was born.[13]
Filmography edit
Film edit
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Bonjour Timothy | Timothy Taylor | |
| 1996 | Siren | Siren | Short film |
| 1998 | Young Hercules | Young Iolaus | Video |
| When Love Comes Along | Mark | ||
| 2001 | Snakeskin | Johnny | |
| 2002 | Toy Love | Ben | |
| 2004 | Piggy | Confucius | Short film |
| 2008 | The Legend of Bloody Mary | Rev. Whittaker | |
| 2009 | Sabotage | Bobby | |
| 2010 | Kawa | Chris | |
| 2012 | The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey | Fíli | |
| 2013 | The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug | ||
| 2014 | The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies | ||
| 2015 | Trumbo | Kirk Douglas | |
| 2017 | Pork Pie | Jon | |
| 2023 | The Convert | Kedgley |
Television edit
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | The Rogue Stallion | Tony Garrett | TV film |
| Raider of the South Seas | Bobby Morrison | TV film | |
| 1995 | Hercules: The Legendary Journeys | Iloran | Episode: "The Gauntlet" |
| 1996 | Shortland Street | Nurse Harry Martin | TV series |
| Return to Treasure Island | Jim Hawkins | TV film | |
| Xena: Warrior Princess | Homer / Orion | Episode: "Athens City Academy of the Performing Bards" | |
| 1997 | Doom Runners | Deek | TV film |
| Hercules: The Legendary Journeys | Young Iolaus / Ruun | Episodes: "Regrets... I've Had a Few", "Prodigal Sister" | |
| 1998 | Hercules: The Legendary Journeys | Young Iolaus | Episodes: "Medea Culpa", "Twilight" |
| The Legend of William Tell | Darek | Episode: "The Tomb of the Unknown Warrior" | |
| The Chosen | Andrew Scott | TV film | |
| 1998–1999 | Young Hercules | Iolaus | Main role (45 episodes) |
| 1999 | Big Sky | Dean | Episode: "A Family Affair" |
| Duggan | Fergus MacLllwaine | Episode: "Going Overboard" | |
| Fearless | Cliff | TV film | |
| 2000 | Xena: Warrior Princess | Wiglaf | Episode: "Return of the Valkyrie" |
| 2001 | Lawless: Beyond Justice | Nat | TV film |
| All Saints | Evan Coen | Episode: "The Other Side of Perfection" | |
| 2003 | Farscape | Zukash | Episodes: "We're So Screwed: Parts 2 & 3" |
| MDA | Peter Jarman | Episodes: "Judgement Day", "St. Crispin's Day" | |
| 2004 | Serial Killers | Dr. Gilligan / Andrew | Regular role (7 episodes) |
| 2004–2005 | McLeod's Daughters | Luke Morgan | Recurring role (25 episodes) |
| 2007 | Moonlight | Daniel | Episode "No Such Thing as Vampires" |
| 2007–08 | Animalia | Tyrannicus / Harry (voice) | Recurring role (4 episodes) |
| 2009 | Legend of the Seeker | Carver Dunn | Episode: "Deception" |
| Go Girls | Marco | Episodes: "Signs and Obstacles", "Do the Right Thing" | |
| The Cult | Liam | Episode: "The Other Woman " | |
| 2011 | Tangiwai | Bert Sutcliffe | Television film |
| 2011–13 | The Almighty Johnsons | Anders Johnson | Main role (36 episodes) |
| 2016 | Hillary | George Lowe | Main role |
| 2016–17 | Westside | Evan Lace | Recurring role (9 episodes) |
| 2017 | Wanted | Will Johnson | Recurring role (5 episodes, series 2) |
| 2018 | The Brokenwood Mysteries | Barnaby Buchanan | Episode: "The Dark Angel" |
| 2019 | The Bad Seed | Ford Lampton | Main role |
| 2019–present | Golden Boy | Aussie Dave | Recurring role (9 episodes) |
| 2020 | One Lane Bridge | Andrew "Grub" Ryder | Main role |
| 2021–present | Under the Vines | Griffin | Recurring role (5 episodes) |
Video game edit
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Lego the Hobbit | Fíli (voice) | Video game |
References edit
- ^ "Prince Charles lays wreath at Auckland cenotaph". 11 November 2012.
- ^ Nathan, Ian. "The Hobbit Interviews: Dean O'Gorman on Fili". Empire. Retrieved 21 April 2014.
- ^ a b c d e "Dean O'Gorman", NZONSCREEN
- ^ "Dean O'Gorman Biography", Tribute Movie
- ^ "O'Gorman and Pace Join The Hobbit". Comingsoon.net. 30 April 2011. Retrieved 24 November 2011.
- ^ "Just another day in Middle-earth #airnzhobbit - YouTube". Archived from the original on 20 December 2021. Retrieved 24 November 2013 – via YouTube.
- ^ Kit, Borys (22 September 2014). "'Hobbit' Actor to Play Kirk Douglas in Bryan Cranston's 'Trumbo' (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 21 January 2016.
- ^ Mandell, Andrea (20 November 2015) Kirk Douglas reviews 'Trumbo', USA Today. Retrieved 21 January 2016
- ^ Pork Pie remake triumphs at Cannes Film Festival The New Zealand Herald, 20 July 2017, by Ophelia Buckleton. Retrieved 2017-08-05
- ^ a b c d reviews of Dean O'Gorman in 2012
- ^ B3 Biennial 2015 News. Retrieved 2016-01-19
- ^ A magic year for Dean O'Gorman The New Zealand Herald, by Ricardo Simich, 30 April 2016. Retrieved 2017-08-05
- ^ "Hobbit star Dean O'Gorman: 'I became a dad'".