Hugo Weaving
+ Biography
Biography - Born 04/04/1960
An attractive blond leading man of Australian films, Weaving scored an international hit as one of a trio of drag queens heading across the continent in "The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert" (1994). He made his film debut as a naive bumpkin who becomes caught up in a love triangle in the low-budget "The City's Edge" (1983), reportedly one of the first Australian films to focus on the plight of its native aborigines. Weaving followed with romantic roles as a dour tutor in "For Love Alone" (1985) and the title character, a bounder employed by a sickly titled Englishman, in the period melodrama "The Right Hand Man" (1986). In "Wendy Cracked a Walnut" (1990), Weaving portrayed a fictional character who comes to life in the fantasies of a woman (Rosanna Arquette).
The actor hit his stride with his award-winning performance as a distrustful blind photographer in Jocelyn Morehouse's "Proof" (1991). As Martin, Weaving was both touching and mysterious as he negotiated his way through relationships with his adoring housekeeper (Genevieve Picot) and a restaurant worker (Russell Crowe) on whom Martin relies for descriptions of the photographs he takes. In 1993, he appeared as a villainous capitalist in Yahoo Serious' "Reckless Kelly", as Anthony LaPaglia's partner in the crime drama "The Custodian" and as a husband involved with insurance fraud in Stephan Elliott's feature debut "Frauds". The following year, Elliott cast Weaving as a drag queen in the surprise hit, "The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert". He also voiced Rex, the aging sheepdog, in the delightful fantasy "Babe" (1995).
While "Priscilla" made him known on a world-wide basis, Weaving eschewed Hollywood fare. He offered a strong turn as a self-destructive burnt-out hippie who meets up with some petty criminals in "True Love and Chaos" (1997). He was hilarious as a predatory real estate agent in Rose Troche's unjustly little-seen "Bedrooms and Hallways" and received his second Best Actor Award from the Australian Film Institute as a petty thief undergoing police interrogation in "The Interview" (1998).
Despite maintaining a rather low-profile, Weaving saw his stock rise again in the USA as the malevolent Agent Smith in the hit sci-fi thriller "The Matrix" (1999). He later returned for the highly anticipated sequels (which were filmed back-to-back) "The Matrix Reloaded" and "The Matrix Revolutions" (both in 2003), in which 100 versions of Weaving as the sneering computer program battled Keanu Reeves on screen. Tackling another three-segment frnachise, Weaving also consented to appear back-to-back-to-back in director Peter Jackson's ambitious, jaw-dropping"Lord of the Rings" trilogy, appearing in a small but crucial role as the elf king Elrond in all three of the films, "The Fellowship of the Ring" (2001), "The Two Towers" (2002) and "Return of the King" (2003), making him part of two of the most commercially and criticaly successful film franchises of their era.
A handful of Weaving's many TV appearances Down Under have made their way to the small screen in the USA. He co-starred with Julie Christie and Sarah Jessica Parker in the CBS miniseries "Dadah Is Death" (1988). Weaving also appeared in the PBS biopic "Melba" about famed Australian opera star Nellie Melba (shown on "Great Performances" in 1989) and was featured alongside Nicole Kidman in the miniseries "Bangkok Hilton" (TNT, 1990).
+ Filmography
+ Awards
- 1998: Australian Film Institute Award for Best Actor in "The Interview".
- 1998: Montreal Film Festival Best Actor Award in "The Interview".
- 1991: Australian Film Institute Award for Best Actor in "Proof".
+ Milestones
- 2003: Reprised role as Agent Evans in "Matrix Reloaded"
- 2003: Had third go round as the evil Agent Evans in "The Matrix: Revelations"
- 2003: Appeared in Peter Jackson's adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's third and final "Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King"
- 2001: Co-produced and starred in "Russian Doll"; played a recently separated private detective who agrees to house his best friend's mistress
- 2001: Co-starred with Richard Dreyfuss in "The Old Man Who Read Love Stories"
- 2000: Returned to the Australian stage in "The White Devil"
- 1999: Offered a deliciously villainous turn as Agent Evans, a mysterious government official tracking computer expert Neo (Keanu Reeves) in "The Matrix"
- 1998: Had leading role in "The Interview"; played a car thief who is interrogated by cops
- 1998: Portrayed a randy real estate agent in "Bedrooms and Hallways"
- 1997: Co-starred in the Australian historical miniseries "Frontier"
- 1995: Voiced the dog Rex in the hit film "Babe"
- 1994: Returned to the stage to star in Sydney production of "Arcadia"
- 1994: Played Tick/Mitzi in international hit "The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert", directed by Stephan Elliott
- 1993: Co-starred in Stephan Elliott's directorial debut "Frauds"
- 1991: Won acclaim for portrayal of blind photographer in "Proof", directed by Jocelyn Moorhouse
- 1986: Met Stephan Elliott during production of "The Right Handed Man"
- 1984: Breakthrough TV role, an English cricket player in the Australian miniseries "Bodyline"
- 1983: Film debut in "The City's Edge"
- 1983: Australian TV debut, "Kings"
- 1981: Joined Sydney Theatre Company under a two-year, eight-play contract (date approximate)
- 1976: Moved with family to Australia
- Raised in South Africa and England
- Born in Nigeria
- Acted on stage in Australia with the Belvoir Street Theatre
- Portrayed Elrond in the Peter Jackson-directed trilogy adapted from "The Lord of the Rings" (filmed 1999-2000); the first segment, "The Fellowship of the Rings", set for release in December 2001; "The Two Towers" (2002) and "The Return of the King" (2003)
+ Family & Love Life
- father Wallace Weaving: retired
- mother Anne Weaving: works in Sydney
- brother Simon Weaving: older
- sister Anna Weaving: younger
- son Harry Weaving:
- daughter Holly Weaving:
- wife Katrina Greenwood:
