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 Bragi (Old Norse) is the skaldic god of poetry in Norse mythology. Etymology The theonym Bragi probably stems from the masculine noun ''bragr'', which can be translated in Old Norse as 'poetry' (cf. Icelandic ''bragur'' 'poem, melody, wise' ...

/Anders Johnson in the fantasy series '' The Almighty Johnsons''. He also portrayed

Kirk Douglas Kirk Douglas (born Issur Danielovitch; December 9, 1916 – February 5, 2020) was an American actor and filmmaker. After an impoverished childhood, he made his film debut in '' The Strange Love of Martha Ivers'' (1946) with Barbara Stanwyck. ...

in '' Trumbo'' (2015).

Early life

O'Gorman was born in

Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

to parents Lance, a landscape painter, and Christine O'Gorman. His younger brother, Brett, 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 World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. O'Gorman earned a black belt in karate by the age of ten, and attended

Rangitoto College Rangitoto College is a state coeducational secondary school, located on the North Shore City, North Shore of Auckland, New Zealand. Serving years 9 to 13, Rangitoto has a school roll of as of making it the largest "brick-and-mortar" school in ...

in Auckland. He initially planned to study graphic design.

Career

Film

At 12 years old O'Gorman was discovered by a casting agent during a school speech competition."Dean O'Gorman Biography"
''Tribute Movie'' 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."Dean O'Gorman"
''NZONSCREEN'' 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. In April 2011 O'Gorman was cast as the Dwarf Fili in

Peter Jackson Sir Peter Robert Jackson (born 31 October 1961) is a New Zealand filmmaker. He is best known as the director, writer, and producer of the ''Lord of the Rings'' trilogy (2001–2003) and the ''Hobbit'' trilogy (2012–2014), both of which ar ...

's three-part film adaptation of ''

The Hobbit ''The Hobbit, or There and Back Again'' is a children's fantasy novel by the English author J. R. R. Tolkien. It was published in 1937 to wide critical acclaim, being nominated for the Carnegie Medal and awarded a prize from the ...

''. He later made a cameo appearance in an advertisement for

Air New Zealand Air New Zealand Limited () is the flag carrier of New Zealand. Based in Auckland, the airline operates scheduled passenger flights to 20 domestic and 28 international destinations in 18 countries, primarily within the Pacific Rim. The airline h ...

. In

Jay Roach Mathew Jay Roach (born June 14, 1957) is an American filmmaker. He is best known for directing the Austin Powers (film series), ''Austin Powers'' film series, ''Meet the Parents'', ''Dinner for Schmucks'', ''The Campaign (film), The Campaign'', ...

's 2015 film '' Trumbo'' O'Gorman plays the part of

, including a re-creation of filming the movie ''

Spartacus Spartacus (; ) was a Thracians, Thracian gladiator (Thraex) who was one of the Slavery in ancient Rome, escaped slave leaders in the Third Servile War, a major Slave rebellion, slave uprising against the Roman Republic. Historical accounts o ...

''. He plays a demoralized writer in the 2017 film ''

Pork Pie A pork pie is a traditional English meat pie, usually served either at room temperature or cold (although often served hot in Yorkshire). It consists of a filling of roughly chopped pork and pork fat, surrounded by a layer of jellied pork stock ...

'', winning praise at Cannes.

Television

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 ''Shortland Street'' is a New Zealand Prime time, prime-time soap opera centring on the fictitious Shortland Street Hospital. The show was first broadcast on TVNZ 2 on 25 May 1992 and is New Zealand's longest-running drama and soap opera, be ...

'' 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 Ryan Thomas Gosling ( ; born November 12, 1980) is a Canadian actor. His work includes both independent films and major studio features, and his accolades include a Golden Globe Award, in addition to nominations for three Academy Awards, a ...

, 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 The Cult are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Bradford in 1983. Before settling on their current name in January 1984, the band had performed under the name Death Cult, which was an evolution of the name of lead vocalist Ian Astbury ...

'', ''

Go Girls Go, GO, G.O., or Go! may refer to: Arts and entertainment Games and sport * Go (game), a board game for two players * '' Travel Go'' (formerly ''Go – The International Travel Game''), a game based on world travel * Go, the starting position ...

'' 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''. He played mountaineer George Lowe in 2016 mini-series ''Hillary''.

Art and photography

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. 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 Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...

, New Zealand.reviews of Dean O'Gorman in 2012
/ref> The theme of the exhibition focused on the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

. To obtain accuracy in his work, O'Gorman sought the advice of a New Zealand Vietnam veteran. Preferring to dress and set up shoots himself, the models for this gallery included other cast members from '' The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey'' and ''The Almighty Johnsons''. O'Gorman's photographs were also displayed at the 2015 Berlin B3 Biennial.

Personal life

O'Gorman married his long-time girlfriend Sarah Wilson in January 2016. In May 2019, his daughter was born.

Filmography

Film

Television

Video game

References

External links

Dean O'Gorman's official photography website
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:OGorman, Dean 1976 births 20th-century New Zealand male actors 21st-century New Zealand male actors Living people New Zealand artists New Zealand male film actors New Zealand male soap opera actors New Zealand male television actors New Zealand people of English descent New Zealand people of Irish descent People educated at Rangitoto College Photographers from Auckland