Orlando Bloom is an English actor. He played the Elf Legolas in The Lord of the Rings film trilogy (2001 - 2003) and later two of The Hobbit films (2013, 2014) directed by Peter Jackson.
Following his role as Legolas, he took on parts in films such as Troy (2005), Kingdom of Heaven, and Elizabethtown. Aside from Legolas, he is best known for the role of Will Turner in the Pirates of the Caribbean films.
In May 2020, Orlando Bloom appeared with many fellow cast of The Lord of the Rings in Josh Gad's "One Zoom to Rule Them All" reunion.
Biography[]
Born on January 13, 1977 in Canterbury, England, Orlando Bloom's plans of becoming an actor developed quite early when he realized that the characters on TV and in the movies weren't real, that they were actors. "Once I realized that I could be Superman or I could be The Hustler or I could be Daniel Day Lewis's character in The Last Of The Mohicans - I was like, 'Man, I can become an actor and be all of those things.'"
In 1993, he moved to London to improve his career, doing bit parts in TV series like "Casualty". Bloom spent two years at the National Youth Theatre before getting a scholarship to train with the British American Drama Academy. His first memorable appearance, a cameo in the critically acclaimed movie Wilde in 1997, earned him various film offers, which he all turned down in favor to play theatre. After Wilde, Bloom attended the Guildhall School of Music and Drama for three years. On stage, he appeared in plays such as The Seagull, Twelfth Night, and Trojan Women.
Trivia[]
- For The Lord of the Rings films Bloom had to learn archery, how to ride a horse bareback (while shooting an arrow), and how to fight and wield two swords. "I started off with archery, I rode about 20 different horses, I had physical training in the gym, and I had to learn the Elvish ways of speaking and fighting. Their fighting is based on ancient European and Asian martial arts, so I had a trainer who taught me how to use the blades. I also did a lot of movement training, because movement is my way into the character." - SFX Magazine.
- He originally auditioned for The Lord of the Rings in the part of Faramir, Boromir's brother, who would not be introduced until The Two Towers. But Peter Jackson thought he would be perfect for Legolas instead. Bloom learned that he got the part the day before he graduated from Guildhall.
- He wears a replica of the One Ring that says "To wherever it may lead." It was given to him by one of the make-up artists from the first film trilogy.
- Ironically, Bloom is two years older than Lee Pace, who played his character's father, Thranduil.
- He has a son, Flynn Bloom, born in 2011 with model Miranda Kerr; a daughter, Daisy Dove Bloom, born in August 2020 with singer Katy Perry; and a niece, Stella Bloom-Mills, born 1999.
- He appeared in the 1997 film Wilde, which also featured Stephen Fry.
- He appeared in the 2004 film Troy alongside Sean Bean.
- He appeared in the 2005 film Kingdom of Heaven, which also featured Marton Csokas.
- He appeared in the 2008 anthology film New York, I Love You, which also featured John Hurt.
- He appeared in the 2011 film The Three Musketeers, which also featured Luke Evans.
- He briefly appeared in Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales (2017) which also starred David Wenham, Adam Brown, and Bruce Spence.
Quotes[]
- "When you start falling for somebody and you can't stop thinking about when you're going to see them again, I love that," "Women are beautiful. They deserve to be cherished and respected." And, he adds with a laugh, "They're a handful."
- "People come into your life and people leave it... you just have to trust that life has a road mapped out for you."
- "As soon as I got to New Zealand, I went bungee jumping. I was standing on the platform for one hour contemplating whether to jump or not".
- "I'm probably a good boyfriend, but I'm pretty intense. When you're with me it's exciting, fun and very intense. At the same time, I'm easy going. But all that depends on what girl I'm with."
- "The girls have got a bit excited. I spoke to my agent and she says she's wading through the fan mail. We've got bags of it."
- "I got to dress up in funny clothes and run around New Zealand with a bow and arrow for 18 months, how bad could that be?"
- "Viggo will go on about Elves and how they're always doing their nails and brushing their long, blonde hair, and being all prissy. And I just say: Well, at least I'm going to live forever! Got that? LIVE FOREVER!"
- "I can be a little bit outrageous. I can be a lot of things. I'm a bit of an adrenaline junkie, so I love to go out there and do kind of crazy stuff which is slightly outrageous, like bungee jumping, skydiving, surfing and that sort of stuff. But I also like to just chill with my friends and go and see movies and do normal things."
- "I mean, I have a great job. I get to dress up and become somebody else, especially when it's someone like Legolas, who's this super-cool kind of otherworldly elf. It's, like, I'm lucky, man, so why would I not appreciate that?"
- "Legolas doesn't speak a lot, you know? He's kind of the quiet type. Everyone else was saying things and stuff, and I was sort of just the guy in the background going... What's going on? I'm sensing something."
Sean Astin • Sean Bean • Cate Blanchett • Orlando Bloom • Billy Boyd • |
The Hobbit films actors | |
---|---|
Richard Armitage • John Bell • Manu Bennett • Cate Blanchett • Orlando Bloom • Jed Brophy • Adam Brown • John Callen • Benedict Cumberbatch • Luke Evans • Martin Freeman • Stephen Fry • Ryan Gage • Mark Hadlow • Peter Hambleton • Craig Hall • Sir Ian Holm • Stephen Hunter • Robin Kerr • William Kircher • Sir Christopher Lee • Evangeline Lilly • Sir Ian McKellen • Graham McTavish • James Nesbitt • Mary Nesbitt • Peggy Nesbitt • Dean O'Gorman • Lee Pace • Mikael Persbrandt • John Rawls • Andy Serkis • Conan Stevens • Ken Stott • Aidan Turner • Stephen Ure • Hugo Weaving • Elijah Wood |