Viggo Mortensen biography

Synopsis

Viggo Mortensen’s film debut was in Witness (1985), and he became well known for his role as the brave warrior Aragorn in The Lord of the Rings trilogy (2001–2003), and later films include Hidalgo (2004) and A History of Violence (2005) directed by David Cronenberg. He recently reunited with Cronenberg on the Russian organized crime drama Eastern Promises (2007) to critical success.

Profile

Actor, born in Manhattan, New York, USA. Born to a Danish father and American mother, he spent much of his early childhood travelling with his family and spent several years in Venezuela, Argentina, and Denmark before returning to New York, where he studied at St Lawrence University. He took up acting and later moved to Los Angeles, where he earned critical praise for his stage performance in Bent. His film debut was in Witness (1985), and further work includes The Indian Runner (1991), Portrait of a Lady (1996), and 28 Days (2000).

Mortensen became well known for his role as the brave warrior Aragorn in The Lord of the Rings trilogy (2001??3), and later films include Hidalgo (2004) and A History of Violence (2005) directed by David Cronenberg. Most recently, he reunited with Cronenberg on the Russian organized crime drama, Eastern Promises (2007). Starring opposite Naomi Watts, Mortensen has attracted a lot of critical attention for his work on the film.

Mortensen is also an accomplished poet, painter, and photographer. He married singer Exene Cervenka in the late 1980s, but they later divorced. The couple had one child together, a son named Henry.