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Eric Bana

Eric Bana

Birthday: 1968-08-09 | Place of Birth: Melbourne, Australia

Eric Bana is an Australian film and television actor. He began his career as a comedian in the sketch comedy series Full Frontal before gaining critical recognition in the biopic Chopper (2000). After a decade of roles in Australian TV shows and films, Bana gained Hollywood's attention by playing the role of American Delta Force Sergeant Norm "Hoot" Hooten in Black Hawk Down (2001), the lead role as Bruce Banner in the Ang Lee directed film Hulk (2003), Prince Hector in the movie Troy (2004), the lead in Steven Spielberg's Munich (2005), and the villain Nero in the science-fiction film Star Trek (2009). An accomplished dramatic actor and comedian, he received Australia's highest film and television awards for his performances in Chopper, Full Frontal and Romulus, My Father. Bana performs predominantly in leading roles in a variety of low-budget and major studio films, ranging from romantic comedies and drama to science fiction and action thrillers. Eric Bana was the younger of two children; he has a brother, Anthony. He is of Croatian ancestry on his father's side. Bana's paternal grandfather, Mate Banadinović, fled to Argentina after the Second World War, and Bana's paternal grandmother emigrated to Germany and then to Australia in the 1950s with her son, Ivan (Bana's father). His father was a logistics manager for Caterpillar, Inc., and his German-born mother, Eleanor, was a hairdresser. Bana grew up in Melbourne's Tullamarine, a suburban area on the western edge of the city, near the main airport. In a cover story for The Mail on Sunday, he told author Antonella Gambotto-Burke that his family had suffered from racist taunts, and that it had distressed him. "Wog is such a terrible word," he said. He has stated: "I have always been proud of my origin, which had a big influence on my upbringing. I have always been in the company of people of European origin". Showing acting skill early in life, Bana began doing impressions of family members at the age of six or seven, first mimicking his grandfather's walk, voice and mannerisms. In school, he mimicked his teachers as a means to get out of trouble. As a teen, he watched the Mel Gibson film Mad Max (1979), and decided he wanted to become an actor. However, he did not seriously consider a career in the performing arts until 1991 when he was persuaded to try stand-up comedy while working as a barman at Melbourne's Castle Hotel. His stand-up gigs in inner-city pubs did not provide him with enough income to support himself, so he continued his work as a barman and bussing tables.

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Known For

Acting

Year
Title

Role

2022
Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers

as    Monterey Jack (voice)

2021
The Dry

as    Aaron Falk

2021
Back to the Outback

as    Chaz (voice)

2021
Envoy: Shark Cull

as    Narrator (voice)

2018
Finke: There & Back

as    Narrator (voice)

2018
The Forgiven

as    Piet Blomfeld

2017
The Secret Scripture

as    Dr. William Grene

2017
King Arthur: Legend of the Sword

as    Uther Pendragon

2016
The Finest Hours

as    Daniel Cluff

2016
Special Correspondents

as    Frank Bonneville

2014
Deliver Us from Evil

as    Ralph Sarchie

2013
Lone Survivor

as    Lieutenant Commander Erik Kristensen

2013
Closed Circuit

as    Martin Rose

2012
Deadfall

as    Addison

2011
Hanna

as    Erik Heller

2010
Love the Beast

as    Self

2009
Star Trek

as    Captain Nero

2009
Funny People

as    Clarke

2009
Mary and Max

as    Damien Popodopolous (voice)

2009
The Time Traveler's Wife

as    Henry DeTamble

2008
The Other Boleyn Girl

as    Henry Tudor

2007
Romulus, My Father

as    Romulus

2005
Munich

as    Avner

2004
Troy

as    Hector

2003
Hulk

as    Bruce Banner / Hulk

2002
The Nugget

as    Lotto

2001
Chopper

as    Mark Brandon 'Chopper' Read

2001
Black Hawk Down

as    SFC Norm 'Hoot' Gibson

2000
Something in the Air

as    Joe Sabatini