Peter Jackson (LOTR Director)
- "Viggo was the last actor to be hired for the movie. We were lacking the
perfect Aragorn, when a colleague asked me to re-watch some of the films
he had done. And there he suddenly was as large as life in front of me.
Viggo has during the shooting been completely synonymous with Aragorn,
to such an extent that it's hard to see him as Viggo again and not Aragorn. I
have never ever witnessed an actor enter into the spirit of a role the way he
did. Even though the 3 movies first and
foremost are the result of a supreme teamwork, I'm certain that Viggo
Mortensen will be a world-famous star already from film no. 1. He has
exactly what will make most people see him as the great hero."
- ...an instructor was showing Viggo how to handle his sword during a particular scene... Viggo got too close to the instructor & was hit on the tooth. There was a
huge reaction when it happened, we all thought he'd just lost all his front teeth, it was a large sword. Viggo just calmly
bent down, picked up the broken tooth and said "Can't we just super glue it back on & keep going?"
- One day during a short break in shooting we were in a restaurant & I met Viggo at the counter. In jest I called him Aragorn & for the next half hour or so we talked as if he were Aragorn
and I don't think Viggo even realized it. That's how strongly he'd become his character!
Philippa Boyens (LOTR Screen Writer)
- " I truly can't imagine another actor
playing him now, Aragorn. He (Viggo) apparently takes a long time to decide on, he chooses his
projects very carefully. So suddenly he was offered these three films, to come to
New Zealand, for a huge commitment. Aragorn as a character was one of the more difficult characters
because of his journey. Wonderful character, brilliant character, but certainly a
character that... dramatically, you need to really think through the story. So Fran
and I talked to him about some ideas, and he asked us questions. He really just
asked us questions, and we began to realize these were some very acute
questions that he was asking. Anyway, he had some time to decide, it was a
very short period of time. We
hadn't heard an answer from him. A phone call came in, and Jan Bacon[?], our wonderful assistant, said "It's Viggo
Mortenson on the phone", and she said take it. So I picked up the phone and
went, "Hello?" And this voice said, "Hi, this is Viggo Mortenson." And he said, "I
wanted to ask you a question." And I thought, oh no, it's going to be about
schedules or time frames, and I went, "Yes?" And he said - and I had no idea if
he had committed or not - he said "So, how old was I when I was taken to the
elves?" And I just went, "Yes!" [pumps arm] And I have to tell you, this is true, he
turned up at the airport, I think he had bare feet, with a copy of the Volsunga
Saga in his bag, which he took off his shelf." (The story of the Volsungs was an
influence on Tolkien and one of his favorite stories as a youth.
Barrie Osborne(LOTR Producer)
-"Watching the dedication of Viggo Mortensen is
really inspiring. He is Aragorn. One time I wanted to film the
sunrise and sunset for a Fellowship scene. Viggo said, "I'll just
camp out," and pretty soon, we had everyone there--the makeup
crew, Orlando Bloom and other cast members who weren't in the
shot, like Miranda Otto and Bernard Hill. We made a big fire,
camped out, filmed our early sunrise shot and went fishing. It was
great!"
Mark Ordesky (LOTR Executive Producer)
- "Casting Viggo was one of our highlights," Ordesky smiles. "He
arrived in New Zealand, was in front of the cameras two days
later and threw himself completely into the role. He is Aragorn."
Sean Bean (costar)
-"It was wonderful, a fantastic experience. It was great. And I was fortunate to be working
alongside Viggo.... He's a wonderful actor and a really great guy as well as a real gentleman. I
really got on well with him. We're about the same age, you see."
Liv Tyler (costar)
- "Women goe nuts over Viggo but he's the kind of guy who never looks at himself. On the set we each had a station with a big mirror. His
was covered with pictures of his son and a photo collage of the crew. There wasn't one little speck left for him to look. He was the only one of us who
never got a massage. Not once."
Quotes About Viggo From "A Perfect Murder Set:
Michael Douglas (Costar)
- "He’s a method-actor in a leading man's body”
- (about Viggo's shyness during filming)“He can yell if he has to – go watch “G.I. Jane”. He’s an excellent actor, but a shy
actor.”
-“Viggo is a real artist. He lives for creating art and being absorbed by it – not for
talking,”.
-Viggo Mortensen is an extraordinary talent. He's
somebody who adjusts himself to every type of part he
plays. In the case of David Shaw, it was really
important to find somebody who the audience would
believe Emily could really be attracted to, who
reflected such a different life... who was not only
good-looking, but also creative, imaginitive and had
time and energy. Viggo is somewhat of a method actor,
and I was amazed to see him bring his own canvases to
the set. He is a fine actor and I hope we hear more
about him in the future
Andrew Davis (Director)
- Viggo Mortensen is one of the most interesting actors
I've worked with... he's totally invested in his
character. He wound up becoming the artist who plays
this guy. He created all of his own art for the movie,
and made all kinds of contributions to [screenwriter]
Pat and myself, in a kind of subtlty he brought to the
character, of NOT being JUST black and white.
Patrick Smith Kelly (Writer)
- He's a very quiet guy. He could care less about being
a movie star, and he's very, very good... very humble,
very dedicated... and I can see why he got this part
and I didn't!
|
