Guy Edward Pearce (born October 5, 1967) is a Screen Actors Guild Award-nominated English-born Australian-raised actor, perhaps best known for his critically acclaimed portrayal of Anterograde amnesia victim Leonard Shelby in Christopher Nolan's Memento, and for his role as Mike Young in the popular Australian television series Neighbours. Other notable credits include the films Rules of Engagement, The Count of Monte Cristo and L.A. Confidential as well as a starring role in The Proposition.

Biography

Early life

Pearce was born in Ely, Cambridgeshire, the son of Anne Cocking (née Pickering), a County Durham-born schoolteacher specializing in needlework and home economics, and Stuart Pearce, a New Zealand-born air force test pilot who died when Pearce was nine. When he was three years old, Pearce moved to Geelong, Australia, where his mother ran a deer farm. He attended The Geelong College. Pearce lived in Blackburn North, Australia in the late 1980's while working on the Australian drama series Neighbours. From ages 16 to 22, he was a competitive amateur bodybuilder, culminating in a Mr. Natural Victoria title.

Career

Pearce starred in several plays when he was young, and graduated to television when he was cast in the Australian soap opera Neighbours in 1985, playing the role of Mike Young for several years. Pearce also found roles in other television series such as Home and Away (1988) and Snowy River: The McGregor Saga (1993).

The director/producer/writer Frank Howson cast Pearce in his first three movies, and paid for him to go to the Cannes Film Festival in 1991 for the premiere of the Howson-directed Hunting. The accompanying Howson-funded publicity campaign brought Pearce to the attention of the international film industry. He made his first major film breakthrough shortly after, with his role as a drag queen in Priscilla, Queen of the Desert in 1994. Since then, he has appeared in several US productions including L.A. Confidential, Ravenous, Rules of Engagement, Memento, The Count of Monte Cristo, and The Time Machine. However, he continues to act in Australian theatre productions as well as Australian films, such as The Hard Word (2002) and the critically lauded The Proposition (2005). Pearce recently portrayed pop artist Andy Warhol in Factory Girl and Harry Houdini in the upcoming film Death Defying Acts. He is also set to appear in The Road (film) and Bedtime Stories with Adam Sandler.

Pearce appeared in Australian band Silverchair's music video for "Across the Night" and in Razorlight's video for "Before I Fall to Pieces".

Personal life

He has been married to Kate Mestitz, a psychologist, since March 1997. He is a long-time supporter of the Geelong Football Club in the Australian Football League. Pearce is an atheist.

Filmography

• Heaven Tonight (1990)
• Hunting (1991)
• The Man from Snowy River the McGregor Saga (1993)
• The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (1994)
• Flynn (1996)
• Dating the Enemy (1996)
• L.A. Confidential (1997)
• Woundings (1998)
• A Slipping-Down Life (1999)
• Ravenous (1999)
• Memento (2000)
• Rules of Engagement (2000)
• Till Human Voices Wake Us (2002)
• The Hard Word (2002)
• The Time Machine (2002)
• The Count of Monte Cristo (2002)
• Two Brothers (2004)
• The Proposition (2005)
• Factory Girl (2006)
• Before I Fall to Pieces, Razorlight, music video (2006)
• First Snow (2007)
• Death Defying Acts (2007)
• Traitor (2008)

Upcoming

• Winged Creatures (2008) (awaiting release)
• The Hurt Locker (2008) (awaiting release)
• In Her Skin (2008) (post-production)
• The Road (2008) (post-production)
• Bedtime Stories (2008) (post-production)

References

External links

• Guy Pearce at the Internet Movie Database