Lawrence Makoare (born 20 March 1968) is a New Zealand

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...

actor. He is most known for his roles in ''

The Lord of the Rings ''The Lord of the Rings'' is an epic high-fantasy novel by English author and scholar J. R. R. Tolkien. Set in Middle-earth, intended to be Earth at some time in the distant past, the story began as a sequel to Tolkien's 1937 children's b ...

'' film series as several prominent antagonists, including Lurtz the Uruk-Hai and the Witch King of Angmar.

Career

Makoare was a road construction builder who drifted into acting after he accompanied a girlfriend to a drama class and was picked out by the teacher to perform because of his impressive height. He began his career performing as a stuntman. Makoare is best known for his roles in ''

'' and ''

The Hobbit ''The Hobbit, or There and Back Again'' is a children's fantasy novel by English author J. R. R. Tolkien. It was published in 1937 to wide critical acclaim, being nominated for the Carnegie Medal and awarded a prize from the ''N ...

'' film trilogies. In ''

The Fellowship of the Ring ''The Fellowship of the Ring'' is the first of three volumes of the epic novel ''The Lord of the Rings'' by the English author J. R. R. Tolkien. It is followed by '' The Two Towers'' and ''The Return of the King''. It takes place in the ficti ...

'', he portrayed the

Uruk-hai An Orc (or Ork) is a fictional humanoid monster like a goblin. Orcs were brought into modern usage by the fantasy writings of J. R. R. Tolkien, especially ''The Lord of the Rings''. In Tolkien's works, Orcs are a brutish, aggressive, ugly, ...

leader Lurtz, and in ''

The Return of the King ''The Return of the King'' is the third and final volume of J. R. R. Tolkien's ''The Lord of the Rings'', following '' The Fellowship of the Ring'' and '' The Two Towers''. It was published in 1955. The story begins in the kingdom of Gondor, ...

'', he portrayed the Witch-king of Angmar as well as Gothmog, the

Orc An Orc (or Ork) is a fictional humanoid monster like a goblin. Orcs were brought into modern usage by the fantasy writings of J. R. R. Tolkien, especially '' The Lord of the Rings''. In Tolkien's works, Orcs are a brutish, aggressive, ugl ...

commander at the

Battle of the Pelennor Fields In J. R. R. Tolkien's novel ''The Lord of the Rings'', the Battle of the Pelennor Fields () was the defence of the city of Minas Tirith by the forces of Gondor and the cavalry of its ally Rohan, against the forces of the Dark Lord Sauron from ...

. In '' The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug'', he portrayed the Orc commander Bolg, son of Azog. Due to filming commitments on '' Marco Polo'', Makoare was unavailable during the pick-ups shooting of '' The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies'', in which Bolg is portrayed by

John Tui John Tui (pronounced ''two-we''; born 11 June 1975) is a New Zealand actor of Tongan descent. He is known for his roles as Anubis "Doggie" Cruger in '' Power Rangers S.P.D.'' and as Daggeron in ''Power Rangers Mystic Force'', both filmed in his ...

instead. Makoare is also popular among '' Xena: Warrior Princess'' fans, having played two memorable characters in the third season: a Barbarian leader in episode "The Quill Is Mightier..."; and Maecanus (a minion of

Aphrodite Aphrodite ( ; grc-gre, Ἀφροδίτη, Aphrodítē; , , ) is an ancient Greek goddess associated with love, lust, beauty, pleasure, passion, and procreation. She was syncretized with the Roman goddess . Aphrodite's major symbols inclu ...

) in episode "Fins, Femmes and Gems". In 2002, he portrayed Mr. Kil in the

James Bond The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have ...

film ''

Die Another Day ''Die Another Day'' is a 2002 spy film and the twentieth film in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions. It was produced by Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli, and directed by Lee Tamahori. The fourth and final film st ...

''. The director of

The Dead Lands ''The Dead Lands'' is a 2014 New Zealand action film directed by Toa Fraser. It was screened in the Special Presentations section at the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival where it had its world premier on 4 September 2014. It was selected ...

Toa Fraser Toa Fraser (born 1975) is a New Zealand born playwright and film director, of Fijian heritage. His first feature film, '' No. 2'', starring Ruby Dee won the Audience Award (World Dramatic) at the 2006 Sundance Film Festival. His second, ''Dean ...

, was not enthusiastic about using Makoare as the warrior, but was won over by the way he managed, after a few directing hints, to turn in a performance that made him weep.Steohen Sait
'Interview: Toa Fraser on Bringing His Life to “The Dead Lands” ,'
The Moveable Fest 11 December 2014. Lawrence Makoare

Filmography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Makaore, Lawrence 1968 births Living people People from Auckland New Zealand male film actors New Zealand male Māori actors New Zealand Māori carvers