Andy Serkis is regarded as a legend for motion capture roles with prominent performances in some of the most renowned projects. The actor did motion capture for iconic characters like Gollum in The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trilogies, the titular ape in King Kong, and the fan-favorite intelligent ape leader Caesar in the Planet of the Apes reboot trilogy.
The character of Gollum in Peter Jackson’s trilogy on J.R.R. Tolkien’s magical world played a significant role in popularizing Andy Serkis. Gollum was a thin, creepy-looking hobbit who obsessed over a shiny golden ring and crawled around the terrains of a mountain. It was revealed by Serkis in an interview that he walked on fours to achieve finesse in his role as Gollum.
What was Andy Serkis’ method acting technique to play Gollum?
Motion capturing involves the leading actor or actress wearing a special mocap suit covered in sensors which helps to capture the actions and expressions. Andy Serkis revealed in an interview with The Guardian that he practiced extreme method acting to pull off the role of Gollum in the Lord of the Rings films.
We saw Gollum crawling on all fours in the Peter Jackson movies. To perfectly portray the role of the creepy and corrupted Hobbit, Serkis used to walk on all fours and acted exactly like Gollum. As his character was searching for that one ring to rule over everyone, he also pretended to look for something on coming into contact with others on the set.
“I used to walk on all fours off set when we were filming Lord of the Rings. I spent a lot of time in preparation for that [as Gollum]; I would go off for walks on all fours for hours. I did occasionally come into contact with other people, so I just had to pretend I was looking for something. It’s fair to say that’s pretty method.”
The extreme hard work paid off as Andy Serkis went on to be well known for his acting both on camera and in the mocap suit. Later when he appeared as the intelligent ape Caesar in Rise of the Planet of the Apes, he was showered with critical acclaim and appreciation from all around.
The Black Panther star’s dedication to his work is evident from his statement on acting. He admitted that acting “unlocks the child in” him. He described it as a “liberating experience”. Following his work in the reboot Planet of the Apes trilogy, he is also involved in the upcoming Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes.
Andy Serkis acted as a mentor for the Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes cast
After his memorable performance as Caesar, the fans of the franchise heartily hoped for the actor to be involved with the fourth installment in some way. The director Wes Ball shared with Collider that Serkis “was crucial in sitting with us and talking about how we stay true to the spirit of things” while carving a new path.
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes takes place 300 years after the events of War for the Planet of the Apes. Wes Ball shared that the motion capture veteran is one of the nicest human beings and did not think twice before agreeing to give some pointers to the new stars.
“He talked to all the actors and just told them what he had learned. Our big thing is, you can’t pretend to be an ape. You have to be an ape. And that’s hard for actors when you’re walking around with these silly suits and you’re making ape noises. You look ridiculous and like how do you just get past that, and just do it and be authentic while doing so? I think it was a real journey and struggle for all the guys at first.”
The Venom 2 director’s advice was useful for the new stars to adapt to the style fast. This was also confirmed by the lead of the new film Owen Teague. The Noa actor claimed to The Hollywood Reporter that Andy Serkis guided him to tackle the difficulties in motion capturing. With wise words from the veteran, Teague was able to grasp it fast and got used to it after a week.
The upcoming fourth installment also stars The Witcher fame Freya Allan alongside William H. Macy, Peter Macon, and Kevin Durand and is also slated to start a new trilogy.
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes will be released on May 10, 2024.
Andy Serkis’ Gollum can be seen in The Lord of the Rings trilogy, streaming on Max and his Caesar can be seen in the reboot Planet of the Apes trilogy, streaming on Hulu.
