Verne Troyer
| Verne Troyer | |
|---|---|
|
Troyer at the Supanova Pop Culture Expo Sydney, Australia in 2012 | |
| Born |
January 1, 1969 Sturgis, Michigan, U.S. |
| Occupation | |
| Years active | 1994–present |
| Height | 2 ft 8 in (81 cm) |
| Weight | 35 lb (16 kg) |
| Spouse(s) | Genevieve Gallen (February 22–23, 2004; annulled) |
| Signature | |
 | |
Verne Troyer (born January 1, 1969) is an American actor, stunt actor and comedian. He is notable for his height of 2 ft 8 in (0.81 m), the result of cartilage–hair hypoplasia dwarfism,[1] making him one of the shortest men in the world. He is best known for playing Mini-Me in the Austin Powers series of comedy films.
Since 2014, Troyer has appeared as 'The Boss' in adverts for gambling site Bgo.com
Early life
Troyer was born in Sturgis, Michigan, the son of Susan, a factory worker, and Reuben Troyer, a repair technician.[2] He has two siblings, Davon and Deborah. During his childhood, Troyer spent much time visiting Amish relatives[3] in Centreville, Michigan, and graduated from Centreville High School in 1987. Troyer was initially raised Amish but his parents left the faith when he was a child.[4] He has stated that his parents "never treated me any different than my other average sized siblings. I used to have to carry wood, feed the cows and pigs and farm animals".[5]
Personal life
He reportedly married model Genevieve Gallen on February 22, 2004, but filed for an annulment the next day. Though the couple's engagement was widely reported, Troyer and his attorney deny that the two ever had any formal wedding plans, saying that Gallen had fabricated the story for her own financial gain.[6]
On June 25, 2008, a private home video leaked of Troyer and his former live-in girlfriend, Ranae Shrider, having sex. The video, filmed in 2008 in Beverly Hills, California, and Shrider's hometown of Fort Cobb, Oklahoma,[7] was leaked to the public by Shrider and TMZ.[8] Kevin Blatt, the man responsible for brokering the deal for Paris Hilton's sex tape in 2003, tried to sell the video. Troyer, through his long-time attorney, Ed McPherson, sued TMZ, Blatt, and online rental company SugarDVD, for invasion of privacy and copyright infringement.
In May 2015, Verne, his girlfriend Brittney Powell,[9] and her son Tyson appeared on Celebrity Wife Swap, where she switched places with Hines Ward's wife.
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Baby's Day Out | Baby Bink's stunt double | |
| 1996 | Dunston Checks In | ||
| 1996 | Jingle All the Way | Little Santa | |
| 1996 | Pinocchio's Revenge | Pinocchio's Miniature Double | |
| 1997 | Men in Black | Alien Son | |
| 1997 | Volcano | ||
| 1997 | RocketMan | ||
| 1997 | Wishmaster | Creature Stage #1 | |
| 1998 | My Giant | Wrestler | |
| 1998 | Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas | Wee Waiter | Billed as "Verne J. Troya" |
| 1998 | The Wacky Adventures of Ronald McDonald: Scared Silly | Sundae | |
| 1998 | Mighty Joe Young | Baby Joe | |
| 1999 | Here Lies Lonely | Virgil | |
| 1999 | Instinct | Gorilla Performer | |
| 1999 | Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me | Mini-Me | |
| 2000 | Mission Imp | Ethan Runt | |
| 2000 | Bit Players | Marty Rosenthal | |
| 2000 | How the Grinch Stole Christmas | Band Member | |
| 2001 | Bubble Boy | Dr Phreak | |
| 2001 | Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone | Griphook | Voice by Warwick Davis Credited as Verne Troyer |
| 2002 | Run for the Money | Attila | |
| 2002 | Austin Powers in Goldmember | Mini-Me | |
| 2003 | Pauly Shore is Dead | Himself | |
| 2007 | Postal | Himself | |
| 2008 | The Love Guru | Coach Punch Cherkov | |
| 2008 | College | Himself | |
| 2009 | The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus | Percy | |
| 2012 | Keith Lemon: The Film | Archimedes | |
| 2015 | Trailer Park Boys: Drunk, High, and Unemployed: Live in Austin | Himself | |
| 2015 | Gnome Alone | The Gnome |
Television
- Masked Rider (1995–1996) (stunts for Paul Pistore)
- Shasta McNasty (1999–2000)
- Jack of All Trades (2000) – Napoleon Bonaparte
- Sabrina, the Teenage Witch (2002) – Angus
- Boston Public (2003) – Taylor Prentice (2 episodes)
- Karroll's Christmas (2004)
- The Girls Next Door (2005) – himself (episode "Fight Night")
- The Surreal Life (2005)
- Bo! in the USA (2006)
- The Surreal Life: Fame Games (2007)
- Welcome to Sweden (2007)
- Celebrity Juice (2008, 2010, 2012, 2015) – himself
- The Smoking Gun Presents: World's Dumbest... (2008) – commentator
- The Podge and Rodge Show (2008) – himself
- Celebrity Big Brother (2009) – himself
- Friday Night with Jonathan Ross (2009) – himself
- The Paul O'Grady Show (2009) – himself
- WWE Raw (2009) – guest host
- Lemon La Vida Loca (2013) – himself
- Legit (2013) – himself
- BGO.com TV Campaign (2014) – Beat the Boss[10]
- Whose Line Is It Anyway? (2014) – himself (Season 10, episode 3)
- Through the Keyhole (2014) – himself
- Celebrity Wife Swap (2015) – himself
References
- ↑ As stated by Troyer during interview on Friday Night with Jonathan Ross, 25 September 2009.
- ↑ Verne Troyer Biography (1969-) from FilmReference.com
- ↑ Verne Troyer respects the Amish lifestyle, in the Arizona Republic; published January 4, 2010; retrieved May 8, 2014
- ↑ Verne Troyer: my family values http://gu.com/p/4d83g?CMP
- ↑ "vernetroyer comments on I am Verne Troyer, AMA!!!". Reddit.com. 2014-02-13. Retrieved 2015-04-11.
- ↑ "Mini-Me Actor Challenges Model's Marriage".
- ↑ Sherri L. Shaulis (2008-07-03). "AVN Exclusive: Verne Troyer's Ex Discusses Sex Tape, Relationship, More". AVN. Retrieved 2008-07-04.
- ↑ Isola, Laurie (2008-06-26). "Troyer in Sex Tape Scandal". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2008-07-04.
- ↑ "Verne Troyer And Girlfriend Brittney on Celebrity Wife Swap". DailyENews. Retrieved August 12, 2015.
- ↑ bgo.com TV advertisement featuring Verne Troyer from bgo.com
External links
- Verne Troyer at the Internet Movie Database
- Verne Troyer interview, Movieset.com; accessed August 12, 2015.