Viggo Peter Mortensen (Jr.), no doubt an iconic figure in the Hollywood, is also a poet, musician, author and a successful painter as well. He was born on October 20, 1958 in New York City to mother Grace Gamble and father Viggo Peter Mortensen. Having lived in countries like Spain, England and Denmark doing odd jobs like truck driving and as florist, his real acting career began when he returned to the States to firmly begin acting. After several years spent in the theatre, his debut appearance was seen in Witness (1985), a thriller by Peter Weir. During his early acting tenure, he appeared in supporting role for a number of movies like Prison, The Indian Runner, The Portrait of a Lady; but his performance in G. I. Jane is probably considered as the best.
But Mortensen was widely acknowledged for his work in The lord of the Rings (2000). His acting favoured him and through three of David Cronenberg’s signings, he bagged various awards and nominations. He won critical acclaim for A history of Violence, was nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role for Eastern Promises (2007) and was again in the nominations for Golden Globe Best Supporting Actor for his movie A Dangerous Method (2011). For Eastern Promises, he was awarded the Best Performance by an Actor by British Independent Film Awards. His work in Hidalgo (2004) and The Road (2009) are noteworthy. He also won the Utah Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor in the latter. After 2011, Viggo continued theatre work and starred in Afriel Dorfman’s Purgatorio, but did not give up acting. His role in A Dangerous Method (2011) gave him the Genie Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role.
Viggo also possess many talents apart from acting. He devotes his time in paintings and photography. His paintings have been presented in galleries worldwide. He paints abstract paintings which present a taste of his own poetry in them. His literary side began when he published his first collection of poetry, Ten Last Night in 1983. His works touch similar topics of photography and poems. His soft side for music was revealed when he collaborated with guitarist Buckethead and released albums under his label Perceval Press. To help new budding artists, he opened the Perceval Press to publish their works.
Being a citizen of both America and Denmark, Viggo speaks a handful of languages like English, Spanish, Danish, French and Italian; but he feels more comfortable with Spanish. He married actress/singer Exene Cervenka in 1987 and they had a son Hernry Blake Mortensen in 1988. They separated in 1992 but the divorce was held late in the 1997. He is committed to a Spanish actress, Ariadna Gil, since 2009. He has shared his love for football and hockey publicly, and visited stadiums to witness many games during short breaks while filming. He currently lives in Idaho, northern Sandpoint.
| Birth Date: | 20 Oct, 1958 |
| Age: | 61 yrs |
| Citizenship: | United States of America Denmark |
| Birth Place: | Manhattan |
| Education: | St. Lawrence University |
| Gender: | Male |
| Description: | American actor |
| Spouse: | Exene Cervenka[1987-1998] |
| Net Worth 2021: | 40 million |
