Temuera Morrison

Temuera Morrison was a local television heartthrob (Close to Home, Shortland Street) when he gained international attention for his portrayal of the abusive and alcoholic Jake in Lee Tamahori's Once Were Warriors (1994). The son of a musician and nephew of famed New Zealand entertainer Sir Howard Morrison, he was raised in modest surroundings in Rotorua. Morrison's vivid performance in Warriors won him the Best Actor trophy at the 1994 New Zealand Film and TV Awards, and the attention brought Morrison to Hollywood. His initial American roles were in a handful of would-be blockbusters which died on the vine commercially speaking, including Barb Wire, The Island of Dr. Moreau, and Speed 2: Cruise Control. However, Morrison fared better at the box office with 2000's Vertical Limit, and the year before he made a triumphant return to New Zealand to star in the sequel to Once Were Warriors, What Becomes of the Broken Hearted? which won him another Best Actor prize from the New Zealand Film and TV Awards. Morrison landed his biggest hit in 2002, when he was cast as Jango Fett in the eagerly anticipated Star Wars: Episode Two - Attack of the Clones.