Eric Bana began his career in the sketch comedy series Full Frontal before gaining notice in the comedy drama The Castle.
54 Facts About Eric Bana
2.
Eric Bana achieved further critical recognition for starring in the biographical crime film Chopper.
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Eric Bana played Hector in the war epic Troy, and took a leading role in Steven Spielberg's historical thriller Munich.
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In 2018, Eric Bana played the title role in a true crime miniseries, Dirty John.
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Eric Bana was appointed Member of the Order of Australia in the 2019 Birthday Honours for his services to drama.
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Eric Bana's father Ivan was Croatian, born in Zagreb, and worked as a logistics manager for Caterpillar Inc.
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In 1993, Eric Bana made his television debut on Steve Vizard's late-night talk show, Tonight Live.
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Eric Bana's performance gained the attention of producers from the sketch comedy series, Full Frontal, who invited him to join the show as a writer and performer.
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The series, written and performed by Eric Bana, featured skits, stand-up and celebrity guests, but failed to attract a substantial audience and was cancelled after only eight episodes due to low ratings.
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In that same year, Eric Bana made his film debut in the Australian film The Castle, which tells the story of a Melbourne-based family's struggles to keep their home by Melbourne's airport as the airport authority force them to move.
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Eric Bana was featured in a supporting role as Con Petropoulous, a kickboxing accountant who is the householder's son-in-law.
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In 1997, despite his inexperience with dramatic roles, Eric Bana was approached by director Andrew Dominik to appear in the film Chopper, a biographical film based on the life of infamous Australian criminal Chopper Read.
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Only after Read himself suggested Eric Bana, having seen him perform a skit on television, did Dominik consider him for the part.
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In spite of the film's limited release outside of Australia, Eric Bana's performance received positive reviews.
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Eric Bana's performance won the Australian Film Institute Award for Best Actor.
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Eric Bana shed the weight he had gained for Chopper and began an exercise regimen months before filming began.
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Eric Bana trained with Delta Force operators at Fort Bragg, learning to fire weapons and clear rooms.
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Between 2000 and 2001, Eric Bana played Joe Sabatini in Something in the Air, an Australian soap opera set in a small town.
19.
Eric Bana read the script after filming Chopper in 2000 and was drawn to it because it reminded him of his childhood, and because he found its characters amusing and likable.
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Eric Bana admired Lee for his work on the film The Ice Storm and agreed to work on the film before the final script was complete.
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Eric Bana said he was drawn to the film because "the character of Bruce Banner had dramatic potential", and was "a fairly non-traditional superhero".
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In 2004, Eric Bana co-starred with Brad Pitt and Orlando Bloom in the war epic Troy.
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Eric Bana's portrayal was well received; Stella Papamichael of the BBC thought he was "magnetic", and The Washington Posts Desson Thomson believed his "touching" performance.
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Eric Bana played Avner, a Mossad agent, who is ordered to track down and kill the Black September terrorists thought to be responsible for the massacre of Israeli athletes at the 1972 Summer Olympics.
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In 2006 Eric Bana was invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
26.
Lucky You, a romantic comedy on which Eric Bana worked before filming Munich, was released in early 2007.
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Eric Bana was surprised to be offered the role and admitted that he "probably would have just passed it on without even opening it" if it had been presented to him under a different title.
28.
Rogen had cast Eric Bana because he was a fan of his early television work, and impressed by his performance in Munich.
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Also in 2009 Eric Bana directed and starred in the documentary Love the Beast.
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Lastly, Eric Bana provided the voice of Damien, a Greek Australian, in the animation Mary and Max.
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In 2011, Eric Bana played ex-CIA operative Erik Heller in the action thriller Hanna, starring alongside Saoirse Ronan and Cate Blanchett.
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Variety magazine thought that Eric Bana was well cast, and critic Mick LaSelle praised the actors for being "convincing in their humanity, agony and ferocity".
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Eric Bana then appeared in the thriller Closed Circuit, alongside Rebecca Hall, as a lawyer, defending a Turkish man accused of planning a terrorist attack in London.
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Eric Bana had a role in Disney's The Finest Hours, playing Coast Guard warrant officer David Cluff.
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In that same year, Eric Bana played doctor Stephen Grene in The Secret Scripture, based on the novel of the same title by Sebastian Barry.
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In 2017, Eric Bana took the role of Uther Pendragon, king of Britain and father of future King Arthur, in Guy Ritchie's King Arthur: Legend of the Sword.
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In 2018, Eric Bana played John in the Bravo miniseries Dirty John, based on the true crime podcast of the same name by Christopher Goffard.
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Creator Alexandra Cunningham said that Eric Bana was her first choice for the lead role; Eric Bana is very selective about picking the "right" characters.
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In that same year, Eric Bana provided the voice of zookeeper Chaz in the animation Back to the Outback.
40.
In 1995 while working on the television series Full Frontal, Eric Bana began dating Rebecca Gleeson, a publicist with the Seven Network and daughter of then Chief Justice of New South Wales, and later Chief Justice of Australia, Murray Gleeson.
41.
Eric Bana was appointed Member of the Order of Australia in the 2019 Birthday Honours for his services to drama.
42.
Eric Bana is a motor racing enthusiast, and participates in various racing competitions in Australia.
43.
Eric Bana purchased his first car, a 1974 XB Ford Falcon coupe, at the age of 15 for A$1,100 and, driving it, made his motor sport racing debut in Targa Tasmania 1996, a week-long race around Tasmania.
44.
In 2004, Eric Bana purchased a Porsche 944 to compete in Australia's Porsche Challenge.
45.
On 21 April 2007, Eric Bana crashed his 1974 XB Falcon Coupe in the 2007 Targa Tasmania rally; he and his co-driver were uninjured.
46.
Eric Bana appeared on the British motoring show Top Gear on 15 November 2009 as a guest for its "Star in a Reasonably Priced Car" segment.
47.
Eric Bana has been seen at AFL games when he is back in Australia.
48.
In 2010, Eric Bana was named the "Saints Number One Ticket Holder".
49.
Eric Bana is an ambassador for Father Chris Riley's charity for homeless young people, Youth Off The Streets, and has appeared with Riley in advertisements to support the organisation's annual appeal.
50.
Eric Bana is an advocate for the Mental Illness Fellowship, which works to increase the awareness of mental illness in Australia.
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Eric Bana is active in campaigns with the Australian Childhood Foundation and the Bone Marrow Donor Institute.
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In 2005 Eric Bana narrated the documentary Terrors of Tasmania about the endangered Tasmanian devil.
53.
Eric Bana has worked with the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, donating money to animal shelters in Berlin while filming Troy in 2004.
54.
In 2007 Eric Bana introduced the episode Some Meaning in This Life of the ABC-TV documentary series Australian Story.