Orlando Jonathan Blanchard Bloom (born on 13 January 1977) is an English actor, who rose to fame through his roles in The Lord of the Rings (2001) and in the Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy of films. He then appeared in several Hollywood films, including Troy or Kingdom of Heaven. Bloom was named on 12 October 2009 as UNICEF’s Goodwill Ambassador.
Orlando Bloom was born in Canterbury, Kent, England being raised in the Church of England. Despite of his dyslexia he managed to get through school. Following the advice of his mother, Bloom took art and drama classes. He moved to London in 1993 and followed a two year course in Drama, Photography and Sculpture at Fine Arts College. He started acting with television roles in episodes of Causality and Midsomer Murders, debuting in a film with Wilde (1997) before going to Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London to study acting.
Two days after graduating from Guildhall in 1999, he got his first important role in The Lord of the Rings (2001-2003), as Legolas. In the same time he had a brief role in the war film Black Hawk Down. The major success of The Lord of the Rings trilogy and Black Hawk Down turned Bloom into a celebrity.
In 2002, Bloom was selected as one of the Teen People “25 Hottest Stars Under 25”, nominated for Best Ensemble Acting at the Screen Actors Guild Award for three years in a row, at the end winning it in 2003, with the third part of the trilogy, The Return of the King. Bloom also won European Film Awards, Hollywood Festival Award, Empire Awards and Teen Choice Awards.
Bloom next appeared in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, a major commercial success in 2003. In 2004, he appeared in the blockbuster film Troy, alongside Brad Pitt, Eric Bana and Peter O’Toole. He got the lead roles in Kingdom of Heaven (2005) and Elizabethtown (2005) and in 2006 starred in sequel Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest.
In the summer of 2007, Bloom appeared in a play by David Storey, In Celebration. On 24 August 2007, he appeared in a TV commercial on late-night Japanese TV, promoting a brand of cosmetics. In 2009, he was of the numerous stars who appeared in New York, I love You that contained twelve short films in one.
Bloom is a fan of Manchester United and resides in London. He is a Buddhist and from 2004 he is a full member of Soka Gakkai International – a Buddhist association. He is also part of Global Green, and as part of his environmental involvement his London home has solar panels and it is using energy efficient light bulbs.
Bloom had an on-and-off relationship with American actress Kate Bosworth from 2002 till September 2006. He has a tattoo on his wrist, the same tattoo as the nine members of the Fellowship of the Ring, as well another tattoo that he got when he was 15 years old.
In 2007, Bloom started dating Australian model Miranda Kerr.
On 12 October 2009 Bloom was named a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador, as he was involved in the organization since 2007, visiting schools and villages in Nepal to support sanitation and education programs.
Filmography
The Cross (2010) (in production)
The Red Circle (2011) (pre-production) (rumored) …. Corey
Main Street (2009) (post-production) …. Harris Parker
Sympathy for Delicious (2009) (post-production) …. The Stain
New York, I Love You (2009) …. David (segment “Shunji Iwai”)
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End (2007) …. Will Turner
Love and Other Disasters (2006) …. Hollywood Paolo
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest (2006) …. Will Turner
Elizabethtown (2005) …. Drew Baylor
Kingdom of Heaven (2005) …. Balian de Ibelin
Haven (2004) …. Shy
Troy (2004) …. Paris
The Calcium Kid (2004) …. Jimmy Connelly
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) …. Legolas
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003) …. Will Turner
Ned Kelly (2003) …. Joseph Byrne
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) …. Legolas Greenleaf
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) (VG) …. Legolas Greenleaf
Black Hawk Down (2001) …. Blackburn
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) …. Legolas Greenleaf
“Midsomer Murders” …. Peter Drinkwater (1 episode, 2000)
Wilde (1997) …. Rent Boy
“Casualty” …. Extra / … (3 episodes, 1994-1996)
Johnny Depp is Hollywood’s top earning actor at this moment after securing a $33.6 million deal for the latest Pirates of the Caribbean film.
