Eric Bana is a noted name in the global world of cinema, and hails proudly from the land of talent and flair, Australia. He is one of the latest actors to have joined the famous and revered club of Australian actors who have made their mark in Hollywood, including Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe, Nicole Kidman and Mel Gibson to name a few.
Eric Bana, who was born as Eric Banadinovic on the 9th of August, 1968, started his career on television, appearing as a comedian in the series Full Frontal, that began in 1993, and went on for three years after that. He achieved good recognition for his work on this popular series, and even went on to fetch the prestigious Logie Award, for the Most Popular Comedy Personality. Prior to this show, Bana had appeared on the talk show, Tonight Live, and caught the attention of several producers. His extraordinary talent at stand-up comedy and impressions of famous personalities went down famously with the audience, and even paved the way for an out-and-out comedy album called Out of Bounds, that came out in the year 1994. Bana even went on to host his very own television show, called Eric, in the year 1996. But this is not all. He also launched The Eric Bana Show, a comedy series, that also added to his credit as an outstanding comedian.

His foray into movies came in the form of The Castle, a tragic Australian film, that featured Eric Bana in a comic role. The movie went on to become a big hit with the audiences in the country, and also appealed to the critics. Bana was now a famous personality in the Australian house of cinema and dramatics. He was bound to get noticed by the then talent-hungry fraternity of Hollywood. And impress he did. Director Andrew Dominik culminated his frantic search for an actor who could earnestly portray the role of Chopper Read, the Australian criminal who was infamous for his twisted ways. In fact, some of the credit for Bana grabbing the role in this biopic film, called Chopper, also goes to Read himself, who suggested that he play the part in the movie.
Bana’s talent and efforts towards perfection came across through this movie, for which he had to shave his head, gain almost thirty pounds, and also get some tattoos. American critics like Robert Ebert recognised Bana’s potential, and touted him as a talent to look out for. Eric also won the revered Australian Film Institute Award for the best Actor for the movie in 2001.

Hollywood finally acknowledged this great performer, and he went on to do some highly meaningful movies ahead, including the Black Hawk Down in 2001, in which he played the role of a courageous American soldier. The next in line was the Australian film, called The Nugget, which released was in 2002. In 2003, Bana featured in the hit movie Hulk, and later made his appearance in the highly acclaimed Troy. He has also acted in Steven Spielberg’s Munich, the historical The Other Boleyn Girl, and the recent ‘The time Traveller’s Wife’ and Funny People.

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