Andy Whitfield
Andy Whitfield ( born October 17, 1971 in Amlwch, Wales, † 11 September 2011 in Sydney, New South Wales ) was a British- Australian actor and model. He achieved fame primarily for his involvement in the American television series Spartacus (2010 ), in which he played the title character.
Life
Whitfield was born the only son of Robert and Pat Whitfield on the Welsh island of Anglesey, where he also grew up and attended high school Ysgol Syr Thomas Jones in Amlwch visited. His two older sister Laura works as a nurse in Cardiff. After school, he studied civil engineering at the University of Sheffield and worked five years later at London's construction industry. In 1999 he moved with his future wife to Sydney, Australia. Whitfield worked as a consulting engineer or " abseiling ". A year after his arrival in Australia he was spotted on the beach in Sydney by a photographer and worked, inspired by his wife, part time as a photo model. As a model, he appeared in about 40 advertising campaigns in Europe and Asia. Later, he began to take acting classes and also work as a photographer.
His debut on Australian television gave Whitfield in 2004 with a guest role in the hospital drama All Saints. Previously, he had completed according to the information several times unsuccessfully auditioning in Los Angeles. Acting and audition fell off at the beginning difficult: "For the modeling You just have to appear ," said Whitfield in 2003 in an interview with a Sydney's daily newspaper. Other roles in short films followed. After the birth of his first child Whitfield decided to abandon his acting career. 2007 but it was to his own surprise, the title role in the Australian film Gabriel - Vengeance is mine the debutant director Shane Abbess offered that he took on the advice of his wife. In the action drama Whitfield was seen as the last remaining Archangel who stands against the powers of darkness to save the Purgatory, the intermediate realm between heaven and hell. The gloomy, 150,000 Australian dollar comic book movie that came off only because payments could be postponed and the digital camera was borrowed, evolved despite mixed reviews to success at the box office and made Whitfield suddenly a broad Australian audience known. The global publishing rights to Gabriel would later secure Sony Pictures Entertainment.
After his feature film debut, the dark-haired actor was represented in 2008 with guest roles on the Australian series The Strip, Packed to the Rafters and McLeod's Daughters. End of March 2009 it was announced that Whitfield would take over the title role in the U.S. series Spartacus (2010). Developed in New Zealand in 2009 television production with Lucy Lawless and John Hannah is designed in the style of comic book movies like 300 or Sin City, and takes free of the story of the eponymous Roman slaves and gladiators. In earlier films, among others, Massimo Girotti ( Spartacus, the rebel of Rome, 1953), Kirk Douglas ( Spartacus, 1960) and Goran Visnjic ( Spartacus, 2004) had held the role. The series, for among other producer Sam Raimi was responsible, was aired from 22 January 2010 at the U.S. pay-TV from Starz. Finished Also in 2009, Whitfield filming in the Australian horror film The Clinic. In 2010 he was nominated for his performance in Spartacus for the Best Actor Award of the Festival de Télévision de Monte- Carlo, but was awarded to Michael C. Hall ( Dexter ).
Whitfield was married to his former girlfriend Vashti, who runs a company for staff training. From the relationship two children come ( born 2005 and 2007). Whitfield lived in Paddington in Sydney and was, inter alia, an avid motorcyclist. In 2007 he received the Australian nationality.
In early March 2010 it was announced cancer Whitfield ( non-Hodgkin's lymphoma), which is why the shooting were exposed to the second season of Spartacus in New Zealand. After the suffering had been detected and treated at an early stage, the actor was supposed to return to the shooting for the second season in October 2010. In September, however, the TV channel Starz was announced that the disease had broken out again and Whitfield do not stand for the continuation of the series available. Meanwhile, Whitfield was without the participation of a six-part prequel Spartacus: Gods of the Arena emerged ( 2011). In January 2011, after his condition had deteriorated, Australian actor Liam McIntyre was presented as successor.
After the recent deterioration in his health Whitfield died on 11 September 2011 at the age of 39 years at a hospital in Sydney, New South Wales from cancer. In the last 12 months of his life, Whitfield was accompanied by a documentary crew who documented his fight against the disease. The leaders are looking to the completion of this documentary titled Be Here Now currently seeking donors.
Filmography
- 2004: All Saints ( one episode)
- 2007: Gabriel - Vengeance is Mine ( Gabriel, film)
- 2008: The Rafters ( Packed to the Rafters, a sequence )
- 2008: McLeod's Daughters ( McLeod 's Daughters, a sequence )
- 2008: The Strip (two episodes)
- 2010: The Clinic (film )
- 2010: Spartacus: Blood and Sand ( 13 episodes)
- 2010: Time Crisis - Ft. Andy Whitfield ( published on YouTube Short Film by Freddie Wong)
- 2011: Spartacus: Gods of the Arena ( A sequel, Spartacus voice )