8 Roles That Prove Andy Serkis Is The Most Important Actor Of His Generation

8. Gollum - The Lord Of The Rings Trilogy (2001-02)

Gollum is without a doubt the most famous role of Andy Serkis, and probably the role that most people recognize him by today. An important role in J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings trilogy (and in The Hobbit as well), Gollum was nonetheless difficult to bring to the big screen. Despite short spurts of vivid description, Tolkien went relatively light on details with regards to Gollum's outward appearance. And so the Gollum we know from Peter Jackson's famous trilogy is very much a creation of the artist who brought him to life - in this case, both Tolkien and Serkis. Where a lesser film of the early millennium would have relegated Gollum entirely to post-production or put some clown in scaly makeup, The Two Towers (which held the first good look at the creature) featured a piece of performance capture that would revolutionize the entire industry. Serkis gave a depth to Gollum that is rarely achievable with pure animation. He played Smeagol, the hobbit eventually possessed by the ring and twisted into Gollum by its power, in the opening scene of The Return of the King - this scene offered a starting point for the character arc of Gollum, and the film finally put a cap on it near the very end. It's likely that Gollum will always be Serkis's most revered creation, as he serves as a complete picture of an actor in total control of his art.