Elijah Wood Biography

ELIJAH WOOD

Date of Birth: January 28, 1981

Birth Name: Elijah Jordan Wood

Born in Iowa, Elijah Wood started modeling at an early age, moving swiftly into commercial work. In 1988, he moved with his family to Los Angeles, where he attended the Annual International Modeling and Talent Association Convention. While there he wowed agents from around the country and quickly landed himself an acting deal.

After a small role in a Paula Abdul video, film work almost instantly followed, with bit parts in Back to the Future Part II (1989) and Internal Affairs (1990). He then won acclaim as a young Barry Levinson in the director/writer's personal drama Avalon (1990) and went on to star in Paradise (1991), Radio Flyer and Forever Young (both 1992), all of which gave him roles of substance that revealed both his talent and natural appeal.

Elijah's talent became more than apparent when he was teamed up with Macaulay Culkin for his next film, The Good Son (1993). He shone opposite Macaulay, and critics were forced to admit that Macaulay, who was the biggest child star at the moment, didn't have half the acting chops that Elijah did. Elijah won a Saturn award for his performance. In The Adventures of Huck Finn (1993) he charmed audiences in the title role, based on the book by Mark Twain. In 1994, fresh from performances in The War co-starring Kevin Costner and North, Wood won the ShoWest Young Star of the Year award. His next film, Flipper, co-starring Paul Hogan, was based on the popular TV series.

As Elijah grew in and maturity, so did his roles. Ang Lee's The Ice Storm was a critical success and offered Wood positive development in his career. After successful runs in The Faculty and Deep Impact, Wood returned his sights to his education. Hoping to attend New York's Columbia University, Wood says he's open to taking correspondence courses if filming keeps him from the classroom. "This is a crucial time in my career," he explains, "going from child to adult actor, and I can't allow anything to interfere."

In 1999 Elijah signed on to what's likely to be one of the most remembered and grandest films in his career. Playing the lead character, the hobbit Frodo Baggins in the Lord of the Rings trilogy will likely become one of his crowning achievements. "It has been the experience of a lifetime," Wood says of LOTR. "I doubt I'll ever get another chance to realize a character this fully."

Since then, he has played roles in several films, including Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) alongside Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet, the voice of the lead character Mumble in Happy Feet (2006) and more recently, the comedy Celeste and Jesse Forever (2012) about a couple trying to maintain a friendship as they starting seeing other people. He also managed to land major roles on two television series: the voice of Beck in TRON: Uprising and the lead role of Ryan Newman in Wilfrid. If that weren't enough, Elijah was able to once again connect with his Lord of the Rings character, Frodo, for the 2013 spin-off film The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey as well as its sequel The Hobbit: There and Back Again (2013). He can also be seen in the thriller Grand Piano (2014).

Later, he starred in The Last Witch Hunter (2015), I Don't Feel at Home in This World Anymore (2017) and more recently, in the horror/thriller Come to Daddy (2020).

In 2005 Elijah bought a house in Venice, California. He has an older brother and a younger sister.

Filmography:

The Trust (2016)
Cooties (2015)
The Last Witch Hunter (2015)
Set Fire to the Stars (2015)
Grand Piano (2014)
The Hobbit: There and Back Again (2013)
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)
Maniac (2012)
Revenge for Jolly! (2012)
Celeste and Jesse Forever (2012)
Happy Feet Two (2011)
The Romantics (2010)
The Legend of Spyro (2009) (voice)
9 (2009) (voice)
The Oxford Murders (2008)
Day Zero (2007)
Happy Feet (2006) (voice)
Bobby (2006)
Paris, je t'aime (2006)
Day Zero (2006)
Everything is Illuminated (2005)
Hooligans (2005)
Sin City (2005)
The Yank (2005)
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over (2003)
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
Try Seventeen (2002)
Ash Wednesday (2002)
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
Chain of Fools (2001)
The Bumblebee Flies Anyway (2000)
Black and White (1999)
The Faculty (1998)
Deep Impact (1998)
The Ice Storm (1997)
Flipper (1996)
North (1994)
The War (1994)
The Adventures of Huck Finn (1993)
The Good Son (1993)
Forever Young (1992)
Radio Flyer (1992)
Paradise (1991)
Avalon (1990)
Internal Affairs (1990)
Back to the Future Part II (1989)