Eric Banadinović AM is an Australian actor and comedian.
Early life[]
Bana was born on 9 August 1968 in Melbourne, Victoria. His father Ivan was Croatian, born in Zagreb, and worked as a logistics manager for Caterpillar Inc., and his German mother, Eleanor, was a hairdresser, originally from near Mannheim in Germany. He has one older brother, Anthony. He has stated: "I have always been proud of my origin, which had a big influence on my upbringing. I have always been in the company of people of European origin". He was raised Catholic.
Bana was raised in the Melbourne suburbs of Broadmeadows and Tullamarine, and attended Penleigh and Essendon Grammar School.
Showing acting skill early in life, Bana began doing impressions of family members at the age of six or seven, first mimicking his grandfather's walk, voice, and mannerisms. In school, he mimicked his teachers as a means to get out of trouble. As a teen, he watched the Mel Gibson film Mad Max, and decided he wanted to become an actor. He did not seriously consider a career in the performing arts until 1991, though, when he was persuaded to try comedy while working as a barman at Melbourne's Castle Hotel. His stand-up gigs in inner-city pubs did not provide him with enough income to support himself, however, so he continued his work as a barman and waiting on tables.
Filmography[]
Film[]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | The Castle | Con Petropoulous | Film debut | |
| 2000 | Chopper | Mark "Chopper" Read | ||
| 2001 | Black Hawk Down | Norm "Hoot" Gibson | ||
| 2002 | The Nugget | Lotto | ||
| 2003 | Finding Nemo | Anchor | Voice role | |
| Hulk | Bruce Banner / Hulk | |||
| 2004 | Troy | Hector | ||
| 2005 | Munich | Avner Kaufman | ||
| 2007 | Lucky You | Huck Cheever | ||
| Romulus, My Father | Romulus Gaita | Also associate producer | ||
| 2008 | The Other Boleyn Girl | Henry Tudor | ||
| 2009 | Mary and Max | Damien Popodopolous | Voice role | |
| Love the Beast | Himself | Documentary; also producer and director | ||
| Star Trek | Nero | |||
| The Time Traveller's Wife | Henry DeTamble | |||
| Funny People | Clarke | |||
| 2011 | Hanna | Erik Heller | ||
| 2012 | Deadfall | Addison | ||
| 2013 | Closed Circuit | Martin Rose | ||
| Lone Survivor | Erik S. Kristensen | |||
| 2014 | Paper Planes | — | Executive producer | |
| Deliver Us from Evil | Ralph Sarchie | |||
| 2016 | The Finest Hours | Daniel Cluff | ||
| Special Correspondents | Frank Bonneville | |||
| The Secret Scripture | Dr. William Grene | |||
| 2017 | King Arthur: Legend of the Sword | Uther Pendragon | ||
| The Forgiven | Piet Blomfeld | |||
| 2021 | The Dry | Aaron Falk | Also producer | |
| Back to the Outback | Chaz Hunt | Voice role | ||
| 2022 | Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers | Monterey Jack | ||
| Blueback | Mad Macka | Also executive producer | ||
| 2024 | Force of Nature: The Dry 2 | Aaron Falk | Also producer | |
| A Sacrifice | Ben Monroe | Also executive producer | ||
| Memoir of a Snail | James The Magistrate | Voice role | ||
| TBA | Apex | TBA | Filming |