John Rhys-Davies, born on May 5, 1944, is a Welsh actor celebrated for his memorable portrayals of Gimli in The Lord of the Rings trilogy and Sallah in the Indiana Jones franchise. His career spans decades, encompassing roles in films such as Sahara (1983), The Living Daylights (1987), Glory Daze (1995), The Medallion (2003), and One Night with the King (2006). Rhys-Davies has also garnered acclaim for his television work, including his roles as Macro in I, Claudius (1976), Vasco Rodrigues in Shōgun (1980), and Michael Malone in The Untouchables (1993).
Early Life and Education
Born in Salisbury to Welsh parents, John Rhys-Davies spent his early years in Tanganyika (now part of Tanzania) due to his father's occupation as a colonial police officer. His family resided in various locations, including Dar es Salaam, Kongwa, Moshi, and Mwanza, before settling in the Welsh town of Ammanford. Rhys-Davies received his education at Truro School in Cornwall and later attended the University of East Anglia, where he was among the first students admitted and co-founded the university's drama club.
Early Career
In the early 1970s, John Rhys-Davies made sporadic appearances on UK television, including his role as the gangster "Laughing Spam Fritter" opposite Adam Faith in Budgie. He later portrayed Praetorian officer Naevius Sutorius Macro in I, Claudius. Rhys-Davies also appeared in Reilly, Ace of Spies in 1983, made several appearances in Star Trek: Voyager as a holodeck version of Leonardo da Vinci, starred as an ally of James Bond in The Living Daylights, and appeared in the film One Night with the King. He also played the character Porthos in two separate projects; a two-part episode of The Secret Adventures of Jules Verne, and the Hallmark Channel film La Femme Musketeer.
Diverse Roles and Narration Work
In 2004, Rhys-Davies narrated The Privileged Planet, a documentary advocating intelligent design. Around the same time, he also provided narration for the MTV series Wildboyz. His voice acting talents extend to video games and animated television series, including the role of Hades in Justice League, the original voice of Man Ray in SpongeBob SquarePants, and numerous appearances in Gargoyles (1994-1996) as Macbeth. He lent his voice to the games Freelancer (as Richard Winston Tobias), Lords of Everquest (both in 2003), and Quest for Glory IV: Shadows of Darkness, which was released with his narration on a CD-ROM version in 1995. Rhys-Davies also had a voice role on Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance as the character Jherek and narrated a documentary called The Glory of Macedonia. He is also the narrator of The Truth & Life Dramatized audio New Testament Bible, a 22-hour, celebrity-voiced, fully dramatized audiobook version of the New Testament which uses the Revised Standard Version-Catholic Edition translation.
The Lord of the Rings: The Gimli Challenge
Rhys-Davies is perhaps best known for his portrayal of the dwarf Gimli in The Lord of the Rings trilogy. The cinematography of the films benefited from Rhys-Davies' height - 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) - compared to the actors playing hobbits, who were around 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m). This ensured that Rhys-Davies appeared properly in proportion to the hobbit actors, despite his character being a dwarf.
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However, the role came with significant physical challenges. Rhys-Davies suffered severe reactions to the prosthetics used during filming, causing his eyes to swell shut at times. Contrary to a long-standing rumor, the issue wasn't due to an allergy. According to Rhys-Davies, medical adhesive was used for the prosthetic, and medical adhesive is hypoallergenic. The only slant is that it's a very strong adhesive that sort of bonds to the outer cells of the skin, and it's not designed to be taken on and taken off at a daily basis. It takes a tiny bit of cellular life with it as you take it off.”Things got so bad that production began to alter their daily shooting schedules so as to better accommodate Rhys-Davies’ recovery time. As he detailed: “In the end, I would lose all the skin around my eyes. And then of course you'd get a histamine response as your body is pumping fluid through to repair it, so your eyes get swollen and horrid. And quite simply I would walk in sometimes and they would look at my eyes and say, 'John we cannot put the prosthetic on you today. There is nothing we can stick it to.'"
When asked about potentially returning to the role for the film version of The Hobbit, Rhys-Davies initially ruled it out, stating, "I have already completely ruled it out. There's a sentimental part of me that would love to be involved again. Really I am not sure my face can take that sort of punishment any more." He also noted the challenges of representing an entire race of dwarves, given the large number of dwarf characters in The Hobbit.
However, Peter Jackson has made a very concentrated move away from practical effects and embraced cutting-edge digital technology over the course of the past several decades, utilizing CGI for The Hobbit films and even early iterations of AI-fueled audio technology on Get Back. Because of this, the actor previously noted that he would be wouldn’t necessarily be opposed to returning in the upcoming Hunt for Gollum films, produced by Jackson and directed by Andy Serkis, if new technology was utilized to realize Gimli’s appearance."Well, I’m known to not want to put that prosthetic on again, but out of deference to Andy [Serkis], whom I love and admire and again who has grown so much, if they invited me…oh god, could I dare to put on that make-up again and lose my skin? Maybe with CGI," Rhys-Davies shared in a 2024 interview with Collider. "Before when they asked me to do The Hobbit, for instance, I said no. No, not at all. Times have moved on and technology has moved on; if I don’t have to spend eight hours a day for three years of my life in a make-up chair, I might indeed do it. The other thing is, physically, I am no longer capable of putting eighty pounds of extra armor and stuff on and climbing up mountains."
Personal Life and Views
A resident of the Isle of Man since 1988, John Rhys-Davies provides the introductory voice-over to the Island's Castle Rushen, one of the best-preserved medieval fortresses in the British Isles. Rhys-Davies married Suzanne Wilkinson in December 1966, and they had two sons together. Although they legally separated in 1985, they remained married until her death from Alzheimer's disease in 2010. In 2004, Rhys-Davies began dating Lisa Manning.
In February 2020, Rhys-Davies expressed his views on the historical significance of Christianity, stating, "All the things that we value, the right of free speech, the right of the individual conscience, these evolved in first and second century Roman Christendom, where the individual Christian said, 'I have a right to believe, what I believe and not what the Emperor tells me.' From that our whole idea of democracy and the equality that we have has developed. Rhys-Davies is not a member of any political party. In 2004, Rhys-Davies said in an interview with World magazine: "There is a demographic catastrophe happening in Europe that nobody wants to talk about, that we daren't bring up because we are so cagey about not offending people racially. And rightly we should be. But there is a cultural thing as well.
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Reflections on a Career
John Rhys-Davies is recognized as an incredibly talented actor due to his range, which is best demonstrated by the fact that the majority of audiences fail to recognize that the same person who plays Sallah in the Indiana Jones franchise also plays Gimli in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. As such, the actor has no shortage of experience when it comes to big-budget blockbuster fare. He remains open to new opportunities, particularly if technological advancements can alleviate the physical demands of certain roles.
Other Cast Members
Elijah Wood: Before starring as Frodo in Lord of the Rings, Wood already had some acting credits with roles in Flipper, Radio Flyer and Paradise. Wood has continued acting since starring in the franchise, appearing in shows like Wilfred and films like Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and Celeste and Jesse Forever. He also has been doing voiceovers for video games.
Orlando Bloom: Before portraying Legolas, Bloom had very few credits to his name, but had starred in Black Hawk Down and an episode of Midsomer Murders. Since the franchise wrapped, Bloom went on to star in films like Kingdom of Heaven, The Three Musketeers and another fantasy franchise: The Pirates of the Caribbean. He's even dabbled with mumblecore indie comedy, appearing in a memorable episode of Joe Swanberg's Netflix series, Easy. Having recently been on the Broadway circuit, his most recent screen credit was the Amazon Prime series Carnival Row.
Sir Ian McKellen: By the time he was cast as Gandalf in the trilogy, McKellen was already a well-known and highly-respected actor, with multiple Olivier, Tony and Golden Globe Awards to his name. Continuing his acting career, McKellen starred in films like The Da Vinci Code, Beauty and the Beast and continued his recurring role as Magneto in the X-Men franchise. His most recent role was portraying Gus the Theater Cat in the widely-panned 2019 film adaptation of Cats.
Cate Blanchett: Before Lord of the Rings, Blanchett already found a place in Hollywood with films The Talented Mr. Ripley and Elizabeth, for which she received a Best Actress Oscar nomination. Since then, Blanchett has continued acting and becoming a force in Hollywood. She won two Academy Awards for her roles in The Aviator and Blue Jasmine, and most recently starred in Where'd You Go Bernadette? and the FX on Hulu series Mrs. America.
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Liv Tyler: Before starring in the franchise as Arwen Undomiel, Tyler was known for her roles in films such as Empire Records and Armageddon. After the franchise finished, Tyler continued acting in projects like Jersey Girl, The Leftovers and Ad Astra. Fans can see her currently in the TV series 9-1-1: Lone Star.
Andy Serkis: Before portraying the now-iconic Gollum in the franchise, Serkis was a popular British actor with projects like Pandaemonium and Loop. Serkis' career took off after the trilogy wrapped, starring in multiple movie franchises, such as Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Rise of the Planet of the Apes and Avengers: Age of Ultron. He will be seen next in The Batman with Robert Pattinson, and is also directing the sequel to Venom, due out next year.
Sean Astin: Before starring in the franchise as Samwise Gamgee, Astin was already an established actor, with roles in The Goonies, Toy Soldiers and Rudy. Since the trilogy finished filming, Astin has continued acting, with roles in Stranger Things, No Good Nick and a guest-star spot on Brooklyn Nine-Nine.
Ian Holm: Before portraying Bilbo Baggins in the franchise, Holm was already an established actor, with roles in The Fifth Element and Incognito. Holm continued acting after wrapping, starring in films such as The Aviator and reprising his role as Bilbo Baggins in the recent The Hobbit films. Holm died in June 2020 at age 88.
Hugo Weaving: Before Lord of the Rings, Weaving was an established actor with films like The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert and portraying Agent Smith in The Matrix. Since then, Weaving continued acting, starring in V for Vendetta, Hacksaw Ridge and voicing Megatron in the Transformers franchise.
Dominic Monaghan: Before starring in the popular franchise, he had few credits to his name, with roles in Hostile Waters and the British crime TV series Hetty Wainthropp Investigates. After the trilogy wrapped, Monaghan's career took off, with roles in projects such as X-Men Origins: Wolverine and Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. He also is known for portraying Charlie Pace in the hit series Lost.
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