O'Gorman was born in Auckland, New Zealand, to parents Lance, a landscape painter, and Christine O'Gorman. He has a younger brother, Brett, who is also an actor as well as a comedian. He has Irish and English ancestry; his maternal grandfather was a British paratrooper in the Second World War.[1]
O'Gorman earned a black belt in karate by the age of ten,[2] and attended Rangitoto College in Auckland. He initially planned to study graphic design.[3]
Career
Film
At 12 years old, O'Gorman was discovered by a casting agent during a school speech competition.[4] After acting in a number of television roles and the Australian film The Rogue Stallion, he got a starring role in 1995 teen romance Bonjour Timothy, a performance which earned him a nomination for Best Actor at the Giffoni Film Festival in Italy.[3]
In Jay Roach's 2015 film Trumbo, O'Gorman plays the part of Kirk Douglas,[7][8] including a re-creation of filming the movie Spartacus. He plays a demoralized writer in the 2017 film Pork Pie, winning praise at Cannes.[9]
He has made multiple guest appearances on several television shows including The Cult, Go Girls and Legend of the Seeker. From 2011 to 2013, O'Gorman played the role of Anders Johnson in New Zealand fantasy series The Almighty Johnsons.[3] He played mountaineer George Lowe in 2016 mini-series Hillary.
Art and photography
In addition to acting, O'Gorman is also a photographer and artist. In an interview with Tom Cardy, he confessed to difficult times finding work during his first year in Los Angeles.[10] He was almost broke, but was soon discovered by his friend's agent and thus began to receive more work, dividing his time among painting, photography and acting.
In June 2012, he held his first exhibition at the Page Blackie Gallery in Wellington, New Zealand.[10] The theme of the exhibition focused on the Vietnam War. In order to obtain accuracy in his work, O'Gorman sought the advice of a New Zealand Vietnam veteran.[10] Preferring to dress and set up shoots himself, the models for this gallery included other cast members from The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey[10] and The Almighty Johnsons. O'Gorman's photographs were also displayed at the 2015 Berlin B3 Biennial.[11]
Personal life
O'Gorman married his long-time girlfriend Sarah Wilson in January 2016.[12]