Robin McLaurim Williams is an American actor and comedian who has done television, stage and film work.
Williams was born in Chicago, Illinois. His mother, Laura McLaurin was a former model from Jackson,Mississippi.
His father, Robert Fitzgerald Williams, was a senior executive at Ford in charge of the Midwest area.
The majority of Williams's acting career has been in film, although he has given some memorable performances on stage as well (notably as Estragon in a production of Waiting for Godot).
His first starring roles, Popeye (1980) and The World According to Garp (1982), were both considered flops,[citation needed] but his performance in Good Morning, Vietnam (1987) got Williams nominated for an Academy Award and established a screen identity.
His role as the Genie in the animated film Aladdin was instrumental in establishing the importance of star power in voice actor casting.
Later, Williams once again used his voice talents in Fern Gully, as the holographic Dr. Know in the 2001 feature "Artificial Intelligence: A.I.", the 2005 animated feature Robots, the 2006 Academy Award winning Happy Feet, and an uncredited vocal performance in 2006's Everyone's Hero.
In 1993, it was reported that he would play The Baker in Stephen Sondheim's Into the Woods, which was to be directed by Rob Reiner.
In 1997, he won an Oscar as Best Supporting Actor for his role as a psychologist in Good Will Hunting.
However, by the early 2000s, he was thought by some to be typecast in films such as Patch Adams (1998) and Bicentennial Man (1999) that critics complained were excessively maudlin.
He is known for his wild improvisational skills and impersonations. His performances frequently involve impromptu humor designed and delivered in rapid-fire succession while on stage.
In 2006, he starred in five movies including Man of the Year and was the Surprise Guest at the 2006 Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards.
He appeared on an episode of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition that aired on January 30, 2006.
At one point, he was in the running to play the Riddler in Batman Forever until director Tim Burton dropped the project.
Williams had earlier been a prime candidate to play the Joker in Batman.
He had expressed interest in assuming the role in The Dark Knight, the sequel to 2005's Batman Begins, although the part of the Joker was taken by Heath Ledger.
He was portrayed by Chris Diamantopoulos in the made-for-TV biopic Behind the Camera: The Unauthorized Story of Mork & Mindy (2005), documenting the actor's arrival in Hollywood as a struggling comedian and becoming an overnight star when he landed the role in Mork & Mindy.
Read More ...
Print
Comments