Eric Bana was born Eric Banadinovic on August 9, 1968, in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. He is the younger of two brothers. His father, named Ivan Banadinovic, came from Zagreb, Croatia, and worked as a manager for Caterpillar Inc. His mother, named Eleanor Banadinovic, came from a German family and was a hairdresser. Young Bana grew up in suburban Melbourne. He was popular among his schoolmates for his talent of making comic impressions of his teachers. At that time, he was fond of 'Mel Gibson , a publicist and daughter of Australian High Court Chief Justice Murray Gleeson. The following year, he was named "Bachelor of the Year" by Cleo Magazine, and won a trip for two to the United States. He invited Gleeson, and proposed to her during that romantic trip. In 1997, the two were married; their son, Klaus, was born in 1999, their daughter, Sophia, was born in 2002. He currently resides in Melbourne with his wife and their two children. Bana is a passionate supporter of Australian football.
His deal for Hulk includes an option for two sequels, with substantial salary raises for each film.
He hates guns.
Admitted to eating junk food for four weeks to put on the extra weight needed to play Chopper . He gained 30 pounds for the role.
Underwent weight training and fight training for his role as Hector in Troy .
Has said that Sam Elliott and Nick Nolte are two of his favorite actors, and got to work with both in Hulk .
He made his motorsport debut in 1996s Targa Tasmania, driving that same 1974 Ford Falcon XB Coupe. Other competitions include the 2002 and 2003 Classic Adelaide.
He was thirty-four years old when he played the title role in Hulk , making him the youngest person to play the role of Bruce Banner/The Incredible Hulk.
First jobs: Washing cars at a service station, pushing trolleys at Coles New World, barman at Melbournes Castle Hotel in 1991.
In an ironic twist, Mark Brandon Read , who was portrayed by Bana in the movie Chopper , has a small role in the film Trojan Warrior ; which he plays a guy named "Erik Bana". This is not to be confused with Troy which also stars Bana and features a Trojan horse.
He loves racing both bikes and cars in Australia.
Had never ridden a horse before Troy , and had to start from scratch without a saddle.
Two of his characters previously appeared in television movies starring John Rhys-Davies before Bana came into the roles. Rhys-Davies played Wilson Fisk, aka The Kingpin, in The Trial of the Incredible Hulk , which starred Bill Bixby as Dr. Banner, a role later played by Bana. Rhys-Davies also played King Priam in "Helen of Troy" . Priam is the father of Hector, played by Bana in Troy .
Has two children with his wife Rebecca Gleeson : Klaus Bana (born August 1999) and Sophia Bana (born April 2002).
Tall by almost any standards at 6 3", he is actually medium-sized or small by his familys standards. For instance, his older brother stands 6 8".
Prior to Troy , Bana had worked with Orlando Bloom in Black Hawk Down .
Had the option of playing several different characters in Troy when he was approached for the project. He chose Hector because he thought Hector "was such a great bloke".
Brad Pitt personally requested Bana as a co-star for Troy because he was a huge fan of Chopper .
Father-in-law is High Court Chief Justice Murray Gleeson.
First car was an old 1974 Ford Falcon XB Coupe, purchased for $1000 at age 15.
Is a supporter of the St. Kilda Australian rules football team.
A picture of his wife and child was used in Black Hawk Down for the scene where helicopter pilot Mike Durant is captured by Somalis. The prop department had forgotten to grab a picture of a wife and child for the shot, so they asked Banas wife, who was traveling with him, if they could use a picture of her and their child for the shot and she agreed.
He was the first choice to play Xander Cage in the action film xXx , which he turned down to do The Nugget . The role went to Van Diesel.
When asked in 2005 who his idols are, he named Richard Pryor , Paul Newman and Barry Humphries.
No fewer than three of his theatrical films are remakes of, or share the same source material with, a television movie. The Incredible Hulk comic book series was filmed as the television movie and series "The Incredible Hulk" , and the theatrical film Hulk . Homer s "Iliad" was filmed as "Helen of Troy" for television, and the theatrical film Troy . George Jonas book "Vengeance" was filmed for television as Sword of Gideon , then remade by Steven Spielberg as Munich .
One of his most admired actors is Rade Serbedzija.
Began his career as a stand-up comedian.
Invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 2006.
Choosen by Empire magazine as one of the 100 Sexiest Movie Stars in the World (#61).
In "Full Frontal" , whenever the show was spoofing a Tom Cruise movie, or had a sketch that involved Tom Cruise , he would play "Cruise", even though he is 7 inches taller than him in real-life.
In April 2009, along with several of the cast and crew, he visited Camp Arijan in Kuwait to show Star Trek to a group of US service members.
Completed the customary "Star in a Reasonably-Priced Car" lap in 1m:47.5s on "Top Gear" {(#14.1)} .
Has appeared twice on the cover of GQ magazine: July 2003 and March 2008.
(July 2006) Has declined to reprise his role as Bruce Banner/the Hulk in an Incredible Hulk sequel.
Russell Crowe personally requested Bana for his role in Black Hawk Down . He did not have to audition for the role.
He was a huge fan of "The Incredible Hulk" before playing the same role in the original movie Hulk .
He was a huge fan of the original "Star Trek" series before playing the villain Nero in the Star Trek reboot.
His role as Avner Kaufman in Munich was written specifically for him.
After wrapping Hulk , he spent nine months at home with his family.
He considered dropping out of school to become a motor mechanic, but his father talked him out of doing this.
Parents are Ivan and Eleanor Banadinovic.
Has an older brother: Anthony Banadinovic.
Has Croatian and German ancestry.
I wanted to be a racing driver but, you know - this will do.
I deliberately fly in and out of L. A. for as small a time as humanly,possible.
I look my best when I take my helmet off after a long motorcycle ride. I have a glow and a bit of helmet hair.
