After his appearance in Wilde at the age of 20, where he played one of the protagonist's casual lovers, he decided to devote himself to theatrical performances. And at theater he was noticed by Peter Jackson, who was in search of young talent for the Lord of the Tings trilogy. Orlando didn't miss that opportunity, and with the Legolas character, the agile and elegant Greenleaf of the fellowship of the ring, he became a star, admired by girls, directors and producers.

Heroes and legends - after the first episode of the trilogy, Ridley Scott wanted him for the lucky Black Hawk Down, and in 2003 he played Will Turner with Johnny Depp in Pirates of the Caribbean. The heroic and legendary characters seem right for him: in May the colossal Troy will be released, directed by Wolfgang Petersen, where Orlando plays Paris, the inexperienced and imprudent prince who unleashes Troy's war by kidnapping Helen. In the movie he will be supported by Brad Pitt, who is always a myth for Orlando. But there's another Historical character who Orlando will play: a crusader in Ridley Scott's movie Kingdom of Heaven. The shots have just begun in Morocco and to see Orlando in the shoes of the beautiful rider we have to wait until 2005.

His life - But how does Orlando live this sudden success? Certainly he hasn't been enchanted yet by the star-system: he does't like talking about his private life and he describes himself, unfortunately, as single. He lives in his London house, is Buddist (?) and vegetarian (?) and loves spending his free-time with his family. In an interview he admitted he finds the fans' clamour stressful, the thousands of letters which he can't physically answer and the continual all-around the world trips. "It seems like I'm living in another dimension, it was much better at the beginning when many people didn't recognise me without Legolas' blonde wig!"