He’s got one of the most distinctive voices in modern British acting, but surprisingly very few people really know who Peter Serafinowicz is.
A comedic actor, Serafinowicz is perhaps best known for his role in the Edgar Wright/Simon Pegg zom-rom-com SHAUN OF THE DEAD, where he played Shaun’s endlessly boorish housemate, and eventual walking corpse. In reality, Serafinowicz has cropped up in a great many other places which will be recognisable to fans of not just British comedy, but modern day blockbuster cinema too.
In fact, the actor has appeared in one of the biggest blockbusters of all time. STAR WARS EPISODE 1: THE PHANTOM MENACE. Didn’t see him? That’s not surprising since Serafinowicz only leant his voice talents to the movie, giving the menacing voice to the villain of the film, Darth Maul (played in person by Ray Parks). Whilst he only has a few lines of dialogue, the actor manages to steal the film, and despite the rather poor reception overall, his role is considered to be one of the best parts of the new STAR WARS trilogy.
His voice also marks him out for one of the most memorable cameos on Graham Linehan sitcom Black Books. He plays a former friend of the one of the main characters, now a radio DJ who reads out the shipping forecast. His deep, droll voice makes for one of the funniest roles of the series, and the climax of the episode he appears in is one of the highlights of the whole show.
It’s in his older comedic work where the best of Peter Serafinowicz can be found. His role was Duane Benzie in Spaced, by the SHAUN OF THE DEAD team (Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg) is easily one of the funniest roles in one of the funniest sitcoms of all time. A particular highlight is the paintball episode in the first series in which Pegg and Nick Frost team up against Serafinowicz after he steals Simon Pegg’s girlfriend. His reading of the line, ‘You shot me in the balls Tim,” makes it easily one of the best lines in a British sitcom.
The real highlight of his career came early on with bizarre comedy programme Look Around You. Written by Serafinowicz and often featuring him, Look Around You was broadcast in the style of old educational broadcasts from the 80’s. With episodes on everything from Maths to Ghosts. Look Around You was one of the finest spoofs ever made, and with only two series that you can track down on DVD, it is one of the forgotten favourites of British comedy.
The actor has, as you can see, had a hugely varied career and when you listen to that advert, just think back to SPACED and STAR WARS, and consider just what might be around the corner for him.
