Big, buff and beautiful, Purcell became an actor after a career as a landscaper. He studied alongside Hugh Jackman and worked both on stage and TV before landing a supporting part in the Hollywood blockbuster Mission Impossible II. A leading role on John Doe followed but the action series only lasted one season. After a memorable stint on North Shore (which made great use of his swimsuit-friendly frame), he captured attention as a wrongfully convicted inmate sitting on death row in Prison Break.
Full Name: Dominic Haakon Myrtvedt Purcell
Born: February 17, 1970
Born to a Norwegian father and Irish mother.
He is a father of 4 children, Joe, Audrey and twins Lily and Gus.
At the age of two, Dominic and his family moved from England to Sydney's Bondi and then moved to the Western Suburbs.
Did all of his own stunts in the sword fight scene against Blade in Blade: Trinity.
Dominic on training for Blade: Trinity: "I got big for BLADE: TRINITY. I was 210 pounds, eating nine meals a day and training six days a week. It bored me shitless."
In 2000, he won a green card lottery and now resides in Los Angeles, California with his wife, Rebecca and their four children.
Dominic on speaking American: "I got to the US in 2000 and I found it really difficult to go in and out of my Australian and American accent. It was getting in the way of my acting. I was turning up to auditions and my confidence was shot because it was all about my f***ing accent. And Anthony LaPaglia is a good friend of mine. He says, “Dom, just speak American all the time. No one f***ing knows, speak American.” And I did. It made life so much easier. Then I got John Doe. F**k it was saving. I was doing 18-hour days. I credit speaking American…. it was a blessing because I am not one of these actors that go in and out all the time. And I have been speaking like this for five or six years. Now this show has blown up in Australia, you get on the phone to an Aussie and they’re like, [in an Aussie accent] “You f***ing cop out!” It’s a pain in the butt but f**k it. I am still an Aussie boy, I just speak with an American accent. I get Direct TV over here. I still watch the cricket and the footy."
And one more on speaking American: "She [his wife,Rebecca] is Australian. Me speaking with an American accent at first was hard for her. She looked at me like, “You f***ing idiot.” She didn’t mind it because she understood why I had to do it. But when we got into fights and arguments it just gave her so much ammunition. “Speak to me in Australian!” But now she’s OK with it. It’s no problem."
Dominic is contracted for 7 seasons on Prison Break.
Dominic on television: "I am not into TV at all. My favorite show is Fuel TV, which is all about surfing and skating and national geographic. And my favorite show is Entourage."
On music: "I'm not into the techno funk thing. I like to sing along in the shower and not be overwhelmed by the noise. I love classical music and the bag pipes. I'm a bit of a dag, really."
On America: "I love America. I love the chances it can give you. That's not to say I'm never going to visit home, Australia. I'd like someday to have a couple of houses."
Dominic on going nude in the John Doe pilot episode: "Oh, the old nude scene. In the first scene, I'm naked there. That's me lying down. That's me. You will see my ass! A lot of sit-ups before that, let me tell you. The nude thing's not a problem for me, as long as it's done in the right context. They did do it very tastefully."
Originally a landscaper, Purcell decided to switch career paths after finding that most landscaping helmets did not fit his unusually large head.
He attended the prestigious Australian Theatre for Young People. He completed his theatrical training at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts alongside fellow actors Hugh Jackman and Frances O'Connor. Upon graduation, Purcell obtained a leading role in the Australian television series Raw FM.
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