Marton Csokas

Marton Csokas (born June 30, 1966, in Invercargill, New Zealand) is a New Zealander actor who was cast as Poggle the Lesser in the 2002 prequel trilogy film Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones. The character was ultimately rendered using visual effects and Csokas was uncredited for his performance. Csokas is also known for his role as Celeborn in The Lord of the Rings film series.
==Biography==
Marton Csokas was born in Invercargill, New Zealand on June 30, 1966. The New Zealander actor rose to prominence as an actor through numerous film and television roles, including that of Celeborn in The Lord of the Rings film trilogy, released between 2001 and 2003.
On July 18, 2000, Csokas was announced to be joining the cast of the prequel trilogy film Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones, with his role described as that of a planetary leader. The announcement was accompanied with praise for Csokas' talents by casting director Robin Gurland. Csokas later described himself as feeling like a child by comparison to his Star Wars and Lord of the Rings co-star Christopher Lee, who was known for his iconic role as Count Dracula in the film series released by Hammer Film Productions throughout the twentieth century.
Towards the end of production, director George Lucas made the decision to render Poggle the Lesser, Csokas's character, with visual effects and to use sound effects for his voice as well. Csokas received a letter from Gurland and Lucas about the change and described the process of his performance being removed aside from his credit as "amusing." Poggle's role was also significantly reduced from what it was in the screenplay by the time production was running. Industrial Light & Magic animator Charles Alleneck was the model for animating Poggle's movements.
Sound designer Ben Burtt recorded himself reading Poggle's lines and played them backwards during rehearsals. Late in production, he recorded voice actor Ernie Fosselius reciting Poggle's lines in reverse. Fosseulius also recorded Swahili-type clicking noises and the sound of him blowing on the edge of a piece of paper, which Burtt added to the character's voice.The Sounds of Star Wars Csokas was uncredited in the finished film, which premiered on May 16, 2002.Star Wars Year By Year: A Visual History, Updated and Expanded Edition He was still described as the voice of Poggle in the reference book Mythmaking: Behind the Scenes of Attack of the Clones,Mythmaking: Behind the Scenes of Attack of the Clones published in November 2002, and in the ninety-fourth issue of the Star Wars Insider magazine, which was first released at Celebration IV, an event that commenced on May 24, 2007.
==Filmography==
Year	Title	Contribution(s) 	Notes
2002	 	Poggle the Lesser	Csokas was initially cast, but ultimately the character was created through visual effects and voiced by Ernie Fosselius.
==Sources==
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*Mythmaking: Behind the Scenes of Attack of the Clones
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==Notes and references==
==External links==
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Category:Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones actors