Bret McKenzie

Did you know?!

1. First role

   McKenzie's silent elf in the first Lord of the Rings film was an extra part that fans named Figwit; the internet attention led Peter Jackson to give him a line in the third film.

2. First role

   McKenzie's professional acting debut came in 2000, when he took a small part in the UK series Dark Knight. That series was shot in Wellington.

3. Early training

   At Victoria University of Wellington, McKenzie met Jemaine Clement, another student of film and theater. Neither finished their degree, and they went on to form Flight of the Conchords.

4. A change of course

   McKenzie became a member of The Black Seeds, a reggae fusion group, in the late 1990s. He recorded four albums with the band and left around 2007.

5. Behind the camera

   McKenzie served as music supervisor for The Muppets after flying to Los Angeles in the summer of 2010. Four of the film's five original songs came from his pen, among them "Man or Muppet" and "Life's a Happy Song."

6. Beyond film

   In August 2022, Sub Pop put out McKenzie's first solo album, Songs Without Jokes. Steely Dan, Randy Newman and Harry Nilsson were the songwriters whose work inspired it.