Bret McKenzie

June 29, 1976 — Wellington, New Zealand

Bret Peter Tarrant McKenzie (born 29 June 1976 in Wellington, New Zealand) is a comedian, actor, musician and producer, best known for being one half of the musical comedy duo Flight of the Conchords along with Jemaine Clement. In the 2000s, the duo's comedy and music became the basis of a BBC radio series and then an oft-lauded American television series, which aired for two seasons on HBO. Active since 1998, the duo released their most recent comedy special, Live in London, in 2018.

Primarily a musician, McKenzie has worked as a songwriter and music supervisor for film and television since the 2010s. He served as music supervisor for two Muppet films, The Muppets (2011) and Muppets Most Wanted (2014), the former of which won him an Academy Award for Best Original Song for the song "Man or Muppet". In the 2000s, McKenzie was part of reggae fusion band The Black Seeds and Wellington International Ukulele Orchestra, and, in the 2010s, he began performing solo material. His debut album Songs Without Jokes was released in August 2022.

As an actor, he portrayed elves in Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit film trilogies: in the first he remained unnamed with fans naming him Figwit, a character originally cast as an extra who gained attention thanks to the trilogy's fan community. He later appears in The Hobbit as Lindir, a minor character who originally appears in the book of The Fellowship of the Ring.

Movie

Austenland

2013

TV Show

Flight of the Conchords

2007

Movie

Flight of the Conchords: Live in London

2018

Movie

The Outback

2012

Movie

Two Little Boys

2012

Movie

One Night Stand: Flight of the Conchords

2005

Movie

Flight of the Conchords: A Texan Odyssey

2006

Movie

Diagnosis: Death

2010