Verne Troyer (January 1, 1969 – April 21, 2018) was an American actor, stunt performer and comedian. He was notable for his height of 2 ft 8 in (81 cm), the result of achondroplasiadwarfism, making him one of the shortest men in the world. He was best known for playing Mini-Me in the Austin Powersseries of comedy films, and for his brief appearance as Griphook the goblin in Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone.

Early life

Troyer was born in Sturgis, Michigan, the son of Susan, a factory worker, and Reuben Troyer, a repair technician. He had two siblings, Davon and Deborah. During his childhood, Troyer spent much time visiting Amish relatives in Centreville, Michigan, and graduated from Centreville High School in 1987. Troyer was initially raised Amish but his parents left the faith when he was a child. He had stated that his parents "never treated me any different than my other average-sized siblings. I used to have to carry wood, feed the cows and pigs and farm animals".

Personal life

He reportedly married model Genevieve Gallen on February 22, 2004, but filed for an annulment the next day. Though the couple's engagement was widely reported, Troyer and his attorney deny that the two ever had any formal wedding plans, saying that Gallen had fabricated the story for her own financial gain.

On June 25, 2008, a private home video leaked of Troyer and his former live-in girlfriend, Ranae Shrider, having sex. The video, filmed in 2008 in Beverly Hills, California, and Shrider's hometown of Fort Cobb, Oklahoma, was leaked to the public by Shrider and TMZ. Kevin Blatt, the man responsible for brokering the deal for Paris Hilton's sex tape in 2003, tried to sell the video. Troyer, through his long-time attorney, Ed McPherson, sued TMZ, Blatt, and online rental company SugarDVD, for invasion of privacy and copyright infringement.

In May 2015, Troyer, his girlfriend Brittney Powell, and her son Tyson appeared on Celebrity Wife Swap, where she switched places with Hines Ward's wife.

Troyer had his own YouTube channel.

Death

In April 2018, Troyer was admitted to hospital after an incident in his home. He had previously been admitted to rehab to undergo treatment for alcohol addiction.

On April 21, 2018, TMZ reported that Troyer had died at the age of 49. According to an official Facebook statement, Troyer was battling depression.