Mark had a CAT scan after which he received the devastating diagnosis of that he had acoustic neuroma, a form of brain cancer. [7], Ruffalo spent his teen years in Virginia Beach, Virginia, where his father worked. "It's when you have what seems to be bad luck that actually turns into good luck later." The "Crazy" Way Mark Ruffalo Discovered He Had a Brain Tumor - Yahoo! Mark Ruffalo. Through a chance meeting with writer Kenneth Lonergan, Ruffalo began collaborating with him and appeared in several of his plays, including the original cast of This is Our Youth (1996), which led to Ruffalo's role as Laura Linney's character's brother in Lonergan's Academy Award-nominated 2000 film You Can Count on Me. What is it? He was raised alongside two sisters and a brother by working-class parents of Italian and French-Canadian descent. Of course, Ruffalo was right. He also had poor reflexes and had difficulty processing simple concepts like tying a knot. "Its Dysthymia. Atsushi Nishijima/HBO. The day after a chat with the on-set doctor, Ruffalo was sent to a neurologist who gave him a CT scan. He didn't know where he was headed in life. According to the New York Post, the suicide of his longtime bestie Michael taught Ruffalo "the value of life" and made him all the more determined to make it as an actor. "Drugs, alcoholism, AIDS." navigator.sendBeacon('https://www.google-analytics.com/collect', payload); [1] In 2006, Ruffalo starred in Clifford Odets's Awake and Sing! 2022 Galvanized Media. It's like a low-grade depression that just is running all the time in the background.". [12], In 2008, Ruffalo starred as a con man in The Brothers Bloom with Adrien Brody and Rachel Weisz and co-starred with Julianne Moore in Blindness. "It was big-time," he told Men's Journal. Looking back, Ruffalo is grateful for and haunted by the dream that saved his life. For Mark, reaching the pinnacle of his acting career still brought his fair share of struggles. Actor Mark Ruffalo, known for his role as Bruce Banner / Hulk, had a brain tumor in 2001. After a year, the paralysis receded, but Ruffalo's left ear remains deaf. At least, that's what the Los Angeles County Coroner's Office ruled. However, in the year 2000just as his career was taking offthe actor suffered a setback that could easily have thwarted the many achievements that lay ahead. We don't know what it is exactly, and you'll need an MRI.' And I thought, 'yep.' According to theLos Angeles Times, on Dec. 8, 2008, Mark's brother, Scott, died a week after he was shot in the head in his own home. Here's a look back at Mark Ruffalo's tragic real-life story. It was shattering to them.". The unfortunate diagnosis didn't only correspond with the birth of his son Ruffalo was also reaching new heights in his career. Mark Ruffalo - IMDb The three-time Academy Award nominee told the New York Daily News that he was eventually able to stop wearing his anger on his sleeve after he realized that he had a lot to be thankful for, but he needed some professional help to get it under control. In 2011, he got his first Oscar nod for his performance in The Kids Are Alright. RELATED: Here's What We Know About Mark Ruffalo And Sunrise Coigney's Private Life. He also spent close to a decade working as a bartender. At that point I thought maybe I wasn't enjoying it the way I thought I would, and so having that kind of taken away from me for a little while made me understand how much I actually loved it and cared about it," he added. "When he died, it rocked me out of a dark depression," he recalled. RELATED: Fans Can't Stop Talking About Tom Holland's Face In Mark Ruffalo's MCU Picture. Mark Ruffalo was born on November 22, 1967, in Kenosha, Wisconsin, to Marie Rose, a hairdresser and stylist, and Frank Lawrence Ruffalo, Jr., a construction painter. The A-Z of famous names supporting Labour, the Tories, the Lib Dems and Greens", "Mark Ruffalo in Standing Rock; Leo DiCaprio, Jesse Jackson Head to Standing Rock", "Hollywood actor Mark Ruffalo enlisted by Green Party in bid for government support", "I have reflected & wanted to apologize for posts during the recent Israel/Hamas fighting that suggested Israel is committing "genocide". "[31] On October 4, 2010, Ruffalo appeared on The Rachel Maddow Show to discuss hydraulic fracturing and the FRAC Act of 2009. The actor says that while he experienced no notable symptoms after being diagnosed, he was advised to get surgery quickly as the tumor was resting on a facial nerve. During his diagnosis and recovery, with the exception of his close friends and family, Ruffalo kept details about his condition a secret. But this somewhat positive outcome was quick to change. Following his brother's death, Ruffalo decided to take a break from Hollywood. However, he beat the odds after. But he may well be the first actor to play both Bruce Banner *and* Hulk. In December 2008, Ruffalo's younger brother and former roommate Scott was murdered. He began acting in the early 1990s and rose to prominence after appearing in Kenneth Lonergan's play This Is Our Youth and the drama film You Can Count On Me. In pre-production at the time of Scott's death, the film was released in 2010. Ruffalo did in fact lose his hearing soon after surgery. Police arrested Adham but eventually released her, and no charges were filed. Also in 2014, Ruffalo received his second Academy Award nomination for his portrayal of wrestler Dave Schultz in the biographical drama Foxcatcher. "She came in and she was white as a sheet, and she said, 'you have a mass behind your left ear that's the size of a golf ball. In the ensuing scuffle, Ruffalo snatched the photographer's camera and confiscated the memory card. Our content is fact checked by our senior editorial staff to reflect accuracy and ensure our readers get . [49][50], After completing work on the film The Last Castle, Ruffalo was diagnosed with a vestibular schwannoma, a type of brain tumor also known as an acoustic neuroma. Award-winning actor Mark Ruffalo was born on November 22, 1967, in Kenosha, Wisconsin, of humble means to father Frank Lawrence Ruffalo, a construction painter and Marie Rose (Hebert), a stylist and hairdresser; his father's ancestry is Italian and his mother is of half French-Canadian and half Italian descent. "[64], He has shown support for the LGBT community;[65] however, he has received backlash from the transgender community for supporting the casting of a man, Matt Bomer, to play a trans woman in the film Anything, on which Ruffalo was an executive producer. In fact, things went downhill pretty fast. ", "Mark Ruffalo Doesn't Know If We Will See The Hulk Again In The MCU", "Exclusive: New letter supporting Jeremy Corbyn signed by Roger Waters, Robert Del Naja and more", AARP Movies for Grownups Award for Best Actor (TV/Streaming), Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie, Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Television Film, Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones, New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actor, San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting Actor, Satellite Award for Best Actor in a Miniseries, Limited Series or Television Film, Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Miniseries or Television Movie, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mark_Ruffalo&oldid=1141652651, American people of French-Canadian descent, Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Screen Actors Guild Award winners, Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Miniseries or Television Movie Screen Actors Guild Award winners, Outstanding Performance by a Lead Actor in a Miniseries or Movie Primetime Emmy Award winners, Short description is different from Wikidata, All Wikipedia articles written in American English, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 26 February 2023, at 03:41. [45], In November 2021, Ruffalo criticized the not guilty ruling in the case of Kyle Rittenhouse in his hometown of Kenosha, Wisconsin and said the people shot by Rittenhouse were murdered. And it's a blessing, man. In May of 2017, heteamed up with the Child Mind Institute to participate in their #MyYoungerSelf initiative, through which celebrities talked about what they would have told their younger selves as they lived with a mental health or learning disorder. [55] The case remains unsolved. 20 Facts You Didn't Know About Mark Ruffalo - Money Inc For more health news sent directly to your inbox, sign up for our daily newsletter. The paralysis subsided after a year, but Mark remains deaf in his left ear. Small tumours may also be treated by stereotactic radiosurgery, which involves a precise beam of radiation targeting the tumour to prevent it growing bigger. [4][5], Ruffalo attended both Catholic and progressive schools throughout his education. Mark Ruffalo, in full Mark Alan Ruffalo, (born November 22, 1967, Kenosha, Wisconsin, U.S.), American actor who was a compelling performer in critically acclaimed movies and plays, though he was perhaps more widely known for portraying Bruce Banner/the Hulk in a series of superhero movies. These two things helped to speed up his recovery and regain his balance. The pair went through some of their toughest times together, forging a bond that went beyond blood. [1] He appeared opposite Jamie Foxx and Tom Cruise as a narcotics detective in Michael Mann's crime thriller Collateral (2004). Since then, he's received three Oscar nominations for his performances in The Kids Are All Right, Foxcatcher, and Spotlight. In fact, according to Ruffalo, some outlets picked up the story and paired it with news of Scott Ruffalo's unsolved murder to create a more compelling story. Mark also explained that he underwent various therapies to help alleviate the paralysis, including acupuncture, herbal therapy, massage, and other forms of alternative medicine in conjunction with his prescribed regimen. After filming the 2001 action drama The Last Castle starring Robert Redford, Ruffalo was diagnosed with a vestibular schwannoma or acoustic neuroma. Real Talk with Mark Ruffalo: On Manic Depression, Bernie Sanders, and He went on to star in the romantic comedies 13 Going on 30 (2004) and Just like Heaven (2005) and the thrillers In the Cut (2003), Zodiac (2007), and Shutter Island (2010). Bestlifeonline.com is part of the Meredith Health Group. Your IP: These two things helped to speed up his recovery and regain his balance. How Mark Ruffalo Discovered He Had a Brain Tumor Best Life But did you know that a health threat in the early 2000s almost ruined it all for him? He knew it sounded very strange, but he followed his gut and was right. Additionally, the prescribed drugs resulted in a loss of balance. In June 2020, Ruffalo appeared in a webinar conference for the Irish Green Party to encourage members to accept the recently negotiated programme for government, agreed between the party, Fine Gael and Fianna Fil. Ruffalo first learned of his tumor in 2000, while shooting the film You Can Count on Me. When he grew up and had his own family, Mark eventually moved from their upstate New York home back to New York City sohis children could go to a school with a good program for dyslexic studentsbecause he didn't want his children to go through the same struggles he experienced. From his role as Inspector David Toschi inZodiacto the Incredible Hulk inThe Avengers, Mark Ruffalo has made an acting career for himself filled with success and recognition. "It's pretty much a daily practice that quiets your brain and oddly enough, actually slows down time, so you're not so much trapped in your immediate reactions to things," he explained. Mark Ruffalo ( Full name: Mark Alan Ruffalo ) is a 55-year-old American actor and producer. Though Ruffalo wanted to be an actor, he was embarrassed and lied. You can unsubscribe at any time. Mark Ruffalo - Biography - IMDb Performance & security by Cloudflare. The next year in 2015, he starred as a father of two with bipolar disorder in the independent comedy film Infinitely Polar Bear, for which he earned a Golden Globe Award nomination, and he also appeared as journalist Michael Rezendes in the drama film Spotlight, for which he earned his third Academy Award nomination and a BAFTA Award nomination. He began acting in the early 1990s and first gained recognition for his work in Kenneth Lonergan's play This Is Our Youth (1998) and drama film You Can Count on Me (2000). Ruffalo and Scott were always close, even for brothers. Years later, she called Ruffalo and said she wrote a script and had him in mind for the part. 'Hulk' Mark Ruffalo suffers from facial paralysis due to a brain tumour His mother, Marie Rose (ne Hbert), is a hairdresser and stylist and his father, Frank Lawrence Ruffalo Jr., worked as a construction painter. Its a long-running, low-grade depression all the time. Luckily, they were able to remove the tumor successfully. Ruffalo was informed that he had a mass the size of a golf ball behind his left ear (known as an acoustic neuroma) and would need surgery to have it removed as soon as possible. Whether you know Mark Ruffalo as the king of rom coms, the Hulk in the Marvel movie franchise, or as an Oscar-courting dramatic actor, one thing's for sure: there's no denying his talent or versatility. It was so heavy." For the next ten months, Ruffalo went through an emotional recovery from his paralysis which involved him trying out a variety of different therapies, including acupuncture and sacral cranial therapy. Though Ruffalo continued working on his film, he remained retired from acting until he read the script for The Kids Are All Right. In 2003, Ruffalo scored leading roles alongside two popular female stars, playing a police detective opposite Meg Ryan in In the Cut (2003) and the love interest of Gwyneth Paltrow in the comedy View from the Top (2003). This wasn't the last time that Mark Ruffalo would find himself under investigation by the authorities, according to some severely misinformed news outlets, at least. Whatever the truth, I was damaged goods. [11], Ruffalo had minor roles in films including The Dentist (1996), the low-key crime comedy Safe Men (1998), and Ang Lee's Civil War western Ride with the Devil (1999). Mark L. Ruffalo, MSW, DPsa Just saying, 'Hey, this is who I am.'" Mark Ruffalo trivia: 60 interestng facts about the actor! While Ruffalo may never "cure" his depression, he is finding ways to make the most of his life as best he can. "You always wonder, 'What could I have done differently?'" "[44] In 2021, he said it was "inflammatory" and "disrespectful" to suggest Israel is committing genocide. Ruffalo was ultimately diagnosed with acoustic neuroma, a non-cancerous tumor which can develop in the main nerve between the inner ear and brain. In the past Ruffalo had a bad reaction to anaesthesia. If you or anyone you know is having suicidal thoughts, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255). Celebrities who have coped with cancer - msn.com