Verne Troyer, Mini-Me in ‘Austin Powers’ movies, dies

LOS ANGELES—Actor Verne Troyer, who was best known for his role as MiniMe in the “Austin Powers” movies, has died at the age of 49.

“It is with great sadness and incredibly heavy hearts to write that Verne passed away today,” a statement posted Saturday on Troyer’s Facebook page said. No cause of death was given.

Troyer, who starred in a number of commercials and films over the years, gained international fame as Mini-Me, a 2-foot-8 version of Mike Myers’ Dr. Evil, in “Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me” and “Austin Powers in Goldmember.”

Troyer rose to stardom in the late 1990s. At that time, he roamed the red carpet, sat for celebrity interviews and passed out business cards that read “The Biggest Little Man in Show Business.”

The actor grew up in rural Michigan, where he said his parents treated him the same as his other siblings, who were average-sized.

“I had to do everything they had to do,” Troyer told the Los Angeles Times in 1999. “My brother used to wrestle in high school and college, so I grew up around that.”

“I got disciplined just as much as they did, if not more. I was pretty bad when I was younger. (Mini-Me) is like my natural role. I was meant to play the part.”

His first break into movies was as a stunt double for a 9-month-old baby in the 1994 slapstick comedy “Baby’s Day Out.” Since then he’s played everything from a baby panda in “The Amazing Panda Adventure” and a pro wrestler in “My Giant” to Santa Claus in “Jingle All the Way” and a young gorilla in the current thriller “Instinct.”