Movie star puts luxury house on market

Temuera Morrison's lakeside home was valued last year at $2.4 million. Photo / Supplied

Movie star Temuera Morrison is putting his luxury Rotorua lakeside property on the market, hinting that tough times in the acting business have left him short of cash.

"I had a quiet year at work with all the strikes happening in LA," he told the Weekend Herald.

"I only worked in Bulgaria, did one movie, and it just wasn't enough, really. I think I might have bit off more than I can chew."

Morrison bought the 8850sq m property on the shores of Lake Rotorua four years ago.

He said he had decided to put it up for sale by tender in the hope he could re-coup the "couple of million" it had cost him.

"I think houses should just be shelters instead of anchors," he said.

The actor, who achieved international fame with his tough-guy performance as Jake the Muss in Once Were Warriors, said he had spent recent months doing promotional tours for Vincent Ward's film Rain of the Children - in which he has a small part - appearing at a Star Wars convention in Japan and going to meetings with Hollywood producers.

"But you've got to remember, there's a million other actors in the one town, so the competition's pretty hard."

The 47-year-old said the fickle nature of acting meant "you're in the magazines one minute ... and the next minute you're in the fish and chip shop".

But he viewed that as part of life, in the same way as he saw selling the Kawaha Pt property, which was valued a year ago at $2.4 million.

It was originally designed as a fishing lodge, with a five-bedroom house, a two-bedroom cottage, and a swimming pool set among tropical gardens.

Morrison divides his time between Rotorua and Devonport, where he also had a house on the market last year.

Tenders on the lakeside property close on October 22.