Mini-Me's name was apt - Troyer is tiny. This is because the actor, who recently celebrated his 45th birthday, has cartilage-hair hypoplasia dwarfism, a rare form of dwarfism (a medical condition causing abnormal growth). As a result, Troyer, at 2'8", is one of the shortest people in the world.
Troyer's size has certainly made an impact on his career. As he revealed in an exclusive interview with MailOnline: 'There aren't too many people like me... There's a niche there, that's part of the reason that I do the things that I do.'
Verne Troyer as Mini-Me with Mike Myers as Dr Evil in Austin Powers III
Now a new documentary is to explore the world of Troyer - and others like him - in a bid to reveal what life is really like when you're born small... and stay that way forever.
Along with Troyer himself, Incredibly Small World focuses on individuals and communities living with dwarfism all around the globe, whether that's in China, Uganda, Brazil or Britain.
Among the more unusual characters to appear are Colombia's 'matadwarfs', trying to earn a living in one of South America's most brutal sporting events, bull fighting, and a group of Filipino dwarves hoping to build a specialised town tailored to their size.
But the first episode is dedicated to Troyer. In it he'll talk about growing up with dwarfism as he travels back to his family home.
'If my parents didn't raise me in the way that they did,' he explains, 'I wouldn't be in the position I am now.
'They raised me very independent and taught me you can do anything you want to. I have an average-sized brother and an average-sized sister and I had to do everything they had to.
'We had a mid-sized farm [in Michigan], so we had to feed the cows and feed the pigs, help put the hay down. There was a lot of picking up wood and cutting down trees. It was real country.'
In the new documentary Troyer hopes to reveal what life is really like when you're born small and stay that way
But the life of a farmer didn't appeal and Los Angeles beckoned, and Troyer got his first break in his mid-20s, as a stunt double for a nine-month-old baby in the 1994 film Baby's Day Out.
Troyer got his first break in his mid-20s, as a stunt double for a nine-month-old baby in the 1994 film Baby's Day Out
It would be another five years before
he landed his break-out role as Mini-Me in the Austin Powers: The Spy
Who Shagged Me, thus guaranteeing a spot in the limelight. While roles like Mini-Me did get him out of Michigan, you can't help but wonder whether he entertains a little resentment at never playing the hero and always the comic foil because of his short stature.
It seems not. 'No, I love comedies,' Troyer says, swatting aside the question with professional ease.
'Me and Mike Myers had great chemistry between us. He improvises a lot and when he improvises you have to [do it too]. You have to be quick on your feet. [Mini-Me] was an important role for me, it put me where I am now.'
Verne returns to his Amish roots in the documentary
But Troyer does hope that people will also see beyond his size.
'If I was average [sized] I would hope that I would still have been in a position where I'm at,' he insists. 'I would hope that people see it isn't just the size. It's also the talent, the artist inside me.'
It's Troyer's commitment to highlighting
the humanity of people with his condition that persuaded him to
participate in Incredibly Small World
It's for this reason that he's 'a huge
fan of Emmy winning actor Peter Dinklage' who stars as Tyrion Lannister
in the HBO series Game of Thrones. 'It's so great to have that character and to have him in that show,' Troyer says. 'It's a serious role and it could have been for an average-sized person. He's amazing, I can't say enough about him.
It's Troyer's commitment to highlighting the humanity of people with his condition that persuaded him to participate in Incredibly Small World.
'I thought it was a great idea going into the lives of so many different little people and seeing how they lived,' Troyer says.
'To show there's many little people out there who do things that people wouldn't think they could do.
'Basically showing the world how independent we are and also the struggles that we have in the outside world. So, I thought that was a great idea.'
Overcoming struggles can certainly be challenging, 'but you have to be positive and get out there and do it'
Overcoming said struggles can certainly be challenging. But 'you have to be positive and get out there and do it,' he says.'There's a lot of little people who think they can't do certain things, but like I say, if you put your mind to it, you can do things that average people do, just in a different way.
'For instance, for me, if I got to a public bathroom, there's a lot of door handles.
'Once I couldn't get out because I couldn't reach the handle, so I took a trash can, climbed up the sink and got out that way. It's kind of like MacGyver - you improvise, you work it out.
'It [Incredibly Small World] will show [the public] that there are people that they probably don't see and [challenges in their life they] don't think of - just like the door handle thing.'
Verne Troyer has built a big name for himself, despite standing at just 81cm tall
That's why Troyer's 'proud to be a part of it, to show the audience that different people can do different things.'
People with dwarfism will always be forced to navigate life differently than those without their condition. But fundamentally, 'they're just people, Jo Schmo, the guy next door or whatever.'
'You don't have to treat them any different. We can do anything you can do. Don't look at us like we're circus people or these people that you make fun of.
'I hope we just show people that we're very independent and that we can do anything that normal people can do.'
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