Widespread acclaim followed Andy Serkis for his portrayal of the character in Peter Jackson’s Lord Of The Rings trilogy, and he expressed his excitement about taking on the role once more.
He remarked, “Gollum had been such an important role for me, and he never really went away…I’ve been constantly reminded of him as a character practically every day of my life since The Lord Of The Rings,” he shared. “To actually really re-engage and go back in there, and actually think, ‘I’m actually going to play you again’. That was actually quite a strange feeling.”
Discussing the challenges of the role, he mentioned, “When I played him a decade or more ago, I really got under the skin of Gollum in a very deep way. So I had no fear that I would not be able to plumb those depths again.”
“However, there were a couple of moments early on when I felt like I was doing a pale imitation. Yet, when we were actually on set performing this iconic scene between Gollum and Bilbo, ‘Game of Riddles’, I felt I had truly found my way back to him. I could absolutely feel the reality of Gollum’s situation, the tragedy and the great loss of the one thing he holds dear.”
Jackson expressed his expectation for the Oscars to overlook The Hobbit, arguing that while he anticipates recognition in technical categories, he doubts acknowledgment in others. “I think we’ve got great possibilities in the below-the-line categories. Above the line, I don’t think so much. I wish it was a year where we could celebrate Ian McKellen as Supporting Actor, or Martin Freeman – or Andy Serkis, for that matter – as a Supporting Actor,” he stated. “The acting awards seem to elude us, at least for these types of films. I don’t know why.”
by Helena Bryanlith
