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Astin Nailed Rings Role
From SciFi Wire

Sean Astin—who plays Sam in the upcoming third Lord of the Rings film, The Return of the King—told SCI FI Wire that his climactic scenes with co-star Elijah Wood (Frodo) were intensely satisfying as an actor. "I'd say the most sacred acting experience I ever had was at the top of Mt. Ruepahu, with Elijah Wood in my arms," Astin said in an interview at the recent Comic-Con International, referring to the New Zealand volcano that doubled as J.R.R. Tolkien's Mt. Doom. "It wasn't acting anymore. It was one of the most moving [experiences]. [Director] Peter [Jackson] was just sobbing."

Astin added, "I just remember this floodgate of emotion came through in the performance at that moment, when we did the scene. And Peter was crying, and I was crying. And afterwards, I was running around in the parking lot ... on this active volcano, like, yelling and cheering and like so excited. I was so, like, I had done it. I had nailed it. I had reached a point as an actor of emotional openness that I had hithertofore never been able to achieve. And that felt wonderful. So I'm so proud."

Astin said that he and Wood were helped by the "poetry" of the script. "My little brother [Mackenzie] is an actor, too," Astin said. "When we were on the train yesterday, they're like, 'So, what do you do?' And he's like, 'I'm an emotional engineer.' So I felt like I got my Ph.D. as an emotional engineer on Return of the King." King opens Dec. 17.