Sean Astin has revealed that his salary for The Lord Of The Rings trilogy was so low that he was forced to sell his house.
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The actor played Samwise Gamgee in Peter Jackson’s three films, which were released between 2001 and 2003 and shot back-to-back in New Zealand.
Despite the trilogy going on to gross almost $3billion (£2.2billion) worldwide, Astin has said there was a significant “disconnect” between the attention he received and his financial situation.
“I was not prepared for that level of visibility and access,” he told The Guardian. “And there was a disconnect between the attention that I was getting and how much money we had. It was not a lot of money! In fact, I had to sell my house because I negotiated such a small amount on the trilogy.”
Astin added that he is “very comfortable financially now”.
The actor has previously said he was offered $250,000 (£190,000) for approximately 18 months of work on the trilogy, with no residual payments included in his deal.
Speaking on the Jim & Sam Show in 2017, Astin explained that he had already committed to annual property expenses of approximately $250,000 when he accepted the role.
“My pen signed this contract which obligated me to $250,000 a year, and I’m gonna sign this contract which will make it so that I absolutely cannot satisfy that other thing,” he recalled.
Astin is not the only member of the cast to have discussed the relatively modest salaries paid for the fantasy trilogy.
Elijah Wood, who played Frodo Baggins, said last year that filming all three movies without an opportunity to renegotiate meant it was not “the sort of lucrative scenario that you could sort of rest easy for the rest of your life”.
Cate Blanchett, who played Galadriel, previously joked that she was essentially paid in “free sandwiches”, while Orlando Bloom said he received $175,000 (£131,000) for playing Legolas across all three films.
“Nothing, nothing, nothing. I got nothing,” Bloom said in 2019. “No, listen, greatest gift of my life, are you kidding me? You’d do it again for half the money.”
Astin could potentially return as Samwise in one of the new Lord Of The Rings films currently in development.
Andy Serkis is directing and reprising his role in The Lord Of The Rings: The Hunt For Gollum, which will also see Wood and Ian McKellen return as Frodo and Gandalf.
A further sequel titled Shadow Of The Past is being co-written by Tolkien enthusiast Stephen Colbert.
Astin, who has served as president of actors’ union SAG-AFTRA since last year, also recently urged Martin Scorsese and George Lucas to “speak thoughtfully and carefully” about artificial intelligence.
“I get the sense sometimes that some of the commentary is not well thought-out,” he said. “And I think that audiences really need their leadership in navigating this space.”
