Elijah Wood Says ‘The Lord of the Rings’ Trilogy Was Not a ‘Lucrative Scenario’ for Actors: New Line Cinema Took a ‘Real Gamble’ with the Franchise

"The benefit of that was that we were also signing up for something that was going to be a part of our lives forever," Wood added of his "not massive" salary.

Elijah Wood was basically Frodo for free. The “Lord of the Rings” alum didn’t shy away from admitting that he did not have a “massive” salary for the iconic trilogy that grossed almost $3 billion at the worldwide box office. “The Lord of the Rings” was first released in 2001, with all three films being shot back-to-back.

“Because we weren’t making one movie and then renegotiating a contract for the next, it wasn’t the sort of lucrative scenario that you could sort of rest easy for the rest of your life,” Wood told Business Insider while at the 2025 Texas Film Awards. Wood noted that New Line Cinema took a “real gamble” filming all three movies simultaneously without knowing how the first would fare at the box office. To mitigate financial risk, the ensemble cast was offered “not massive salaries,” as Wood said.

“The benefit of that was that we were also signing up for something that was going to be a part of our lives forever,” he added.

Wood’s co-star Cate Blanchett, who starred as Galadriel in the franchise, previously quipped during “Watch What Happens Live” that “no one got paid anything” to do the films. Wood now said Blanchett’s comment was “hilarious,” saying, “Statements like that are not made with any kind of ire. It’s such an honor to have been a part of those films and they represent some of the best experiences of my life.”

Wood also confirmed that he did not make the same amount as co-star Sean Astin, who played Samwise Gamgee; Astin was quoted as saying he was paid about $250,000 for the films.

Fellow “Lord of the Rings” alum Orlando Bloom also said in a 2019 interview on “The Howard Stern Show” that he was paid just $175,000 for all three movies to star as Legolas.

As for the franchise itself, Andy Serkis is directing “The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum” for an expected 2026 release. There is no word yet about casting, although Blanchett did say she would be open to reprising her role…probably for a bigger salary, though.