Elijah Wood Explains Why Lord Of The Rings Cast Wasn’t Paid As Much As Fans Think
Elijah Wood shared that the production house took a big risk by adapting JRR Tolkien’s Lord Of The Rings books without knowing how the first film would perform at the box office.
Elijah Wood, best known for portraying Frodo Baggins in The Lord of the Rings trilogy, recently shared an unexpected revelation about his earnings from the iconic franchise. Speaking at the 2025 Texas Film Awards red carpet, Wood explained that the actors had single contracts covering all three films, preventing them from renegotiating for higher pay later. As a result, their salaries were lower than many might assume. He also highlighted how New Line Cinema took a major risk in 1999 by adapting J.R.R. Tolkien’s books without knowing how the first film would perform at the box office. To manage this gamble, the studio opted not to pay massive salaries to the cast, despite the franchise later becoming a multibillion-dollar success.
Speaking with Business Insider, Wood said, “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. The benefit of that was that we were also signing up for something that was going to be a part of our lives forever."
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When asked if he was paid $250,000 for The Fellowship of the Ring, Elijah Wood said the amount was not correct but chose not to share the actual number. He also mentioned that Cate Blanchett’s joke about receiving sandwiches as a salary was funny. However, he believed that she, along with the rest of the cast, appreciated being part of such an iconic film.
He said, “Statements like that are not made with any kind of ire. It’s such an honour to have been a part of those films, and they represent some of the best experiences of my life."
Cate Blanchett last year made an eye-opening revelation about her earnings for playing elf Galadriel in The Lord of the Rings trilogy. She jokingly said she was paid in free sandwiches for her role. While appearing on Watch What Happens Live, when host Andy Cohen asked Blanchett about the biggest paycheck she ever received and assumed it was for Lord of the Rings. Blanchett corrected him and said, “Are you kidding me? No, no one got paid anything to do that movie. I wanted to work with the guy who made Braindead. I mean, I basically got free sandwiches and I got to keep my ears. Women don’t get paid as much as you think they do."
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