We last saw him being chewed up by a Warg, but John Leigh is about to take on the role of NZ author Ronald Hugh Morrieson in the stage show Horseplay. The interview includes this snippet about a chat he had with Christopher Lee on the set of The Two Towers:

“I said, ‘I used to watch all your films’. And he said, ‘Oh yes. And who are you playing?’ I said, ‘I’m playing Hama, he’s a Rohan …’ And he said, ‘I’m sorry to have to tell you that your character dies.’ And I said, ‘A lot of my characters seem to die.’ He said, ‘That happens to me, too – but what can you do?’ and swept away.”

Read the full story from the NZ Herald. [Full Story]

Nice little piece on one the Elf Fantasy Fair in Utrecht, only this time from the viewpoint of one of the stars who was there to sign his autograph for the fans. Luckily he had time to look around and describe the fair too! [More]

Last week Tehanu had the privilege of spending an hour with Greg Lane, LOTR stuntman, and hearing some stories about the four years he spent working on the trilogy. Perhaps his most unforgettable role was as the “berserker orc” who sprints towards the wall of Helm’s Deep like a combination All Black and Olympic torchbearer, diving to detonate Saruman’s secret mine and blowing up the wall. But, Lane appeared in many memorable scenes. Continue reading “Greg Lane: Orc of a Thousand Faces”

Inkibus writes: Juts thought you might be interested in the upcoming New Zealand/Auckland filmed fantasy series premiering next Saturday; ‘Legend of the Seeker’ based around Terry Goodkind’s novels. Aside from the NZ locations. it employs some familiar LOTR faces; Bruce Spence, Jay Lagalia, and Craig Parker among them. It’s reportedly being helmed by Sam Raimi, who collaborated famously with the ‘Xenia’ series, which employed much of the pre-LOTR production team. www.legendoftheseeker.com

Good friend, good actor and good man Bruce Hopkins has checked in with some news regarding a financial settlement with New Line. In an exclusive he gives us the lowdown. Here it in his own words:

“Gidday,

I trust you are well amidst the heady brew of global financial markets and looming elections!

I wish to inform you that 16 mths after a lawsuit was filed in the Superior Court of Los Angeles, against New Line Cinema, on behalf of 15 NZ actors who played various featured roles in the Lord Of The Rings Trilogy, the action has been settled out of court. Continue reading “New Zealand actors settle out of court with New Line”