Truthfully, I love being in the jungle. I love it when the make-up artists come to set, they come equipped with dirt and sweat. I spend my days climbing trees and I can crawl out of bed and walk on set and that's exactly all I have to look like.

I was a die-hard fan of these books [The Hobbit] before the films ever came out. And when I say die-hard, I wasn't the person who could speak Elvish, but I really loved them.

I just wanted friends. I just wanted people to like me. I just wanted for things to be simple and good. So, for five years I actively sought out mediocrity.

I love the creative end of acting. But I hate fame.

The people on my mum's side of the family are atheist intellectuals who are ueber-proper. My dad's side of the family are missionaries who are more comfortable sitting around in sweatpants than they are in a five-star restaurant. But those two influences converged in my life.

The difference in my body from pre-pregnancy to post-baby was night and day. I didn't have the strength, I didn't have the flexibility, I didn't have the stamina, I didn't have the mobility. I felt like I was handicapped.

That is the greatest source of my anxiety on this film [The Hobbit], is that I'm going to be lynched.