It was such an interesting character and the film really explored his friendship with Bond and how it all went wrong, so it was a very personal journey for both characters.

I had no intention of being an actor. I was quite good at it. I was pretty capable at other things but never any good at anything.

I'm still Sean that me mates went to school with, not Sean the film star. And that's the way I prefer to be.

Usually you tend to glean much more information about your character from what other people say about you, rather than how it's described in the books.

My family thought the fascination with acting was just another fad.

I'm proud of Lord of the Rings. I think it's a once in a lifetime role, and a once in a lifetime film. It was made with so much care and passion and meticulous detail and everybody was so behind it.

There's a wealth of literature out there which, hopefully, will be, you know, exploded in the future, and I personally find it very rewarding to be involved with classic storytelling, and sort of legendary characters.