"The Hobbit" like a family reunion for Elijah Wood

Reuters

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Elijah Wood's return to New Zealand to shoot his part in "The Hobbit" falls on the 10th anniversary of "The Lord of the Rings," a fact not unnoticed to the actor, who likens it to a family reunion.

"It's a rare opportunity to revisit a specific time in my life," Wood told The Hollywood Reporter. "It feels like I'm going back to a giant family reunion in a way; a lot of the same creative team are involved and a number of the cast are coming back."

Wood is reprising his role as Frodo and will be joined by returning "Rings" cast members Ian McKellen, Orlando Bloom, Andy Serkis and Cate Blanchett, among several members of the crew.

While filming on the first feature, "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey," has begun, Wood said he won't be heading to New Zealand to film his scenes until the fall.

"I read the first script and it's incredible," Wood noted. "It definitely expounds upon the book; there are already characters that are cast that are not in the book, so that indicates that it goes slightly outside the boundaries in the structure of the original novel."

Despite his long-standing relationship with writer-director Jackson, Wood said he hasn't read the second script and has no idea how the big-screen adaptation of the J.R.R. Tolkien novels ends.

"For a while I was excited just at the notion of going back and seeing everybody and playing the character again," Wood said. "Then sitting down and reading it I became really genuinely excited about the films they were making. I think they're going to be amazing."

Wood will return to San Diego Comic-Con next month to promote his FX comedy "Wilfred," and said he's looking forward to the inevitable barrage of "Rings" and "Hobbit" questions.

"It's exciting to be able to talk about two projects at the same time that are at opposite ends of the spectrum," he said.

"The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" opens December 14, 2012.