Benedict Cumberbatch who provides his voice for the gold-loving dragon Smaug is joined by Legolas depicter Orlando Bloom as well as Ian McKellen, Martin Freeman, Andy Serkis and more.
- Dec 2, 2014
AceShowbiz - The cast of "The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies" flocked together on Monday, December 1 for the world premiere of the third and last installment in "The Hobbit" franchise. Benedict Cumberbatch, Orlando Bloom and other cast members including Ian McKellen, Martin Freeman, Evangeline Lilly, Luke Evans, Lee Pace and Andy Serkis attended the event which took place at the Odeon cinema in Leicester Square in London.
From the Green Carpet at the world premiere of THE HOBBIT in London. pic.twitter.com/dPKCycVqez
— Ian McKellen (@IanMcKellen) December 1, 2014The cast members who dressed to impress talked briefly about ending their journey. Providing his voice for two villainous characters, gold-loving dragon Smaug and Sauron, Cumberbatch said of his experience, "They're two iconic baddies and they serve more than just stories. To get to play them on this kind of scale is just dreamy, it's just amazing." He continued, "Peter's body of work is exceptional so to be part of that as well is very special."
Freeman who plays Bilbo Baggins also shared some words. "The reason I'm not sad is because we are handing it over to the audience and sharing it with you. You're the best fans in the world - you're loyal and mad - so thank you so much," he told the audience.
His co-star Richard Armitage who plays dwarf Thorin Oakenshield added, "It's the most amazing feeling to be here when you step out of the car and the crowd erupt because they love your character. Tonight is going to be a party, a big celebration."
"Saying goodbye to the cast was like this agonizing long torture over 10 weeks. But on Sir Ian's, I thought, 'He's never going to wear that Gandalf cape and staff again,' and that was hard. To me, it wasn't goodbye until then. But the real emotions will hit me in days to come," director Peter Jackson said, before jokingly added, "It's all downhill from here. My career that is!"
Jackson, who finished working on the movie a week ago, told fans, "We hope you enjoy this film. We make it for you, for the fans and the people who enjoy these movies so I hope you like this one."
In addition to the said stars, the premiere was attended by Stephen Fry, James Nesbitt and Billy Boyd. "The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies" invades U.S. theaters on December 17.
In other news, a short video from the new movie was also released on Monday. The 50-second clip shows the brave Bilbo offering his help to Gandalf when King Thranduil refuses.
