The ‘Lord of the Rings’ franchise is one of the best known and most successful sagas in the history of cinema.
The films based on J.R.R. Tolkien‘s novels grossed huge amounts of money at the box office in the first decade of the 21st century.
But, just because a film grosses these astronomical figures doesn’t mean that the entire cast gets the same cut.
A great example of this is Orlando Bloom, who rose to fame for his role as the elf Legolas in the trilogy.
It was not easy for the actor to be cast in this role. He had to audition several times, and some of the auditions were for other characters, such as Faramir.
In the end, Peter Jackson gave him the role of Legolas, for which he is eternally grateful.
Orlando Bloom’s low ‘Lord of the Rings’ salary
That said, his salary was not commensurate with all that the three ‘Lord of the Rings’ films generated. Bloom said as much in a 2019 interview on the Howard Stern Show.
“I got nothing. 175 grand,” he said, before adding his appreciation despite the low fee.
“Listen, it was the greatest gift of my life. I’d do it again for half the money.
“I auditioned many times. Originally for the role of Faramir. Then I got a call back from the Hubbards in London, big casting agents.
“Roz Hubbard said ‘I think you could do anything’ and I was like ‘Yeah!’
“It was a vote of confidence, that was so inspiring.”
“They brought me back for Legolas. I’d been on tape for the one role, and I taped again for Legolas.”