Lord Of The Rings Director Peter Jackson Has Posted A Lovely Tribute To The Late Sir Ian Holm

Sir Ian Holm, the actor who portrayed Bilbo Baggins in Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings trilogy (among many other roles over his long career), passed away on June 19 at the age of 88. Tributes have poured in for the actor, and on June 20 Jackson himself weighed in on what made Holm special, and what his presence on the set of the Lord of the Rings trilogy meant to him.

Jackson, who posted his tribute on Facebook, opens by saying that Holm was "was such a delightful, generous man. Quiet, but cheeky, with a lovely twinkle in his eye." He recalls being nervous about "working with such an esteemed actor" before shooting his beloved trilogy, but writes about how Holm "immediately put (him) at ease." He recalls how Holm alerted him that he would "be trying different things in every take," and that if he hadn't given Jackson what he needed after five or six, he should give him specific direction.

"Incredibly his varied line reads and performances were all quite wonderful," Jackson recalls. "He rarely needed direction. He gave us an amazing range of choices to select from in the cutting room." He recalls how Holm enchanted a group of kids they were filming with during a long shoot with a lot of downtime by telling them stories between recording.

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