Lord of the Rings: James Corden Auditioned for a Key Role in Trilogy

This year was an exciting one for Lord of the Rings fans because The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power was finally released on Amazon's Prime Video. The new series is set thousands of years before Lord of the Rings, which means it tells a different story from Peter Jackson's beloved movie trilogy. However, the new show has sparked a lot of fun nostalgia for the Oscar-winning films and many folks are sharing some stories about when the movies were made. One unexpected person to join the conversation is James Corden, who recently revealed to Josh Horowitz on the Happy Sad Confused podcast (via Entertainment Weekly) that he auditioned for the role of Samwise Gamgee, which ultimately went to Sean Astin.

"Every single person in London auditioned for Lord of the Rings. Everybody. I auditioned for Samwise. I was doing the accent and everything," Corden shared. The Late Late Show host called his audition "not good," but he did get a callback. "Two of my other friends went in [to audition] and then we all got called back the next day," Corden explained. "Then we got called back the next day, and then none of us got called back after that."

What Do Lord of the Rings Stars Think About The Rings of Power?

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power ended up being a bit divisive among fans, and earned a 52% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes. Some of the actors from Jackson's trilogy have shared their thoughts about the show. "I have seen it. I liked it very much," Billy Boyd (Pippin Took) said. "I, as a fan of Tolkien, loved seeing all these places again — some of them for the first time. You know, to see Khazad-dûm and Númenor and all these places. I think that gave me the most joy. I think the way they jump from one place to another made it very watchable for me."

However, Bernard Hill (King Théoden) wasn't as kind when asked about the new series. "It's a money-making venture and I'm not interested in watching that or being in it," Hill told Metro (via Variety). "Good luck to them and all that stuff, but it's not like the real thing."

Are you surprised to learn James Corden auditioned for Lord of the Rings? Could you see him as Sam? Tell us in the comments!