THE epic odyssey of little hobbit Frodo is about to be concluded in The Return Of The King, the third part of The Lord of the Rings.
 And for young American actor Elijah Wood, the final part of the trilogy is the end of his own epic journey. A mere 5ft 6, with enormous blue eyes, Wood was a perfect match for Frodo Baggins, the hobbit who must take the ring from his idyllic home of The Shire to the top of Mount Doom to keep it away from evil Lord Sauron, and save Middle Earth. In Wellington for the world premiere, the 22-year-old admits to feeling sad it has finally been finished. "Every journey comes to an end but at least there's a nice sense of accomplishment to be able to look at the entirety of the trilogy now. "I think it's going to take some time to sink in although we still have got ways to go in terms of promotion of the film," he says. "I think all this will resonate at its greatest this time next year when we don't have all this anymore." But this won't be the last time they'll be working on the film, he adds. "We'll have the DVD to work on next year and there are some things we'll have to get back together for."
 The mixed British-American cast, which includes Liv Tyler (Arwen), Orlando Bloom (Legolas), Sean Astin (Sam), Viggo Mortensen (Aragorn) and Sir Ian McKellen (Gandalf), are all basking in the huge excitement the world premiere and final part of the trilogy has generated in New Zealand, where it was all shot. Director Peter Jackson has turned his hometown of Wellington, the country's compact capital city at the bottom of the North Island, into a mini-Hollywood for the festivities. The big question being asked is whether Frodo will find the strength to destroy the ring and what will happen to his faithful friend Sam, and the rest of his companions? "Be prepared to cry a lot," Wood has been telling Tolkien fans about the final part of the epic $300m trilogy. It's a long way from when Peter Jackson first offered Wood the pivotal role of Frodo over four years ago in what is arguably the greatest film-making gamble there's ever been - turning JRR Tolkien's epic novel into three films. | 
