How 'Lord of the Rings' Star Lost 30 Pounds and Gained It Back in Muscle

Gaining and losing weight for movie roles is no easy feat. Just ask The Lord of the Rings star Sean Astin. 

The Goonies actor stopped by The Drew Barrymore Show on Nov. 25 to catch up with his 50 First Dates co-star and look back on his lengthy career, which included the role of hobbit Samwise Gamgee in 2001's The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, 2002’s The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, and 2003’s The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. He had to pack on the pounds for the role. 

"I had to gain like a million pounds to be in The Lord of the Rings because I played a 'stupid fat hobbit,'" he said, quoting what Gollum called his character. After his star turn in Middle-earth, Astin had a recurring role on the Adam Sandler-led series Jeremiah. "I lost like 30 pounds, and was just skinny and having so much fun on this series," he recounted. 

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Sandler then approached Astin with the proposition to appear in 50 First Dates, his next rom-com also starring Barrymore. The catch: Astin had to gain back all the weight he lost from The Lord of the Rings, but in muscle instead of fat. 

"Adam said, ‘We'd love you to do this. Can you put on 30 pounds?'" Astin recounted. "I was like, 'Oh my God, of course! Of course I'll put on 30 pounds." Barrymore and audience members swooned when shown a photo of Astin's character Doug. 

"They paid for a trainer and we were in the gym and we're eating and lifting weights, which is different than eating and watching TV," he remembered. He wasn't exactly thrilled about doing the job, though, as he was exhausted from finishing up The Lord of the Rings. 

"My whole career is about me not wanting to do stuff and people telling me 'No, you gotta do this,' and I was like 'Oh, that's good,'" he said honestly. So when asked to do 50 First Dates while acting and directing on Jeremiah, Astin didn't exactly jump at the opportunity. Luckily, he had some outside convincing. 

"My wife was like, 'Do that audition.' She doesn't generally say stuff like that to me, and when your wife says something to you, you gotta listen to it," he said. "I was like, ‘I'm tired. I don't want to. I read the script; it's a great script, but I don't know what I'm doing in it,' and she goes, 'Do the audition.'"

For his next role, Astin reunites with his Goonies co-star Ke Huy Quan in Love Hurts, set for release Feb. 7, 2025.