Armitage: "Peter pushes you to extremes"

Richard Armitage has revealed that Peter Jackson asks a lot of his actors on the set of The Hobbit trilogy.

The actor, who stars as dwarf hero Thorin Oakenshield told 3 News that he found himself exhausted at times during production, but added that the cast were determined to rise to the challenge set by the director.

[Richard Armitage talks The Desolation of Smaug]

“There were moments in The Desolation of Smaug where I found myself on my knees, unable to stand up and do another take," he said. "Then you somehow find yourself on your feet and doing it again. That's what Peter does, he pushes you to extremes.

“He asks a lot of his actors and we ask a lot of ourselves, because he's pushing boundaries for himself, in the technology, the design, the sound. So we all rise to the challenge because he raises the bar.”

The Desolation of Smaug will see Armitage reunite with Martin Freeman and Ian McKellan, while Orlando Bloom and Luke Evans join the cast. The film will be released on 13th December.