It’s difficult for some child actors to make the transition to adult roles but Elijah Wood movies show him to be a fine actor in a variety of parts. He has been acting since he was eight years of age and gained respect from his peers and critics, even at that tender age. He has chosen his roles well and been rewarded by directors wanting to work with him.
Wood’s film debut was in Back to the Future II in 1989 when he appeared in a minor role. His first starring role was in a film called Paradise in 1991. He plays a boy who re-unites a couple after they have split up. The lead parts were played by Melanie Griffith and Don Johnson. Forever Young followed a year later. This was the romantic story of a test pilot, played by Mel Gibson, who is cryogenically frozen in 1939 and is woken in 1992. Gibson’s love interest is played by Jamie Lee Curtis. Elijah Wood movies really caught the attention of the critics when The Ice Storm came along in 1997. Directed by Ang Lee, Wood’s role as Mikey Carver was widely praised. The story is set in the 1970s and explores relationships and social upheaval as it affects two families. It is an excellent cast, which includes Kevin Kline, Sigourney Weaver, Tobey Maguire and Christina Ricci.
The following year brought a blockbuster disaster movie with Deep Impact. Wood plays Leo Beiderman in a story about a comet hurtling to Earth. Other cast members include Robert Duvall and Morgan Freeman. Just a few year’s later, Elijah Wood movies would include his most famous role to date. As the hobbit, Frodo Baggins, Wood again impressed everyone with his ability to bring a character to life. The Lord of the Rings trilogy was eagerly anticipated, especially by devoted fans of Tolkien’s books, and it surpassed everyone’s expectations. The director Peter Jackson was wise in casting Wood in this role. It was a difficult story to film but the cast and crew rose to the challenge. The first of the trilogy, The Fellowship of the Ring, was released in 2001. The two sequels, The Two Towers and The Return of the King, quickly followed.
After filming in New Zealand for the Lord of the Rings had finished, Wood again chose very good parts to stretch his acting muscles. He played an unethical laboratory assistant in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind with Jim Carrey and Kate Winslett. Elijah Wood movies are fun too and he provided the voice for the tap dancing penguin, Mumble in Happy Feet. However, he took his most sinister role to date as the serial killer Kevin in Sin City. It has been confirmed that Wood will appear in a biopic of Iggy Pop’s life called The Passenger.