Q - In DoS will you have more scenes?
A - Surely. The King of the Woodland Realm is an important figure in Middle Earth. He’s extremely powerful and he has an enormous army. He’s in bad terms with the dwarves. He’s disgusted by their wealth sickness: he knows their greed will evoke an evil force. Elves are some sort of angel warriors, they live in harmony with nature: but their forest is dark and corrupted by the dragon, for this reason my character has a dark soul.

Q - Which is your trick to play an elf?
A - Apart from the elvish speaking, there is also a body language that must communicate union with nature. For this reason it’s essential for us to move as if we were in water. Thranduil can perceive anything happening in his forest, he’s a great warrior, but he’s like a matador: he doesn’t just want to kill the bull, he wants it to suffer.

Q - And about the make up?
A - What do you mean? That I’m not naturally beautiful? [laugh] The make up for the elves is easier than the one for the dwarves, it only requires an hour and a half: contact lens, wig, pointed ears. But I have a very uncomfortable crown, especially for the fighting scenes.

Q - How is Thranduil’s relationship with Legolas?
A - They’re very different, even though they are father and son. Thranduil wants to control his realm and stay isolated from the rest of the world, while Legolas wants to commits himself. This is a very typical father/son relationship! There is a lot [of relationships] in The Hobbit, and this is interesting.

- Lee Pace on Best Movie (Italia)