Actor Sean Astin has revealed he had to sell his house after negotiating too small a salary for playing Samwise Gamgee in Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Speaking to The Guardian, he described a "disconnect" between the huge fame the films brought him and the relatively modest pay he received, echoing similar complaints from co-stars about compensation on the billion-dollar franchise.

Astin has previously said he earned around $75,000 per film with no residuals, having been offered $250,000 for a year and a half's work despite already carrying a mortgage of $250,000 a year on a house bought before filming began. Other cast members have made comparable claims, including Elijah Wood, who called his pay "not massive," Orlando Bloom, who said he received $175,000 for all three films, and Cate Blanchett, who joked she got "free sandwiches" and no pay at all. Astin says his financial situation improved by the time The Return of the King was released in 2003, and he is now "very comfortable financially," with talk of a possible return to the role of Sam.