James Corden auditioned for 'Lord of the Rings' to play the hobbit Samwise Gamgee. It was 'not good'

• James Corden claimed in a recent interview that he auditioned for "The Lord of the Rings."
• Corden said he was called back for the role of Samwise Gamgee despite his audition being "not good."

More than 20 years after "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring" debuted in theaters, few people question the film's casting choices. That includes James Corden, who recently claimed he auditioned for one of the film's main characters, Samwise Gamgee.

Corden recently appeared on the "Happy Sad Confused" podcast, where he confirmed "The Lord of the Rings" was one of his first film auditions.

"Every single person in London auditioned for 'Lord of the Rings.' Everybody," Corden said. "I auditioned for Samwise. I was doing it, the accent and everything! 'Mr Frodo!'"

Still, despite calling his audition "not good," Corden was called back for the part twice.

"Two of my other friends went in, and we all got called back the next day, and then we got called back the next day," he said. "Then none of us got called back after that!"

The role eventually went to Sean Astin, who played the hobbit throughout Peter Jackson's "Lord of the Rings" film trilogy.

Corden, who eventually saw all three films, added: "I enjoyed it until the last one, and then I was sort of like, 'Oh, ok, I've seen this now. I should've gone to see 'Love Actually.'"

Corden, of course, hasn't done badly for himself in the years since. In addition to hosting CBS' "The Late Late Show," which he will depart sometime in spring 2023, Corden has also had roles in films such as "Into the Woods" and "Ocean's 8."