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John Rhys-Davies & Lawrence Makoare | Lord of the Rings Q&A (Full Panel) | Big Texas Comic Con 2025
Nov 14, 2025
Recorded live at Big Texas Comic Con in San Antonio (Oct 17–19, 2025). John Rhys-Davies (Gimli) and Lawrence Makoare (Lurtz/Witch-king) share candid stories from The Lord of the Rings—from prosthetics and teeth tricks to stunt coordination, set bruises, and lines fans still quote. Makoare talks about starting as a road worker, discovering acting, wearing full prosthetics, and enduring marathon makeup sessions for key scenes. Rhys-Davies reflects on fan connections, New Zealand’s striking locations, and how books and education shaped his views. They touch on Māori culture, wood carving, the “Find the Halflings” gag, working with the effects team (shout-out to Gino Acevedo), and the difference between New Zealand’s North and South Islands. There’s thoughtful discussion on the future of film and AI, plus advice for students and young creatives. Auto-captions were corrected for names and clarity; occasional paraphrasing fixes machine-transcription errors. Filmed by Tales From The Collection.
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0:02
the stage, Mr. John Reese Davies. You know him as Gibby from Lord of the Rings trilogy. Come on up, sir.
0:10
[Applause]
0:16
Welcome. We have a surprise, don't we? Would you go? Yeah. Bring them in. Yes. Come on
0:21
in. Lawrence McCory, Lord of the Rings Trilogy, the Hobbit. Do you know him as Lurch?
0:26
Come on out, Lawrence.
0:32
Hello. Uh, I've done a lot of these parents.
0:38
You all know almost everything about me, but I thought you'd be more interested to actually
0:45
learn about uh some of the hugely important and yet completely disguised
0:53
characters in Lord of the Rings. Uh this is my colleague uh Lawrence McQuary.
1:01
He does not belong to the great Australian banking family, but uh he is
1:07
a Maui. Yes. Yes. From New Zealand now.
1:16
Well, I'm going to sit down and you can stand. You should stand because you're the important one,
1:21
right? And I'm going to sit here and just I feel like I'm being interrogated now.
1:27
Um uh I don't know that these people know
1:32
what a Maui is. We're the indigenous culture of New Zealand. So we were we
1:38
were there before Captain Cook came that they say in the written scriptures that
1:44
he discovered New Zealand. However, we were there before him. So we actually
1:50
discovered New Zealand. So we are the indigenous culture of New Zealand. We hold our culture deeply and spiritually
1:59
and um I'm glad to be here with you all to share them with you. Listen, I've got
2:04
some questions for you. How did what's your background? Did you
2:09
grow up as as a trained actor? No. I fell into acting accidentally.
2:16
Actually, my wife at the time, unfortunately, she died uh 16 years ago.
2:22
She did uh drama classes. We had just had our son at the time. So, I went to
2:28
look after my son, our son, while she did drama classes. And um the teacher
2:37
saw me and said, "Would you like to join in?" And I said, "Hell no." Cuz I was a road maintenance worker. and I shoveled
2:43
45 tons of hot mix by hand per day. And I loved it. I love that job. Um, after
2:51
that job, I picked my wife and my son up and we'd go to the drama classes.
2:57
Uh, I was asked I didn't want to do it because I was a man. And if you've done drama classes, anyone
3:04
done drama classes at all? You have? I think you know what it's like. Yeah. I I
3:10
I That wasn't me. Eventually after about two weeks of taking my wife there, I got
3:17
bored. My son fell asleep. So I joined in the drama classes. They
3:24
gave me my first audition which was off the coast of Chile. Uh doing another
3:30
indigenous culture film called Raanui off the coast of Eastern off the coast
3:37
of Chile which was Easter Island. uh that was produced by Kevin Costa, directed for by Kevin Reynolds. I spent
3:44
eight months away. I didn't see my son walk. Unfortunately, I got back to him walking to me at the
3:52
airport. Um then came Cena,
3:58
uh Hercules, young Hercules and a lot of other New Zealand
4:03
uh programs. Then came James Bond.
4:08
Then I went over to London and filmed James Bond for nine weeks with the last
4:14
of Pierce Brosman's uh time as as James Bond. And I nearly I nearly
4:22
I had Halib Berry right where I needed her
4:27
right there. And I wanted to change the script so the
4:32
bad guys actually hit the lady. But no, the lady kills the bad guy by
4:40
the push of a button and then I get lasered through the mouth. Then came Lord of the Rings.
4:48
Um, when you audition for Lord of the Rings, they asked me, "Have you read the
4:53
book?" And I said, "Have you seen the size of it?"
4:59
I'm a comic book reader, that size. And I said, "No, I haven't."
5:06
Uh, I talked to friends and family that have read the book many, many times. And they cuz trying to get the character,
5:13
they asked me to audition for the Urukai. I had no idea what an Urukai
5:19
was. No sense of watching a film to get
5:25
the actual character. Um, so when we went in for the audition,
5:30
they had little silhouette cutouts of hobbits from a hobbit size all the way
5:36
to the white king, the the witch kings.
5:41
So I had to stand next to an effigy cutout, which was the Urukai cutout. Um,
5:47
then I got the Urukai. I think Peter liked my performance. But
5:52
in New Zealand, we only have a niche market of of actors that can perform
5:58
with makeup, with normal foundation, normal makeup. But when it comes to prosthetics and you're fully covered,
6:05
your face is fully covered, your body's fully covered, they are quite
6:11
claustrophobic. It feels claustrophobic. So they couldn't actually those parts of
6:16
God and the witch king. So Peter said, "We'll give it to Lawrence." He loves
6:21
being enclosed in dark, small places.
6:27
But yeah, so wait a minute, wait a minute, wait a minute. You you you move from being a a
6:36
a road worker uh to going to a drama class with your
6:42
wife and then getting cast. What What comes before that? I mean, Tell tell me
6:48
about your childhood. How how how many in your family? I do
6:54
you have a tribe? Yeah. My tribe in New Zealand is from Oakland and we are the
7:00
major tribe called Nati Fatwa. Uh that is the four four connecting tribes that
7:07
uh make up Nati Fatua. I was born and bred in the same house I still live in.
7:13
Uh my father and mother, same mother and father. I have 15. I'm the youngest of
7:18
15. I have nine brothers and five sisters. I
7:24
have at the moment I only have one one sister left and she's she lives in
7:29
Melbourne, Australia. Uh but I was the youngest. I was the smallest. I was
7:34
always bullied until I grew up
7:42
evil. Tell tell me uh so what where were your
7:48
school? Was it a village school or or We were all brought up I'm I'm a Roman
7:53
Catholic. So I was brought up in a Catholic uh school uh from the age of
8:00
five to the age of 30 uh 12. So I had
8:07
nuns nuns and priests uh for my teachers. Uh we were always the because
8:13
we're Marty and we were the only Marty in the whole school
8:19
that could sing. I won't sing for you right now because I didn't hear my ukulele. If I hit my ukulele, you'll be
8:26
in for a treat. However, um we were the leaders of the choir.
8:31
I was an older boy. Hard to imagine, but I was an older boy.
8:38
Very hard to imagine. And I love being the officer boy. I just the father was fantastic. Gave us not
8:46
special privilege but but I came from a not a very a very poor brick background.
8:53
My father and mother um he had to work like really really hard. Uh same with my
9:00
mother just to put food on the table. So um that that sort of
9:07
drove me. my brothers were working. So I ended up working for my father upon the council. He was the boss and uh made
9:16
me work but we were always working always every day. So
9:21
did you actually leave school when you were 12? No, I went to another school. I went to
9:27
I don't know what you call it. maybe middle school or I'm not too sure cuz we have um primary then the next schooling
9:36
up before college and then I went to that school but um
9:42
I spent two years there then I went to college for a little
9:48
while and fortunately I was I call it honorably discharged
9:56
and I was honorably discharged charge at the age of 14 when I walked home. Um in New Zealand we
10:03
have each tribe has their own we call it a marai uh the Indians call it a long
10:09
house where they have meetings, gatherings, funerals, celebrations. We
10:15
have exactly that. Um that was all being carved. So it was all wooden wooden
10:20
carvings that were actually in this house fully carved and it was still being carved when I was honorably just
10:27
discharged walking past it. So I went in and asked for a job. They said to go see
10:33
the boss. So I went to go see the boss. They said any jobs? He said can you carve? And I went no. He goes can you
10:39
draw? I went no. Can you listen? I went no.
10:45
He goes you start Monday. So that was my very first job. um wood carving and that
10:50
was when I was 14. I'm 21 now. So yes, he is carving for a while. Absolutely. I
10:58
you showed me a wonderful picture of one of the carvings that you uh that that you had made and uh I know that you uh
11:06
you have a real concern and passion for the craft and bringing on young
11:15
young sculptors and and and wood cutters. Don't you tell us a bit about that?
11:21
Well, coming up we had no direction uh being an indigenous culture of New Zealand. we are deprived from
11:31
educational sort of levels. Um so I look back on that in my
11:38
schooling to now I've been wood sculpting for 36 years now and I take on
11:47
younger school kids uh because who don't have any sense of
11:52
direction. the same thing I had. I never had a sense of direction. And giving them a sense of direction to in in the
12:00
sense of art, being artistic or bringing that artistic ability out of them that
12:05
they didn't think they had. And uh like the carving I showed John, I love Ewoks.
12:15
Well, I loved Ewoks. So, I called I I carved Wicked. I just felt like carving them. And uh I
12:22
got this wood which was 16,000. It was carbon dated at 16,000 years old.
12:28
Tell us about how that happened. There was a farmer where I was where we
12:33
were sculpting. There's about 20 other sculptors, wood, stone, and steel. Uh there was a farmer that was digging up
12:39
his own property and he came across a stump and he was quite other other
12:45
farmers probably would have dug the whole this whole land up. it was his to do as he pleased. But Hebran
12:51
archaeologists, they came and they found an old canoe that was used 1600 years
12:58
ago. With that wood was other blocks of wood. And that farmer came to where we
13:04
were working and offered us that wood. So naturally, we us being wood carvers. We would jump at the opportunity to to
13:12
carve 16,000 year old wood. And that's what I made um wicked out of. Now, wait
13:18
a minute. Wait, wait a wait a minute. A 1,500y old waka canoe.
13:27
Uh, what on earth makes you think that the Mari got there 1,500 years ago or
13:34
when it's carbon dated to that and it has mild sculptures on it? Um, and it
13:41
was carbonated by the archaeologists and then the archaeologists went back at
13:47
the time and you mean the the tree may be 1,500 years old. But but but but Maui
13:57
only got there in 1400. Well, there's there's now this makes it
14:02
a little bit more interesting because of the carbon dating of the waka and it and
14:07
it changes people's perspective once they see the proof. So, uh we were
14:14
actually not prior to us were Mori another tribe and is that is that really
14:21
true now? Do you really believe it? Because I mean Moon's book uh um
14:28
Moon Moon is a an early scholar of of of of New Zealand and and the
14:34
Mari and the the Monoli. Um
14:40
it's very much disputed but I think actually I go to your side of the
14:46
argument with that. Yes. Because we have north we have two islands in New Zealand actually three. We have two islands. the North Island,
14:53
the South Island, and Chattam Islands where the Moriori were not in the not in
14:59
the south and not in the north. The most evidence has been found in the Chattam Islands down the bottom of the South
15:05
Island. Uh so where comes with the carbonation of that wucker, there's they
15:12
they just went delved into way back histories and stuff like that.
15:18
Um, just to again the connection to mine, the these
15:25
Pacific Islanders are some of the greatest sailors and explorers the
15:31
world's ever seen. Um, where do the Maui originate from?
15:37
Hawaii Nui. Not Hawaii. Not Hawaii. Havi Haviki Nui is
15:45
uh where seven Waka left Haviki and landed on Ala uh New
15:53
Zealand and out of those seven Waka came 28 different tribes that are spread out
16:00
throughout throughout New Zealand. However, we hold majority in Oakland
16:06
where I'm from. Oh, this was a very peaceful group of people, wasn't it?
16:13
Not really. If you had seen the wars that uh were created uh in the Lord of the Rings
16:22
between different factions, each tribe were vying for the land. So each tribe
16:30
could be tribal wars. That was many many years ago years ago. And within ourselves against each other,
16:39
North Island have the same dialect of speaking uh have a different dialect of speaking
16:46
to the South Island and um yeah, we didn't like any other tribes encroaching
16:51
on the land that we protected. Um, now nowadays, you know, or it's not it's all
16:58
fun and love and war, but we're all one big happy family now.
17:04
Sorry, was I laughing? I mean, except when the government um Yeah. No, we we
17:11
don't hold very much for the government. Nothing. Right. So, hang on a sec. Um,
17:19
all right. Uh, anything else in what we Yeah.
17:24
Just an academic question. How many books were there in your house when you
17:30
were a boy? In your house? One.
17:36
Now, there's a correlation between books and further education. If you live in a
17:43
household that has less than 25 books, the likelihood is that your school days
17:50
will end around about 14. If you live in a household that has over 500 books,
17:58
there's something like an 83% likelihood that your children will go to at least
18:04
university level. It's a direct correlation. Books and education are
18:12
absolutely linked. Uh and I I speak with some passion because old girlfriend of
18:17
mine lived in uh in Panama as a great teacher. uh retired into the rainforest,
18:22
came to me one day and said, "Look, I'm appalled about the reading levels in
18:28
these uh native Indian schools in the uh in the jungle." Um, and I know why
18:35
because a school library may consist of three books with missing pages and odd
18:41
color and just missing covers. uh and and she started a little movement uh and
18:49
uh so we're bringing uh Spanishspeaking books
18:56
uh they're collecting them in in in Florida and uh and they're sending them to these
19:02
schools in Panama to encourage uh literacy. But anyway, sorry that was the
19:07
front. Now, Mr. Uh uh should we take some questions now?
19:14
Just just there one book that we had in our family was the Bible
19:20
and it was the it was the Jerusalem Bible. I don't know. I never read it
19:25
that the Bible. I mean have you seen the Bible?
19:31
Another damn big book. But we were we were deprived of our language uh by the
19:37
government uh by the by the crown actually uh by the English crown. Um so
19:42
we weren't allowed to speak our own tongue, native tongue. We were uh um
19:49
strapped caneed uh for speaking it. So we only had to we had to learn English.
19:55
Um but now thankfully our our our
20:00
people people in government moldi are starting to get into government and departments and making our language uh
20:07
revived and it is being revived now we can teach the young and we can speak it openly but yeah the Bible that's what
20:15
the Bible says right but you know that that al also happened to the Welsh you
20:21
in the 18th century 19th century schools discouraged uh young young young Welsh
20:27
boys and girls from speaking Welsh to speak English. And it starts off in a very good in a very good way because if
20:34
you're going to make your progress in the world and you only speak Marley or you only speak Welsh, uh there are not
20:41
that many opportunities. Uh but of course like all things it becomes a tyranny. Um
20:50
but I'm I'm I'm I'm very impressed by your background. Anyway, perhaps it is
20:55
time to open the floor to questions. Okay,
21:03
have questions. Come line up here, please. Hello. Good looking. So, um, no, both of
21:11
y'all. Come on. Um, so you kind of touched on this with politics and
21:16
everything, uh, with the Mauy people in the last year. you see how much y'all stood up and y'all fought for yourself.
21:23
Uh Hannah Rahiti uh stood up in Congress and did the
21:29
haka. Um we're having similar issues. What do you think from Lord of the Rings
21:36
side is a good because they have governments who
21:41
are they're trying to defeat as well. Bad guys, good guys. What do you think lessons we could learn from that movie
21:49
that we could apply to our current atmosphere? Goodness will prevail.
21:56
[Applause]
22:03
Um, I was just wondering what are if um what are y'all some favorite lines or moments from the Lord of the Rings that
22:08
y'all like to say in character? Not the beard.
22:19
Po the halflings. Po the halflings.
22:25
[Applause] Wait a minute. Wait a minute.
22:32
Find the halflings right now. How many of you got a story about that?
22:39
about finding the halflings. How did you how did you say that uh when
22:47
you were saying that line? All right. At that scene at at top of
22:54
April the head when I come over and uh say that line I say the line without my
23:00
teeth in cuz it's a long shot we see the teeth. So, it's five Lingslings.
23:06
Fiveings. Then they do a close-up shot of me. Then
23:11
they put the teeth in. When the teeth go in it,
23:20
my makeup artist, Gino, who's Mexican, he was from Phoenix. He now lives in
23:25
resides in New Zealand. Well, he said, he said, "Did you hear what you were
23:30
saying?" Yeah. Find the halflings. I laugh. He goes, "No, it sounded like you're saying, "Follow the ducklings.
23:38
Hurai, find the ducklings." And now there's a duck. There's a large duck.
23:45
No one seen it. It's a duck. And there's Gollum's got a duck. John's got a duck.
23:53
and and uh and in true response to our our great friend Gino who is a mastery I
24:01
mean one of the great great masters of makeup
24:06
uh and design makeup um uh we he's just
24:13
sending him back or going to take back some little ducks with verts on it to
24:19
give him sort of Find find the duckling. This continues to be a gag between us
24:26
all. Yeah. So, I've signed I've signed the ducks. I found the duckling chain. So,
24:31
I'll be seeing them back to back to him in one. Next question.
24:36
All right. So, what can y'all say about the the people who did the stunts like the stunt performers, the coordinators
24:41
like that helped coordinate all the fight scenes and stuff for the Lord of the Rings series?
24:47
What was the question? What can you say about the the dumb folks that helped you out with the fight
24:53
scenes and the coordinations? I think I know what you're getting at.
24:58
You're suggesting that those wimps, those sissies
25:04
of stunt men occasionally complain that I was a little bit rough with them.
25:13
That's what you're alluding to, is it not? They are [ __ ] They are a bunch
25:20
of m nimi pim me little. Anyway, do it.
25:25
Look at the size of that. For God's sake. Do you think a we dwarf could do
25:30
much damage there? The X dimension.
25:35
And the one behind the X. Very grateful.
25:44
Welcome to San Antonio. What a blessing to have you here. Thank
25:49
you for bringing him. I appreciate that. Well, it's a long swim. When he told me a few months ago, I started swimming.
25:55
Out of here. I'm going to show it. Absolutely. Um, first off, I want to say thank you so much. I read the books in
26:02
the 80s. All of them. Yes, sir. Nerve Deluxe here. Thank you for bringing one
26:07
of my favorite characters to such beautiful glory, sir. You and Gimy were
26:14
you were meant to play Gimly and I thank you so much for that dude. You Yes, sir.
26:20
You were definitely a Did I read correctly? Did you end up buying a home in New Zealand?
26:26
I did indeed. I I went back for a fan convention and uh to promote it, went on
26:32
TV one and uh uh the interviewer and I ended up going out to have dinner and um
26:39
and we ended up two years later having a lovely baby daughter who is now 19 years
26:44
old and uh out to conquer the world as teenage girls do.
26:51
Do you do you still have a home there? Do you still frequent? Oh, well uh as
26:57
often as I can get there. Uh yes. Um but
27:02
really there is not enough work for me there. Probably but probably an awful lot of
27:08
work there for you, isn't there? Yes. Um the chief of war,
27:15
it's uh Jason Mour uh second season will be starting filming.
27:20
Hopefully not soon because my bear and hunt forgotten will be starting in
27:28
May, but unfortunately the hobbits won't be available because they're going to start their little adventure
27:36
starting in Dallas and trotting all around the states for all of most of
27:42
next year. So, I don't think they're in the hunt for Forgotten, but um Chino Asso as as as
27:49
John explained. He's he we were talking the other the other night and he's just
27:55
been asked by Peter to be the makeup, especially things makeup and he's just
28:01
brilliant, you know. He designed Gimme for
28:06
he's and he's the loveliest man you can imagine. Um we both love him dearly.
28:12
He's a wonderful, always smiling, very smart, very modest
28:19
man and a joy to know and work with. Um,
28:24
but uh for those of you who are going to ask, um, is is Gibney going to be back
28:29
in that? Well, Gimney has made it clear that if it was possible, he would love
28:35
to work with with with them all again. Uh, the only caveat is this. So, uh, 80
28:42
lb of armor and prosthetics and all that sort of thing and running up and down
28:48
hills was good when I was 55. I'm 81 now. And uh, that may just be a little
28:55
bit more than uh, than a dwarf would wish to carry,
29:00
but I'm sure there are tricks that we might be able to use. Next question.
29:06
Hello. Um, Lord of the Rings has been around for decades since the 50s because the books and the the uh movies just
29:12
expanded the fan base. What does it feel like for both of you to be a part of something that is so meaningful to so
29:20
many people around the world?
29:25
My shot. Okay. Um, it is so important. Lord of the Rings has been such an
29:33
integral part of so many people's lives around the world
29:39
and it often has a hugely emotionally loaded component to it
29:46
because because people come who have watched it with a a grandfather or a
29:52
father or a mother and and and they watched it constantly and
29:58
and now father and mother or grandfather, grandmother has gone and
30:04
and suddenly coming to a convention and seeing
30:09
the real life people behind the characters that you both shared laughter
30:15
and and and and sympathy and love and adoration for is quite overwhelming. Uh,
30:22
and I uh, people always get a bit ashamed when they start to have tears in their eyes and things like that. All I
30:30
can say is I've met kings, queens, and presidents and I've been ultra cool. But
30:36
the time I met five of the greatest members of the greatest Welsh rugby
30:43
team. Uh, and they're all my age and there are tears streaming down my face.
30:50
They're looking at me and say, "What's the matter with you, boy?" You know, it's
30:56
sometimes there is a connection between the event, our lives and suddenly one of
31:04
the people there being uh been part of it. It's a glorious thing for an actor.
31:10
It's a great responsibility for an actor. But I I'm I'm awfully greatly
31:16
glad that that that I can share that part of our lives with you of
31:22
our common life together. Next question.
31:28
Hi. Sorry, very awkward. Anyway, um so I'm a fifth grade teacher and I'm just
31:35
super curious if you could say anything to like this future generation right now, especially from, you know, someone
31:42
who does struggle with that did struggle with school and everything like that. Like what would you want to say because
31:49
I would absolutely love to share this with my kids if possible.
31:54
Saying is one thing, doing is another. So I
32:00
see and do what I do. And I show them what I do with these hands. I love to
32:07
create with my hands and finding them giving them that little bit of a niche
32:14
thought in their mind that they can be an artist or an actor. Uh just give them that that slight
32:21
little little bit of vision or coaxing them pushing them into a better direction because we all have different
32:28
directions. there's a good direction to go and there's a bad direction. I have their choice. I went to the good
32:34
direction. Um, but I tell the children that I talk to. Um, you know, it's
32:40
purely up to you which way you actually go cuz we have gangs in New Zealand, bad
32:45
gangs, and that's the way they've been taught and brought up in the gang life.
32:52
Uh, I was around the gangs, but I chose not to, and that was my choice. And I I
32:58
think it's for the better. So I try and help them to get out of those gang
33:04
related uh situations because it can only go bad from there. But um I've
33:10
helped quite a few uh young children. Um I'm glad to have so I I try and push
33:16
them in the right direction. Uh
33:23
I hate talking about this because we are on the verge of a
33:28
an extraordinary age um where everything is going to be turned upside down. We're
33:35
going to have people talk about the industrial revolution. The industrial revolution put people out of work, but
33:41
you could say that later on the the the weavers who were in my family ended up,
33:47
you know, doing other jobs and improving their standards of living. The
33:52
industrial revolution took place over a hundred odd years. We're going to have the robotic and AI revolution over about
34:00
50 to 80 months and it's imminent. And when Morgan Stanley talked about 68
34:07
million jobs of present jobs being lost to AI and robotics between now and
34:15
2040 which is 14 years time you understand that the impact on on all our
34:22
lives is going to be colossal unprecedented in the history of mankind.
34:29
Um and the impact on that will form the
34:34
youngsters. Uh I mean I meet people now who've just graduated from film school
34:42
and they've been taught how to make films traditionally. Everything they've
34:48
been taught is really almost out of date already.
34:54
The new films will be made not requiring actors very long. maybe even for two or
35:00
three years. Maybe I'll hang on a bit longer because, you know, I I'm I'm an old hangover from a past age, you know.
35:08
Um but really there's no I would never encourage a young actor anymore to
35:14
really think about becoming a professional actor. Um that's possibly
35:20
true of filmmakers. Everyone in this room who knows anything about AI can see
35:26
the advantage to them. What we don't see is the colossal
35:32
disadvantage to all those people who have now been removed from the problem
35:38
that we can now solve very easily and very cheaply. A colossal loss of work, a colossal
35:45
impact. Uh, and I think this country is the only
35:51
country that I know of that understands that and is preparing for it. But that's
35:58
not something that we should talk about now. Um,
36:05
life will go on and and those who can adapt
36:12
will have to adapt. Those who think they can live in the past pursuing the old ways will actually
36:22
spend their days in great unhappiness and misery.
36:27
I believe that we are creating a new species.
36:33
AI is a new species of of of creature that
36:40
we've never seen before. It is infinitely adaptable, infinitely perfectable.
36:49
It will do things clumsily this week, get better next week, but there's no
36:54
limit to what it can achieve. Uh, and we are very
37:01
we we cannot and will not be able to compete with that. There's also another maximum of biology that some of you here
37:08
will know. Two species cannot share the same eco niche
37:14
that one will push the other out or drive the other out. The eco niche that
37:21
we occupy is wildly and completely dependent on electricity.
37:28
For an artificial intelligence, electricity is absolutely an existential
37:35
necessity. But it is also for us. Take away our our
37:42
our distribution system and within what what what's the saying the military
37:48
saying that within with within a year nine out of 10 Americans would be dead. Can't
37:55
refrigerate. We can't keep medicines cool. We can't plan how to get things
38:01
from A to B. It would be a catastrophe if we lost our main supply.
38:10
Uh anyway, this is a little bit esoteric and I I I don't wish to uh to to be
38:18
such a pessimist, but the truth of the matter is I know enough about this to be
38:24
pessimistic. Um, by and large those who can work with their hands will probably do better in
38:32
the course of this lifetime. In the end, things will sort out
38:38
as long as the AI doesn't decide that it can do without us or may have to do
38:44
without us. That was real, isn't it? I'm so sorry.
38:54
Next. Hi, Bernice here. Um, my question is, what was your experience like traveling
39:01
around New Zealand and the terrain and the snow and mountains during filming?
39:08
Well, you you traveled around New Zealand a fair bit because I I flew on a Naz,
39:14
so I didn't have to shoot through the snow. I didn't do very much traveling
39:20
actually. Oh, it's just the morning like you did more than like I did. I did. But but you've traveled New Zealand cuz
39:26
you've been mending the damn roads. And there's some amazing
39:33
uh roads in New Zealand that that were cut. And uh and if I knew the Hobbits
39:39
and them were were traveling on it, I would have put potholes potholes I say
39:45
all over the place. Uh New Zealand is breathtakingly beautiful. Absolutely the
39:51
right place to shoot the film because the
39:57
New Zealand separated from gone wild man before the evolution of mammals.
40:02
Uh the only mammals uh in New Zealand before the arrival of the Mari in about 1400
40:09
uh uh were two species of bat that were probably blown in. So the
40:18
the the the four The flora and the fauna of New Zealand really are evolutionary
40:25
quite separated apart from what the the Mari brought in and and and the and the
40:31
Pakai Pakia Paka Pakiha brought in. I'm
40:36
Pakia is Mari. Um uh but the vegetation just looks just
40:44
that little bit off and talking is trying to create a a pre-arian legend
40:52
for England for Britain. Uh and that slight alienation makes the whole thing.
41:00
Uh, Middle Earth is not England and and Middle Earth really is in
41:07
in New Zealand. Uh, I remember we got to that place where
41:13
uh, oh god, I've forgotten the the name of the place now. And we arrived and we
41:19
looked around and there was this plane with snowcapped mountains all the way
41:26
around. And we just looked at it and those of us who'd been in films before
41:32
just just said to each other, "No one will believe that this is real. They're
41:38
all going to think this is a painted backdrop." Um, but it was real and breathtakingly
41:45
beautiful. Uh, would you disagree with me that South Island is prettier than the
41:50
Northern Ireland? Most definitely. Yeah. Most There's too many sheep
41:57
in the North Island. You sound like a Welsh. There's a lot of wine in the South Island.
42:05
But, you know, the the number of sheep in in New Zealand are diminishing. though I I didn't I was driving around
42:11
South Island one day and uh I I I had to stop the vehicle because there was a flock of sheep coming and I you know you
42:19
stop and let them pass. Then then a Toyota uh Hilux came along and we we as New
42:27
Zealanders do, you know, we stopped and we we started talking and um and the
42:34
sheep continued to go past and I uh I in
42:39
that stupid way that we do, we find connections with with with strangers,
42:44
you know. Oh, I I've I've got a a little a small holding in the aisle of man. And
42:51
um yeah, we've got some sheep, too. Um uh how many? Uh about 150. Oh, that's
42:59
good. How many sheep have you got? And he said, um well, uh this flock
43:08
about 2,000. And I said, how many flocks have you got? He said it varies but you know
43:15
somewhere between 15 and 22 22 flocks of tooth saria that's a bit
43:22
more than my 150. Next question.
43:29
Hi I'm Elena and what was the most hardest scene for you to do? For me,
43:36
uh, every day getting into makeup was the hardest thing to do. But, um, uh,
43:41
but the most fun one was one that I probably don't have to, uh, talk about.
43:47
I can probably go. [Applause]
43:54
Uh, next question.
43:59
That's it. You've been a wonderful audience. Uh, and what was the other scene for you
44:05
to do? The 11-hour makeup
44:13
as the naked lurs in the orphan chamber with Christopher Lee. But because I was
44:19
working with Christopher Lee, that made me want to get into character even more.
44:25
So, it took 11 hours to do the makeup. We would shoot for 10 hour shoot day and
44:31
it'll take 4 and a half hours to take to remove the makeup
44:36
to do that three times. Yeah, that's the hardest thing to do.
44:43
Absolutely. All right. Well, listen, thank you very much. You've been a marvelous audience
44:48
and um I'm I'm glad that you like Lord of the Rings and uh and one or two of the other things that you've done.
44:54
What's your next job? Unsure, but I'm hoping to be um uh chief
45:00
of war or or even to play Gollum on the hunt for Golem.
45:06
I I I thought you were a natural for Galadria.
45:13
Thank you.
45:19
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