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Updated June 25th, 2019 at 14:18 IST

Martin Freeman almost rejected 'Hobbit' role

Martin Freeman revealed he almost turned down the lead role in "The Hobbit" franchise as he feared he would not be able to give time to his family.

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Martin Freeman revealed he almost turned down the lead role in "The Hobbit" franchise as he feared he would not be able to give time to his family.

The 47-year-old British actor, who played Bilbo Baggins in the iconic series, said going far away to New Zealand to shoot the films was a bone of contention for him. The actor, who was propelled into global stardom when he landed his role as Bilbo Baggins in the Hollywood hit, spent more than two years working on the iconic series in New Zealand and admitted: 'It wasn't an easy ''yes''. 

"It wasn't an easy 'yes'. I went to New Zealand in January 2011 and my last day was July 2013 - two-and-a-half years between the beginning and the end," Freeman said.

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He was speaking at his BAFTA career retrospective, A Life In Pictures, reported Female First. The actor said it took him time to say yes as he could not have asked his then partner and "Sherlock" co-star Amanda Abbington to keep her career on hold for him.

He continued: 'I was going to be away for a long time and Amanda, who I was with at the time, she's an actor, a brilliant actor, and it wasn't the 50s so I didn't feel I could say, ''Right, you're coming with me.'''She had her own life, her own career.'

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"I was going to be away for a long time and Amanda, who I was with at the time, she's an actor, a brilliant actor, and it wasn't the '50s so I didn't feel I could say, 'Right, you're coming with me.' She had her own life, her own career," he said.

The pair, who played on-screen spouses John and Mary Watson in the BBC's Sherlock, were in the middle of splitting up by the time it came to the show's final season. Martin Freeman had previously admitted that working on Sherlock with his former partner as husband and wife wasn't much fun due to the events taking place in their personal lives.

Martin Freeman announced their separation in 2016.

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Published June 25th, 2019 at 13:26 IST

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