Stuart Townsend was cast as human hero Aragorn. Four days into filming however, Jackson realized that the 28-year-old was too young and lacking in gravitas. Viggo Mortensen, then 40, got the call and was at first reluctant to say yes because the shoot would have meant a long time away from his young son, Henry. But Henry, a fan of the Tolkien trilogy, urged his father to say yes. In short order, he was on a plane to New Zealand, taking a crash course in swordfighting, and in costume slaying orcs.














