Actor-Turned-Horror Movie Producer Elijah Wood Has Never Read Stephen King: "I Came To His Work Through Cinema"

Elijah Wood has never read any Stephen King novels, despite being a fan of the film adaptations.

The Lord of the Rings star admitted he has only ever watched films based on the iconic horror writer's work and is keen to read some stories.

Speaking on The Kingcast podcast, Elijah explained: "I came to Stephen King's work through cinema. I've never read any of his work and I don't have good reason for it, perhaps because it is so pervasive in film and television."

Wood added he is "envious" of those who have read King's work.

He said: "I envy the reader and feel foolish that I've let this time pass without reading his stories."

The 39-year-old actor was discussing the iconic film adaptation of King's novel Misery, in which novelist Paul Sheldon (James Caan) is held hostage by psychotic fan Annie Wilkes (Kathy Bates), and hailed Bates' performance as the "anchor" for the movie.

He added: "It is anchored by the performance of Kathy Bates. The close up shots on Annie Wilkes as she was losing her mind are iconic."

He also heaped praised director Rob Reiner for casting Bates, who was unknown in Hollywood prior to the 1990 flick, in the role of Annie, as audiences would have felt sympathy for a well-known star in the role.

He said: "It was a genius move. You had to discover Annie Wilkes. You couldn't have any connection to that character."

Wood previously admitted that he was keen to revive the A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise alongside Daniel Noah, his partner at production company SpectreVision.

He said: "Yeah, and it definitely has that aspect of pie in the sky, of getting to play in a certain sandbox, you know? It's a universe and a character that would be a fun universe to play in.

"It's also interesting to think about what we could do with a franchise like that which reinvents itself or creates something that is playing with the tone and key of the franchise, but it is doing something differently or taking it in a slightly new direction."— BANG