Dominic Monaghan, an actor best known as one of the guardians of the ring in the Oscar-winning “Lord of the Rings” movies, is on the phone from Hawaii, where he’s just embarked on another jewelry quest, this time searching for earrings to send his mother for her birthday. There doesn’t have to be anything mystical about the earrings, but they can’t be too dangly. Along the way, there are certainly myriad obstacles. Over the course of a 25-minute interview, Monaghan is stopped repeatedly for autographs and pictures. He’s also accosted by one person who knows the unassuming thespian looks familiar, but can’t identify him. Monaghan cops to being an actor, but notes only that he’s filming “Lost” on the island for ABC.

A minute later, the same person returns, more confident.

“Were you in that hobbit thing?” “Yeah, that’s right, I was one of the hobbits,” Monaghan says, only slightly drawn out. “I was at the shop across the street looking for earrings for my mum, but do you know any other craft-y shops?”
Read the full article »

When Dominic Monaghan came zooming back from Middle Earth, he hit with a resounding thud.

“My first year in Los Angeles was pretty hellish,” says the British actor who played Merry in “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy. “I came over here after the high point of ‘Lord of the Rings,’ and I saw all my friends jumping around to jobs, and I had nothing.”

He’s found work now. The 28-year-old is co-starring in the ABC Wednesday night series “Lost,” the latest action ride from J.J. Abrams (“Alias”).

The expansive cast also includes Matthew Fox (“Party of Five”) and Ian Somerhalder (“Rules of Attraction”).
Read the full article »

It’s one thing to try to get into character as a produce-swiping Hobbit, quite another to cop the stance of a guy who once sang, “You’re a slave to the money, then you die.”

But so it is that Dominic Monaghan, his image set indelibly in the minds of this generation’s “Lord of the Rings” fans as the diminutive but gallant Meriadoc Brandybuck, gets on with the rest of his acting life, playing a fading rock star stranded on a deserted tropical island on ABC’s “Lost.”

Monaghan’s character, Charlie, is one of 48 survivors of a horrific airplane crash. The rest of the ensemble cast includes Matthew Fox, Evangeline Lilly, Ian Somerhalder, Jorge Garcia, Maggie Grace, Malcolm David Kelley, Naveen Andrews, Harold Perrineau, Josh Holloway, Terry O’Quinn, Daniel Dae Kim and Yunjim Kim.
Read the full article »

Dominic Monaghan thinks it’s a natural move — follow the biggest film trilogy with one of the biggest television shows of the season.

“You’re never going to have a more successful trilogy in your repertoire,” he says of “The Lord of the Rings” films, “and that’s fine with me. I’m all about the work. I don’t need to have box office gold every single time. I just want to work on material I like.”

Enter: “Lost,” a new television drama from J.J. Abrams, the man behind “Alias.” In the new series, which finds a plane load of disparate types struggling to survive on an island, Monaghan plays a rock musician with a nasty drug habit. He’s forced to face his demons and determine out how he and the others can get back home safely.
Read the full article »

As a hobbit, Dominic Monaghan’s drug of choice was pipeweed, a gentle, mellowing substance that encourages the blowing of smoke rings and the singing of song.

As a tormented rock star, his drug of choice is heroin, which makes you want to suck powder up your nose.

Brutal place, the real world. Real as in the world of television drama, which has crashed-landed Monaghan onto a forgotten island to fight for survival against the elements and a mysterious jungle menace — hopefully for several seasons.
Read the full article »