'LOTR' actor Billy Boyd to write, sing 'Hobbit' credits song

Billy Boyd, the actor who played hobbit Peregrin Took in Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy, is reteaming with the director in a new capacity: singer. Boyd will perform the end-credits song for The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies, according toa press release from WaterTower Music. The song is titled “The Last Goodbye,” and he co-wrote it with the filmmakers.

In the release, the filmmakers are quoted as saying, “It is hard, after 16 years and six films, to know exactly how to say goodbye. We knew that we wanted to speak directly to all those who have taken this journey with us, especially to the fans whose love of these films has so often kept us going. This is why we asked Billy Boyd, who has been with us from the very beginning, and whose portrayal as Peregrin Took in ‘The Lord of The Rings’ films is so beloved, to help write and perform the final song in this trilogy. Billy is not just a wonderful actor but also an extremely accomplished singer/songwriter—we are so glad he agreed once again to share his talent with us.”

“I wanted the song to be a goodbye to all the fans who have been part of this amazing journey and to the whole world of Tolkien as it has been told in the cinema for our generation,” says Boyd in the release. “No one knows the world of Tolkien better than Peter, Fran and Philippa, and I feel incredibly touched and honored to be asked to write and perform this song, and to be at the start and end of these beautiful, historic stories. To once again work so closely with them has been one of the true honors of my working life.”

“Into the West,” the end-title song from The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, was performed by Annie Lennox and won the Oscar for Best Original Song. The Hobbit: The Battle of Five Armies hits theaters on Dec. 17; the soundtrack album drops Dec. 9.