Elijah Wood credits his mother for stopping him going off the rails.

The 30-year-old actor began his career when he was just eight years old, but has seen his personal life remain relatively trouble-free compared with other former child stars, and thinks this is due to the way he was raised.

He told The Guardian newspaper: "The only thing I can attribute it [not going off the rails] to is my mother and her focus on raising me as a good person above all else.

"Which isn't to say I haven't had fun. I haven't led a boring life. But I wasn't troubled."

Elijah also revealed he feels he has had two separate careers as an actor.

He explained: "In some ways, my work as a child feels separate. Like I've had two different careers."

The actor is best known for playing Frodo Baggins in the 'Lord Of The Rings' franchise and found it weird returning to the role recently for the two-part prequel 'The Hobbit' because it made him realise how much he has aged.

He said: "The most surreal thing about going back to New Zealand was that I actually turned 19 the first time we were there, in Hobbiton in January 2000. I'm 30 now. It's been that long. I've been in this business for 22 years. Crazy isn't it?"