Elijah Wood thinks The Hobbit films are going to be "big", and may even "outdo" the hugely-successful The Lord of the Rings trilogy.

The American actor is famed for his high-profile role as Frodo Baggins in Peter Jackson's critically acclaimed fantasy film series.

Elijah is reprising his role in upcoming two-part prequel The Hobbit, which is set for release in 2012 and 2013.

The 30-year-old star discussed whether or not the films have the ability to outshine The Lord of the Rings pictures.

"I don't even know if they're meaning to outdo them," he admitted to E! Online.

"They're gonna be big. The audience is huge. The anticipation for The Hobbit has been so massive for so long."

Elijah is returning to the film series along with Cate Blanchett, who plays Galadriel, ad Orlando Bloom, who portrays Legolas.

The star has explained how the characters have been written into the film.

"The idea is that there are things actually happening historically at the same time the story of The Hobbit is taking place, they just weren't written in The Hobbit," he said.

"They were written in appendices and external pieces...that's kind of where a lot of that is coming from."

"It's going to feel like a nice transitional piece," he added. "I think it's going to be a great amalgam of a fresh new approach with places we've never been before in Middle-earth mixed with things that are very familiar to us. It will be a beautiful transition. I'm excited about it. I can't wait."