Ian McKellen has said he is looking to "take the rest of the year off" from acting following a fall on stage.
The two-time Oscar nominee, 85, lost his footing during a play's fight scene at London's Noel Coward Theatre in June and has since been suffering from wrist and neck injuries.
He told The Big Issue that he has been "left feeling weak physically" from his fall during a performance of Player Kings and is doing exercise to treat the issue.
McKellen said: "Of course, it's emotional. We all trip all our lives. It's just when you get to my age you can't always get up again."
The Burnley-born actor suggested he is concerned that the fall, which left him with injuries including a chipped vertebrae and fractured wrist, could have been the result of him getting old.
"I'm just trying to convince myself it was an accident," he added.
"I'm usually working or preparing to work. I've been doing a little bit of that, wondering what might be the best plan. I'm going to take the rest of the year off. Not because I need to, just because I want to."
McKellen, who played John Falstaff in the play, a production adapted by Robert Icke from Shakespeare's Henry IV, parts one and two, previously said a fat suit worn for the production is believed to have saved his "ribs and other joints".
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It has already been reported that a new swathe of The Lord of the Rings films is in the works with Andy Serkis directing and starring in the first instalment called The Hunt for Gollum as the corrupted character of the same name, also known as Smeagol.
McKellen seemed to point to him returning as the wizard Gandalf, the character he played in the first three films and The Hobbit trilogy, all directed by New Zealand film-maker Peter Jackson.
"Enthusiasm for The Lord of the Rings shows no sign of abating," he said. "I may even be going back to play Gandalf again.
"I can't tell you any more than that. I've just been told there are going to be more films and Gandalf will be involved, and they hope that I'll be playing him.
"When? I don't know. What the script is? It's not written yet. So, they better be quick."
The full interview with Ian McKellen is in this week's Big Issue.
Source: Press Association
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