The 48-year-old Lord Of The Rings star filmed Far North, which premieres at the London Film Festival, in below-freezing Arctic conditions – and it wasn’t easy, he has revealed to The Times.

“I’ve never been anywhere that cold, barren and desolate,” he said. 

“Some people couldn’t handle it after a few days and had to leave. The rest of us became very close.”

The Sheffield-born actor agreed to sign up for the film in the spirit of adventure, but admits that when he reached the glacial island of Svalbard he found out just how character forming the shoot was going to be.

“The Arctic is one of those places you see on television but you can only really appreciate when you get there,” he revealed.

“The novelty is OK for a week, but when it gets to week three and the isolation is still the same then that is when you really have to dig deep and find out what you’re all about.”

Sean stars opposite Michelle Yeoh in the story of a Russian mercenary who becomes embroiled in a love triangle with an Inuit and her daughter.