Hobbits dance at MTV award

The irreverent MTV movie awards was the one ceremony Peter Jackson didn't have to dress up for - but despite The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring winning best film, the director wasn't in attendance.

Instead, Jackson danced with his hobbit-costumed cast in a videotaped acceptance speech.

Also from the LOTR contingent, Orlando Bloom won MTV's Best Breakthrough (Male) award for his role as Legolas Greenleaf , beating competition from fellow Briton and Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe, as well as Colin Hanks (son of Tom), Paul Walker and rapper DMX.

The Lord of The Rings was voted Best Movie ahead of Black Hawk Down, Legally Blonde, The Fast and the Furious and Shrek in results collated from nearly eight million fan votes online.

At the Los Angeles ceremony, a newly blonde Nicole Kidman won two awards, including Best Female Performance. She scooped the award for her role as a courtesan in Moulin Rouge after facing competition from Oscar-winner Halle Berry, Kate Beckinsale, Angelina Jolie and Reese Witherspoon.

She claimed she was disappointed, however, at not winning the "Best Kiss" award for her Moulin Rouge clinch with Ewan McGregor. That award went to two male actors, Jason Biggs and Seann William Scott, for the comedy American Pie 2.

Will Smith, who was nominated for an Oscar this year, captured Best Male Performance for his role as Muhammad Ali in Ali, and Reese Witherspoon took the award for Best Comedic Performance for Legally Blonde.

Witherspoon's success in that role made her one of the most sought-after comedy actresses in Hollywood. Denzel Washington was named Best Villain for his role as a maverick cop in the thriller Training Day, for which he had also won this year's Best Actor Oscar.

His competition included Zhang Ziyi from Rush Hour 2, Christopher Lee from The Lord of the Rings, Tim Roth from Planet of the Apes and the late singer Aaliyah from Queen of the Damned.

Britney Spears missed out on the award for Breakthrough (Female) for her debut movie role in Crossroads. The award went to fellow popstar Mandy Moore for A Walk To Remember.

Other awards included Best Action Sequence, which went to Pearl Harbor, and Best Fight, which was won by Chris Tucker and Jackie Chan for Rush Hour 2.

* The MTV Movie Awards will be broadcast on TV3 on Friday June 14, 8.30pm.

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