‘The Hobbit’ actor Andy Serkis answers fan questions as Gollum (VIDEO)

Oh, precious... we hardly knew you! With the release of "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" in December, "Lord of the Rings" fans have likely seen the last of the slimy, cadaverous, ring-coveting creature known as Gollum.

The corrupted and conflicted cave-dweller was an iconic literary character decades before director Peter Jackson ever got hold of author J.R.R. Tolkien's work. But it was English actor Andy Serkis' extremely memorable portrayal of Gollum in Jackson's "Lord of the Rings" trilogy that helped cement the character as one of pop culture's greatest -- and most complex -- villains.

Though the character's mournful exit at the end of "An Unexpected Journey" is probably the last time we'll see Serkis perform on screen as the computer-generated character, the actor thankfully hasn't retired Gollum from public appearances. Last fall, Serkis took part in a reading of Tolkien's "The Hobbit" to celebrate the book's 75th anniversary (and promote the upcoming film adaptation, naturally), playing out the famous "Riddle" scene from the novel to the delight of the assembled crowd.

Serkis broke out the dueling personalities of Gollum again at a recent public appearance when asked by a fan if the character liked the "Lord of the Rings" movies. As it turns out, Gollum isn't a fan of the Academy Award winning fantasy films, and really hates the special extended editions that have been released.

See Andy Serkis answer a fan's question in character below.

Gollum may not be in the upcoming "Hobbit" sequels "The Desolation of Smaug" or "There and Back Again," but that doesn't mean Serkis won't be involved in the films. In addition to lending his voice and performance to the CG wretch formerly known as Sméagol, the actor worked behind the camera on "An Unexpected Journey" as the film's second unit director. Serkis will continue to head up the second unit on the two upcoming "Hobbit" movies, and will also aid director Peter Jackson with the monumental post-production process.

While it's awesome to see a talent like Serkis give filmmaking a try behind the scenes, we're not ruling out some semi-contrived cameo appearance by Gollum after the inevitable tenth ending of "The Hobbit: There and Back Again." Serkis is so great in the role that we can't wait for Jackson to prove us right.

"The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug" arrives in theatres on Dec. 13, 2013.