The stars of "The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug" turned up at the TCL Chinese Theatre in Hollywood on Monday night, December 2 for the movie premiere. Orlando Bloom, who reprises his "Lord of the Rings" role as Legolas, was among those who arrived first, AceShowbiz said.

Looking dapper in a white and black outfit by Lanvin without a tie, the actor was joined by Evangeline Lilly on the black carpet. Other actors, including Martin Freeman, Richard Armitage, Luke Evans and Benedict Cumberbatch, also suited up for the occasion. They later posed together with director Peter Jackson and British singer/songwriter Ed Sheeran, whose song "I See Fire" will be featured in the end credits of the movie.

Speaking at the event, Jackson revealed they deliberately cast nice people in the film. "We always wanted to cast nice people. You do become part of our family in New Zealand," he said, explaining, "It's hard to film for 18 months so you do try to cast people who can be there for the long haul and have the right spirit, and we had a fantastic cast."

Lilly, meanwhile, claimed it was "super fun to play" Tauriel. "All of her actions come out of her compassion and I think she's a beautiful character because of her great heart," the former "Lost" star gushed.

Cumberbatch also enjoyed voicing the dragon Smaug and did the motion capture work to create the dragon's image on screen. "It was an amazing job to have. It was a lot of fun," he shared.

In between celebrating the upcoming release of his new movie, Evans paid tribute to his "Fast and Furious 6" costar Paul Walker, who died in a car crash on Saturday, November 30. "Tonight, my performance is dedicated to him," he said on the black carpet. "He was just a really down to earth, cool guy. He was warm, just very kind."

"You know, I was the new boy on the set," he added. "He didn't have to have much to do with me but he always took time to come over, give me a hug, have a chat. He was that kind of guy." Evans continued, "He just gave off a really great energy... His friends and family were always surrounding him. They are the ones I send my love to this evening."

A follow-up to 2012's "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey", "Desolation of Smaug" continues the adventure of Bilbo Baggins (Freeman) as he journeys with the Wizard Gandalf (Ian McKellen) and thirteen Dwarves, led by Thorin Oakenshield (Armitage) on an epic quest to reclaim the lost Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor. It is due December 13 Stateside.