Andy Serkis fears the world has become so precious people can be “cancelled for anything now”.

The ‘Lord of the Rings’ actor, 59, who played Gollum in the trio of fantasy epic films, was slammed in 2018 when he declared actors should be able to play any part they wanted – and added he defies people not to “tap their foot” to Michael Jackson’s music despite the paedophile accusations that dogged the late ‘Bad’ singer.

Andy told The Independent: “You can be cancelled for anything now, literally anything, and what I really despise is trial by media.

“That’s ruined more people’s lives and should not be allowed. There should be a proper course of law, where charges are made, people go through the legal process, and it should not be allowed to proliferate.

“Because people’s lives can be devastated. Sometimes, because of what they’ve done, it requires that, but the fact of the matter is, once it’s happened, that’s it. There’s no going back.”

He said about the issue of people being publicly accused of offences they deny and the debate over whether artists accused of crimes should still be admired for their work: “I think it can certainly damage their lives for a long time.

“I suppose, really, the thing is: can you still enjoy the art they’ve created?

“I think, without going into specifics – I don’t want to get myself cancelled – but put it this way: when Michael Jackson’s music starts to come on, I defy anyone to not tap their foot to it.

“And if your body won’t let you cancel it... but yeah, can art transcend the artist? I don’t know.”

In 2018, Andy weighed in on Scarlett Johansson’s decision to star in – then pull out of – playing a transgender man in the planned project ‘Rug and Tug’ amid a backlash over a non-trans actor taking the role.

The actor told Variety he “vehemently” disagreed with the criticism of her of the actress, saying: “Actors should be able to play anything.”

He added to The Independent about the issue: “Regardless of the colour of your skin, regardless of how tall you are or short you are or what sex you are, regardless of how you identify, you should have the ability to play anything.”