Christopher Plummer was worried about playing Russian writer Leo Tolstoy in 'The Last Station'.

The 80-year-old actor was unsure that such a big historic character could be reduced to a cinematic feature.

He said: "I thought the script was extremely good, and yet, at the same time, I thought, 'What are you going to do when you do a motion picture about a great genius? You can't get it all in two hours.' "

"But the director Michael Hoffman had very wisely concentrated on the love interest at the end of his life and a kind of nostalgic looking back on it with his wife Sofya.

"I thought no, no, this is the right thing to do - concentrate on one aspect of his life and do it thoroughly or as thoroughly as you can for the length of a motion picture. So I said yes."

The Canadian star also admitted the movie, which has seen Dame Helen Mirren gain an Oscar nomination for her portrayal of Sofya Tolstoy, was an obvious choice for him because of its historical basis.

Christopher added: "Because I have a history of playing historic figures on the screen and in the theatre I jumped at it. I love the challenge that real historic figures have. I enjoy the research."