Actress Evangeline Lilly was unrecognizable at the world premiere for the first "Hobbit" film.

Lilly debuted a short haircut with blonde highlights on the red carpet premiere of "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" in Wellington, New Zealand, on Nov. 27.

Lilly, 33, was known for her long, curly dark locks like she had in the now cancelled ABC hit "Lost." The series cancelled in 2010 and since then she has remained roughly out of the spotlight until Wednesday. Her only major role since the show ended was in 2011's "Real Steel," where she starred alongside Hugh Jackman in a science-fiction drama about robot boxing. 

She attended the premiere on Tuesday although her onscreen "Hobbit" character does not debut until the second installment of the Peter Jackson-directed adaptation of J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy series "The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug." The second film will be released next year and a third film is expected to come out in 2014. 

In her "Hobbit" role as Tauriel, a woodland elf, she wears a wig.

"Right now I'm sort of holding my breath the same way before 'Lost' went on the air because there's been this beautiful calm after the storm," Lilly said in an interview with SFX in September. "I'm hoping it lasts because I'm not sure what will happen when Real Steel comes out and The Hobbit comes out. I'm not sure if I've just totally f**ked myself."

Lilly attended the premiere to show support to her co-stars Martin Freeman, Cate Blanchett, Elijah Wood and Ian McKellen.

Fans flew in from around the world and camped out overnight to catch a glimpse and autographs of the film's actors. They wore costumes as hobbits, elves, goblins and even trees, the characters from the Middle Earth fantasy books.