However, as the scripts took shape, it became clear that the budget required would exceed Miramax's capabilities. The Weinsteins suggested cutting the project to one film. Jackson inquired whether it could be around four-hours in duration, but Miramax insisted on two hours, suggesting major cuts to the story, which Jackson refused. Harvey Weinstein threatened to replace Jackson with screenwriter Hossein Amini and directors John Madden or Quentin Tarantino. Jackson believes this was an empty threat to get him to concede to making a one-film version himself. Harvey eventually relented to putting the project on a turnaround, but the onerous conditions were meant to prevent the project from being taken up by another studio.
Move to New Line
The Lord of the Rings (film series)
The Lord of the Rings (film series) | Move to New Line
Two hours each trilogy Sorry. I cannot find the answer based on the context. Sorry. I cannot find the answer based on the context. Sorry. I cannot find the answer based on the context.
what is the total length of the lord of the rings movies
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Daily rushes would often last up to four hours, with scenes being done throughout 1999 to 2002 for the rough (4½-hour) assemblies of the films. In total, of film was edited down to the 686 minutes (11 hours and 26 minutes) of extended edition running time. This was the final area of shaping of the films, when Jackson realized that sometimes the best scripting could be redundant on screen, as he picked apart scenes every day from multiple takes. The first film's editing was relatively easygoing, although after a screening to New Line they had to re-edit the beginning for a prologue.
Production of The Lord of the Rings film series | Editing
Jackson got an audience with New Line CEO Robert Shaye, who accepted the project, but requested that it be expanded into a trilogy. Final Cut rights were shared contractually between Jackson and Bob Shaye, but there was never any interference in Jackson's cut.
The Lord of the Rings (film series) | Move to New Line
The Lord of the Rings is a film series of three epic fantasy adventure films directed by Peter Jackson, based on the novel written by J. R. R. Tolkien. The films are subtitled "" (2001), "" (2002) and "" (2003). Produced and distributed by New Line Cinema with the co-production of WingNut Films, it is an international venture between New Zealand and the United States. The films feature an ensemble cast including Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Liv Tyler, Viggo Mortensen, Sean Astin, Cate Blanchett, John Rhys-Davies, Christopher Lee, Billy Boyd, Dominic Monaghan, Orlando Bloom, Hugo Weaving, Andy Serkis and Sean Bean.
The Lord of the Rings (film series) | Introduction
The following is a list of cast members who voiced or portrayed characters appearing in the extended version of the films.
The Lord of the Rings (film series) | Cast
"The Complete Recordings" for "The Return of the King" span almost 3 hours and 50 minutes on four CDs. The accompanying DVD-audio disc is double-sided to accommodate all of the material. The set was released on 20 November 2007 on CD/DVD-Audio and digital download. It was re-released on CD/Blu-ray audio and vinyl on 21 September 2018.
Music of The Lord of the Rings film series | "The Return of the King"
"The Lord of the Rings" film series consists of three epic fantasy adventure films directed by Peter Jackson and based on the eponymous novel written by J. R. R. Tolkien. The films are subtitled "" (2001), "" (2002) and "" (2003). The trilogy was a joint New Zealand-American venture, produced and distributed by New Line Cinema with the co-production of WingNut Films. Development of the films began in August 1997. All three films were shot simultaneously and entirely in Jackson's native New Zealand from October 1999 until December 2000, with pick-up shots done from 2001 to 2004. "The Fellowship of the Ring" was released on 19 December 2001, "The Two Towers" was released on 18 December 2002 and "The Return of the King" was released on 17 December 2003, each to enormous commercial success and critical acclaim.
Production of The Lord of the Rings film series | Introduction
The extended editions also had a tight schedule at the start of each year to complete special effects and music.
Production of The Lord of the Rings film series | Post-production
This gave the series the option to film the first two seasons back-to-back as the "Lord of the Rings" films had been.
The Lord of the Rings (TV series) | Seasons
Peter Jackson's film series was released as three films between 2001 and 2003. The budget was $281 million, and together the three films grossed over $2.9 billion worldwide. The series runs for 9 hours, 18 minutes in the "theatrical" or cinema version, and 11 hours, 26 minutes in the extended version released on DVD. Although long for a film trilogy, this was short compared to Tolkien's work, presenting the films' makers with a major challenge of abridgement, compression, and transformation. Filmgoers and non-academic reviewers rated the films as almost perfect, "The Two Towers" actually scoring "a rare 100%" on "Rotten Tomatoes", and gaining many Oscars and other film awards.
The Lord of the Rings: film versus book | Peter Jackson's film trilogy
The score is the most expansive of the three: scoring effectively the entire movie length, not including additional music written for the trailer and various alternate versions released to the public. It also uses the biggest forces in the series: sections of the score call for two sets of timpani, eight trumpets (and possibly a similar increase in the size of the horn, trombone and tuba section, as well), 85 singers in the mixed choir with additional players for all-male and all-female sections, over fifty in the boy choir and many instrumentalist "bands" playing Celtic and eastern instruments such as tin whistle or pan flute, on stage or off of it.
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King | Score
On 12 November 2002, an extended edition was released on VHS and DVD, with 30 minutes of new material, added special effects and music, plus 19 minutes of fan-club credits, totalling to 228 minutes. The DVD set included four commentaries and over three hours of supplementary material. On 29 August 2006, a limited edition of "The Fellowship of the Ring" was released on DVD. The set included both the film's theatrical and extended editions on a double-sided disc along with all-new bonus material.
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring | Theatrical and extended release
Now Jackson, Walsh and Boyens had to write three new scripts. The expansion to three films allowed much more creative freedom, although Jackson, Walsh and Boyens had to restructure their script accordingly. The three films do not correspond exactly to the trilogy's three volumes, but rather represent a three-part adaptation. Jackson takes a more chronological approach to the story than did Tolkien. Frodo's quest is the main focus, and Aragorn is the main sub-plot. The filmmakers also consulted Tolkien's biography, letters and scholary books written on his works. They spoke with Tolkien's Estate, who decided to distance themselves from the films.
Production of The Lord of the Rings film series | The Move to "New Line"
Production was complicated by the use of scale doubles and forced perspective on a level never seen before in the film industry. In the Middle-earth storyverse, Hobbits are 3 ft 6 in (107 cm) tall, Dwarves are slightly taller at about 4 ft 6 in (137 cm), and Men and Elves are average human height, about 5 to 6 ft (150 to 180 cm). However, the films used two scale sets instead of three by casting taller than average actors to play Dwarves, then combining Dwarves and Hobbits into one size scale. Elijah Wood is 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) tall in real life, but his character, Frodo Baggins, is only 3 ft 6 in (1.07 m) in height.
Production of The Lord of the Rings film series | Scale
Large and small scale doubles were used in many other scenes, while entire duplicates of certain sets (including Bag End in Hobbiton) were built at two different scales so that the characters would appear to be the appropriate sizes. At one point in the film, Frodo runs along a corridor in Bag End, followed by Gandalf (played by Ian McKellen). Wood and McKellen were filmed in separate versions of the same corridor, built at two different scales; these two separate shots were then combined to create a shot of both actors appearing to be in the same corridor. Forced perspective was also employed, so that it would look as though the short hobbits were interacting with taller Men and Elves.
Production of The Lord of the Rings film series | Scale
This is a list of original characters of note found in Peter Jackson's film adaptation of J. R. R. Tolkien's "The Lord of the Rings". (novels 1953-1955) (film series 2001-2003)
List of original characters in The Lord of the Rings film series | Introduction
The Special Extended DVD Editions also had in-sleeve maps of the Fellowship's travels. They have also played at cinemas, most notably for a 16 December 2003 marathon screening (dubbed "Trilogy Tuesday") culminating in a late afternoon screening of the third film. Attendees of "Trilogy Tuesday" were given a limited edition keepsake from Sideshow Collectibles containing one random frame of film from each of the three movies. Both versions were put together in a Limited Edition "branching" version, plus a new feature-length documentary by Costa Botes. The complete series was released in a six-disc set on 14 November 2006.
The Lord of the Rings (film series) | Home media
"The Fellowship of the Ring" was released on 12 November 2002, containing 30 minutes more footage, an Alan Lee painting of the Fellowship entering Moria, and the Moria Gate on the back of the sleeve; an Argonath-styled bookend was included with the Collector's Edition. "The Two Towers", released on 18 November 2003, contained 46 minutes extra footage and a Lee painting of Gandalf the White's entrance; the Collector's Edition contained a Sméagol statue, with a crueller-looking statue of his Gollum persona available by order for a limited time. "The Return of the King" was released on 14 December 2004, having 52 minutes more footage, a Lee painting of the Grey Havens and a model of Minas Tirith for the Collector's Edition, with Minas Morgul available by order for a limited time.
The Lord of the Rings (film series) | Home media
Tolkien's fantasy classic "The Lord of the Rings" to New Line, hoping to turn the three volumes into two films, Shaye suggested Jackson make three films instead. He subsequently greenlit a simultaneous production for all three installments. "The Lord of the Rings" was nominated a total of thirty Academy Awards, winning 17, including 11 awards for "". At the box office, all three films are among New Line's highest-grossing films, earning a combined total of nearly $3 billion worldwide.
Robert Shaye | New Line Cinema
"Movement 1" - 11:25 "Movement 2" - 34:04 "Movement 3" - 18:15 "Movement 4" - 10:28 "Movement 5" - 15:26 "Movement 6" - 26:13
Music of The Lord of the Rings film series | Track listing
However, as the scripts took shape, it became clear that the budget required would exceed Miramax's capabilities. The Weinsteins suggested cutting the project to one film. Jackson inquired whether it could be around four-hours in duration, but Miramax insisted on two hours, suggesting major cuts to the story, which Jackson refused. Harvey Weinstein threatened to replace Jackson with screenwriter Hossein Amini and directors John Madden or Quentin Tarantino. Jackson believes this was an empty threat to get him to concede to making a one-film version himself. Harvey eventually relented to putting the project on a turnaround, but the onerous conditions were meant to prevent the project from being taken up by another studio.
The Lord of the Rings (film series) | Move to New Line
For instance, a special musical arrangement written for the trailer for "", which primarily consisted of principal leitmotives along with movie trailer-like music. Additionally, there was a song entitled "Use Well the Days" sung by Annie Lennox, which can be found on a supplementary DVD included with "The Return of the King" soundtrack in some packages released in 2003. If all the new material is compiled together, it would amount to about 14 hours of music.
Music of The Lord of the Rings film series | Deleted tracks
"The Lord of the Rings" is a film series of three epic fantasy adventure films directed by Peter Jackson. The films, subtitled "", "", and "", were released serially worldwide between December 2001 and December 2003. They are based on J. R. R. Tolkien's epic fantasy novel, "The Lord of the Rings", adapted for the screen by Jackson, Fran Walsh, and Philippa Boyens. Set in Tolkien's fictional Middle-earth, the plot follows the hobbit Frodo Baggins and his fellow members of the Fellowship of the Ring as they embark on a quest to destroy the One Ring, which will rid Middle-earth of the Dark Lord Sauron.
List of accolades received by The Lord of the Rings film series | Introduction
Gold was tinted to Hobbiton, whilst cooler colours were strengthened into Lothlórien, Moria and Helm's Deep. Such a technique took 2–3 weeks to do, and allowed some freedom with the digital source for some extra editing. "" required the help of the company Next Limit Technologies and their software RealFlow to simulate the lava in Mount Doom. A technical overview of the special effects used in the film series is given by Matt Aitken "et al." (2004).
Production of The Lord of the Rings film series | Software
A limited collector edition was created by Fantasy Records as a picture disc double LP featuring four scenes: The Hobbits leaving Hobbiton, The Ringwraiths at Bree, Gandalf and the Balrog, Journey with the Orcs. In 2001, the album was reissued on compact disc, with bonus tracks.
The Lord of the Rings (1978 film) | Music
Surprising the makers of the film, the simple act of kneeling down was used to great effect. Some actors also wore oversized costumes to make average-sized actors look small, and there were numerous scale doubles who were disguised with costumes (and even latex faces for the hobbit doubles) and an avoidance of close-ups and numerous back shots.
Production of The Lord of the Rings film series | Scale
The three films were shot simultaneously and entirely in Jackson's native New Zealand from 11 October 1999 until 22 December 2000, with pick-up shots done from 2001 to 2004. It was one of the biggest and most ambitious film projects ever undertaken, with a budget of $281 million. The first film in the series premiered at the Odeon Leicester Square in London on 10 December 2001; the second film premiered at the Ziegfeld Theatre in New York City on 5 December 2002; the third film premiered at the Embassy Theatre in Wellington on 1 December 2003. An extended edition of each film was released on home video a year after its theatrical release.
The Lord of the Rings (film series) | Introduction
A second season was formally ordered in November 2019.
The Lord of the Rings (TV series) | Introduction
New Line produced "The Lord of the Rings" film trilogy which became their most successful films to date, grossing over $2.9 billion worldwide. The films were nominated for 30 Academy Awards, including nominations for the Academy Award for Best Picture for each film, and won 17, with the final picture, "" (2003) winning a (joint) record eleven, including Best Picture, as well as being the second highest-grossing film of all time at the time of its release. Despite the success of "The Lord of the Rings" films, "Town and Country" (2001) generated a loss of $100 million and De Luca left as production head to be replaced by Toby Emmerich.
New Line Cinema | "The Lord of the Rings"
The main criticism of "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" was its running time, particularly the epilogue; even rave reviews for the film commented on its length. Joel Siegel of "Good Morning America" said in his review for the film (which he gave an 'A'): "If it didn't take forty-five minutes to end, it'd be my best picture of the year. As it is, it's just one of the great achievements in film history." There was also criticism regarding the Army of the Dead's appearance, rapidly ending the Battle of the Pelennor Fields. In February 2004, a few months following release, the film was voted eighth on "Empire"s "100 Greatest Movies of All Time", compiled from readers' top ten lists.
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King | Critical response
However, this set took longer to produce than the others because the cast and crew, no longer based in New Zealand for the trilogy, were spread all over the world working on other projects. The set was finally released on 14 December 2004 in the UK and US. The final ten minutes comprises a listing of the charter members of the official fan club who had paid for three-year charter membership. A collectors' box set was also released, which included the Extended Set plus a sculpture of Minas Tirith and a bonus 50-minute music documentary DVD, "Howard Shore: Creating The Lord of the Rings Symphony: A Composer's Journey Through Middle-earth".
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King | Home media
Set in the fictional world of Middle-earth, the films follow the hobbit Frodo Baggins as he and the Fellowship embark on a quest to destroy the One Ring, to ensure the destruction of its maker, the Dark Lord Sauron. The Fellowship eventually splits up and Frodo continues the quest with his loyal companion Sam and the treacherous Gollum. Meanwhile, Aragorn, heir in exile to the throne of Gondor, along with Legolas, Gimli, Boromir, Merry, Pippin and the wizard Gandalf, unite to rally the Free Peoples of Middle-earth in the War of the Ring in order to aid Frodo by distracting Sauron's attention.
The Lord of the Rings (film series) | Introduction
Numerous video games were released to supplement the film series. They include: "", "", "", , "", "", "", "", "The Lord of the Rings Online", "", "", "", "Lego The Lord of the Rings", "Guardians of Middle-earth", "", "", and pinball.
The Lord of the Rings (film series) | Video games
The film also won four Golden Globes (including Best Picture for Drama and Best Director), five BAFTAs, two MTV Movie Awards, two Grammy Awards, nine Saturn Awards, the New York Film Critics Circle award for Best Picture, the Nebula Award for Best Script, and the Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation, Long Form.
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King | Accolades
As with "The Fellowship of the Ring", an extended edition of "The Two Towers" was released on VHS and DVD in 18 November 2003 with 45 minutes of new material, added special effects and music, plus 11 minutes of fan-club credits. The runtime expanded to 226 minutes. The 4-disc DVD set included four commentaries along with hours of supplementary material. In August 2006, a limited edition of "The Two Towers" was released on DVD. The set included both the film's theatrical and extended editions on a double-sided disc along with all-new bonus material. The theatrical Blu-ray version of "The Lord of the Rings" was released in the United States in April 2010.
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers | Home media
Large- and small-scale doubles were used in certain scenes, while entire duplicates of certain sets (including Bag End in Hobbiton) were built at two different scales, so that the characters would appear to be the appropriate size. At one point in the film, Frodo runs along a corridor in Bag End, followed by Gandalf. Elijah Wood and Ian McKellen were filmed in separate versions of the same corridor, built at two different scales, and a fast camera pan conceals the edit between the two. Forced perspective was also employed, so that it would look as though the short hobbits were interacting with taller Men and Elves.
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring | Special effects
For the battle, they recorded 450 motions for the MASSIVE digital horses (though deaths were animated), and also had to deal with late additions in the film, such as Trolls bursting through Minas Tirith's gates as well as the creatures that pull Grond to the gate, and redoing a shot of two "mûmakil" Éomer takes down that had originally taken six months in two days. On a similar note of digital creatures, Shelob's head sculpture was scanned by a Canadian company for 10 times more detail than Weta had previously been able to capture. Like the previous films, there are also extensive morphs between digital doubles for the actors.
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King | Visual effects
With the return of Sean Bean, the Fellowship reunited and proceeded to shoot the Moria sequence and the Rivendell interiors, including five days of coverage for the Council of Elrond.
Production of The Lord of the Rings film series | 2000
A shortened version opened in London, United Kingdom, in the summer of 2007.
The Lord of the Rings (film series) | Effects on the film industry and tourism
Jackson, Walsh and Boyens made numerous changes to the story, for purposes of pacing and character development. Jackson said his main desire was to make a film focused primarily on Frodo and the Ring, the "backbone" of the story. The prologue condenses Tolkien's backstory, in which The Last Alliance's seven-year siege of the Barad-dûr is a single battle, where Sauron is shown to explode, though Tolkien only said his spirit flees. Events from the book are condensed or omitted altogether at the beginning of the film. The time between Gandalf leaving the Ring to Frodo and returning to reveal its inscription, which is 17 years in the book, is compressed for timing reasons.
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring | Comparison with the source material
Beagle. It covered only the first half of the story of "The Lord of the Rings". In 1977, an animated musical television film of "The Hobbit" was made by Rankin-Bass, and in 1980, they produced the animated musical television film "The Return of the King", which covered some of the portions of "The Lord of the Rings" that Bakshi was unable to complete. From 2001 to 2003, New Line Cinema released "The Lord of the Rings" as a trilogy of live-action films that were filmed in New Zealand and directed by Peter Jackson. The series was successful, performing extremely well commercially and winning numerous Oscars.
J. R. R. Tolkien | Film adaptations
He felt that selective omission would be better than compression as in the script he was shown, with "resultant over-crowding and confusion, blurring of climaxes, and general degradation".
The Lord of the Rings: film versus book | Tolkien's fantasy novel
The first time Jackson actually saw the completed film was at the Wellington premiere. Many filmed scenes remained unused, even in the extended editions. Promotional material for "The Fellowship of the Ring" contained an attack by Orcs from Moria on Lothlórien after the Fellowship leaves Moria, replaced with a more suspenseful entrance for the Fellowship. Also cut were scenes from the book, including Frodo seeing more of Middle-earth at Parth Galen, an extended Council of Elrond and new scenes with an attack upon Frodo and Sam at the river Anduin by an Uruk-hai.
Production of The Lord of the Rings film series | Editing
"The Complete Recordings" for "The Two Towers" span over three hours of music on three CDs. The set was released on 7 November 2006. It was re-released on CD/Blu-ray audio, vinyl, and digital platforms on 27 July 2018.
Music of The Lord of the Rings film series | "The Two Towers"
The theatrical edition of the film was released on VHS and DVD on 25 May 2004. The DVD was a 2-disc set with extras on the second disc. The theatrical DVD sets for the two previous films were released eight months after the films were released, but "Return of the King"'s set was completed in five because it did not have to market a sequel (the previous films had to wait for footage of their sequels to become available for a ten-minute preview). However, it contained a seven-minute trailer of the entire trilogy. "The Return of the King" followed the precedent set by its predecessors by releasing an Extended Edition (251 minutes) with new editing and added special effects and music, along with four commentaries and six hours of supplementary material, plus 10 minutes of fan-club credits.
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King | Home media
John Rhys-Davies, who played the Dwarf Gimli, is taller than Wood. Thus in the ending shot of the Council of Elrond scene, when all nine members of the Fellowship of the Ring are standing together, Rhys-Davies and the four Hobbit actors were filmed first. The human-sized characters (Gandalf, Aragorn, Boromir and Legolas) were filmed in a second take, and the two shots were composited at different scales to make one image, making the initial Dwarf/Hobbit character shot seem smaller. An unintended advantage of not creating a third scale for Dwarves is that in a scene in which only Dwarves and Hobbits interact, no scale doubles are needed.
Production of The Lord of the Rings film series | Scale
The rights to adapt Tolkien's works passed through the hands of several studios. New Line Cinema released the first part of director Peter Jackson's "The Lord of the Rings" film series in 2001 as part of a trilogy; it was followed by a prequel trilogy in "The Hobbit" film series with several of the same actors playing their old roles. Collectively, the New Line franchise has received a record 37 Academy Award nominations, winning 17, and three special awards, also a record. There have been several fan films of Middle-earth such as "The Hunt for Gollum" and "Born of Hope", uploaded to YouTube on 8 May 2009 and 11 December 2009 respectively.
Middle-earth | Films
He also bought 40,000 toy soldiers to play with. Pre-visualisation would continue throughout ads production, such as the late addition of the Ents attacking Isengard, and the siege of Minas Tirith in February 2003.
Production of The Lord of the Rings film series | Pre-visualisation
New Line Cinema released the first part of director Peter Jackson's "The Lord of the Rings" film series in 2001 as part of a trilogy and several actors and roles were introduced once again in a trilogy in "The Hobbit" film series. In 2017, Amazon co-operated with New Line to acquire the television rights to adapt a new prequel show set in a period glimpsed during a flashback in "The Lord of the Rings" films.
Middle-earth in film | Introduction
This forced the magazine to abandon its policy of only allowing films being older than a year to be eligible. In 2007, "Total Film" named "The Return of the King" the third best film of the past decade ("Total Film"s publication time), behind "The Matrix" and "Fight Club".
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King | Critical response
"The Lord of the Rings" series was the first time whose three separate instalments were written and shot simultaneously (excluding pick up shoots). Jackson found "The Return of the King" the easiest of the films to make, because it contained the climax of the story. "The Return of the King" was originally the second of two planned films under Miramax from January 1997 to August 1998, and more or less in its finished structure as the first film was to end with "The Two Towers"' Battle of Helm's Deep. Filming took place under multiple units across New Zealand, between 11 October 1999 and 22 December 2000, with pick up shoots for six weeks in 2003 before the film's release.
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King | Production
The film was highly acclaimed by critics and fans alike, who considered it to be a landmark in filmmaking and the fantasy film genre. It grossed $1.142 billion worldwide, making it the highest-grossing film of 2003 and the second highest-grossing film of all time at the time of its release, as well as the highest-grossing film released by New Line Cinema.
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King | Introduction
The first and third films also won the BAFTA Award for Best Film. The New York Film Critics Circle awarded "The Return of the King" its Best Picture Award at the 2003 Awards Ceremony, hosted by Andrew Johnston, chair of the organization at that time, who called it "a masterful piece of filmmaking."
The Lord of the Rings (film series) | Accolades
Dickson decided to give the Hobbits shorts due to their bare feet, and specifically worked on long sleeves for the Elves for a gliding impression. Dickson also took great pains to distinguish the colors worn by the Gondorians (silver and black) and the Rohirrim (brown and green).
Production of The Lord of the Rings film series | Costumes
Nonetheless, the film became a cult classic that continued to run as a matinee and a midnight movie for nearly two decades, and was an influence on Peter Jackson's trilogy, as detailed in the DVD extras of "".
The Lord of the Rings (1978 film) | Introduction
"The Complete Recordings" for "The Fellowship of the Ring" which unlike the other two albums, was conceived as an isolated film score, span just over three hours of music on three CDs. The set was released on 13 December 2005. It was re-released on CD/Blu-ray audio, vinyl, and digital platforms on 6 April 2018.
Music of The Lord of the Rings film series | "The Fellowship of the Ring"
Amazon Studios wanted to produce the series themselves, so Warner Bros. Television would not be involved in the project, with Amazon instead working with the Tolkien Estate and Trust, HarperCollins, and New Line Cinema. New Line, the Warner Bros. division who produced the films, was included in the deal due to the potential for the series to use material from the films. The series is a prequel to the events of "The Lord of the Rings", depicting "previously unexplored stories" based on Tolkien's works, with some creative restrictions imposed on the series by the Tolkien Estate. The deal stipulated that production on the series begin within two years.
The Lord of the Rings (TV series) | Deal and announcement
"The Return of the King" contains 1,488 visual effect shots, nearly three times the number from the first film and almost twice that of the second. Visual effects work began with Alan Lee and Mark Lewis compositing various photographs of New Zealand landscape to create the digital arena of the Pelennor Fields in November 2002. Jackson and Christian Rivers used computers to plan the enormous battle up until February 2003, when the shots were shown to Weta Digital. To their astonishment, 60 planned shots had gone up to 250, and 50,000 characters were now 200,000. Nevertheless, they pressed on, soon delivering 100 shots a week, 20 a day, and as the deadline neared within the last two months, often working until 2 am.
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King | Visual effects
Post-production began in November 2002, with the completion of the 4½ hour assembly cut of the film that Annie Collins had been completing over 2001 and 2002, from 4-hour dailies. For example, Théoden leading the charge went from 150 minutes of takes to a finished 90 seconds. Jackson reunited with longtime collaborator Jamie Selkirk to edit the final film. Like "The Two Towers", they would have to deal with multiple storylines, and Jackson paid attention to each storyline at a time before deciding where to intercut. Most importantly they spent three weeks working on the last 45 minutes of the film, for appropriate intercutting and leaving out scenes such as the Mouth of Sauron, and the fates of characters like Legolas, Gimli, Éowyn and Faramir.
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King | Editing
The Lord of the Rings
18th Critics' Choice Awards | Favorite Film Franchise
Jackson won the rights to film Tolkien's epic in 1997 after meeting with producer Saul Zaentz. Originally working with Miramax Films towards a two-film production, Jackson was later pressured to render the story as a single film, and finally overcame a tight deadline by making a last-minute deal with New Line, who were keen on a trilogy. Principal photography stretched from 11 October 1999 to 22 December 2000 with extensive location filming across New Zealand. With the benefit of extended post-production and extra periods of shooting before each film's release, the series met with huge success and sent Jackson's popularity soaring.
Peter Jackson | "The Lord of the Rings"
The early chapters "A Conspiracy Unmasked", "The Old Forest", "In the House of Tom Bombadil", and "Fog on the Barrow-Downs" are essentially omitted completely, though brief mentions of these are made later. The penultimate chapter "The Scouring of the Shire" is omitted, though its scene of the death of Saruman is retained in the extended version.
The Lord of the Rings: film versus book | Omissions
"The Lord of the Rings" is set to be released on the streaming service Prime Video, and is expected to premiere in 2021.
The Lord of the Rings (TV series) | Release
The first scene filmed was the "Wooded Road" sequence in "The Fellowship of the Ring", where the Hobbits hide beneath a tree from a mounted Ringwraith. The focus was generally on "The Fellowship of the Ring" when the Hobbits try to reach Rivendell, such as a single night in Bree exteriors; this was done with the hopes that the four actors playing the hobbits would bond. Second units also shot the Ford of Bruinen chase and the deforestation of Isengard. Liv Tyler generally came to New Zealand for stunts, and spent five days on a barrel for Bruinen while riding double Jane Abbott got to ride on horseback.
Production of The Lord of the Rings film series | Late 1999
In the end, the CGI Gollum was rotoscoped and animated on top of these scenes.
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers | Special effects
The score to Return of the King is the most expansive of the three: containing over four hours of finalized music, scoring virtually the entire film length. It also musters the biggest staged forces, with sections calling for eight trumpets and a similar increase in the rest of the brass section, two timpanists, a mixed choir of 85 with additional singers for all-male and all-female parts, over fifty in the boy choir, various vocal soloists including soprano Renee Fleming and boy soprano Ben Del Maestro, and the full bands of celtic and eastern instruments returning from the first score. The score even uses a double fiddle, an instrument invented and crafted specifically for one scene in the film.
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (soundtrack) | The Score
The first two films were released on standard two-disc edition DVDs containing previews of the next film. The success of the theatrical cuts brought about four-disc extended editions, with new editing, added special effects and music. Jackson came up with the idea of an extended cut for LaserDisc and DVD formats while in preproduction. He could insert some of the violence that he thought he'd have to trim to get a PG-13 rating for the theatre, and he could tailor the pacing to the demands of the small-screen, which he said were "completely different." He observed that the extended cuts will be "ultimately seen as the more definitive versions of the films." The extended cuts of the films and the included special features (labeled "Appendices" as an homage to the books) were spread over two discs, and a limited collector's edition was also released.
The Lord of the Rings (film series) | Home media
According to the Guinness Book of World Records Gamer's Edition, this game has the longest title in expansion packs for video games ever.
The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II: The Rise of the Witch-king | Introduction
The trilogy's online promotional trailer was first released on 27 April 2000, and set a new record for download hits, registering 1.7 million hits in the first 24 hours of its release. The trailer used a selection from the soundtrack for "Braveheart" and "The Shawshank Redemption" among other cuts. In 2001, 24 minutes of footage from the series, primarily the Moria sequence, was shown at the 54th Cannes Film Festival, and was very well received. The showing also included an area designed to look like Middle-earth. "" was released 19 December 2001. It grossed $47.2 million in its U.S. opening weekend and made around $887.8 million worldwide.
The Lord of the Rings (film series) | Box office
If a character dies, the death is permanent and the player cannot use them for the rest of the game.
J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, Vol. I (1994 video game) | Gameplay
Éothain was not as trusting as his commander, scoffing at the idea that hobbits even existed, and arguing against the gift of horses to the three companions, especially Gimli.
List of original characters in The Lord of the Rings film series | Éothain and Freda
The Lord of the Rings is a 1978 animated dark fantasy adventure film directed by Ralph Bakshi. It is an adaptation of J. R. R. Tolkien's high fantasy epic "The Lord of the Rings", comprising "The Fellowship of the Ring" (1954) and the first half of "The Two Towers" (1954). Set in Middle-earth, the film follows a group of hobbits, elves, men, dwarves, and wizards who form a fellowship. They embark on a quest to destroy the One Ring made by the Dark Lord Sauron, and ensure his destruction. Ralph Bakshi encountered Tolkien's writing early in his career, and had made several attempts to produce "The Lord of the Rings" as an animated film before being given funding by producer Saul Zaentz and distributor United Artists.
The Lord of the Rings (1978 film) | Introduction
The series also received accolades in various technical categories, including those in editing, sound mixing, and visual effects. Walsh, Boyens, and Jackson's screenwriting earned them 10 awards out of 23 total nominations, including the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay (for "The Return of the King"). In total, the series received 475 awards out of 800 nominations, thus making the films the most awarded film series in cinematic history.
List of accolades received by The Lord of the Rings film series | Introduction
Sometimes they are performed as a cycle featuring the Lord of the Rings Symphony followed by each theatrical film on four consecutive nights. The choir and orchestra are amplified for sake of control over the sound mix with the film, which is supplied with subtitles in the local language.
Music of The Lord of the Rings film series | Live to Projection
Principal photography for "The Lord of the Rings" film trilogy was conducted concurrently in New Zealand for 438 days from 11 October 1999 through 22 December 2000. Pick-up shoots were conducted annually from 2001 to 2004. The trilogy was shot at over 150 different locations, with seven different units shooting, as well as at soundstages around Wellington and Queenstown. Jackson directed the whole production, while other unit directors included Alun Bollinger, John Mahaffie, Geoff Murphy, Fran Walsh, Barrie Osborne and Rick Porras. Jackson monitored these units with live satellite feeds, and with the added pressure of constant script re-writes and the multiple units handling his vision, he only got around four hours of sleep a night.
Production of The Lord of the Rings film series | Filming
The second disc is a bonus disc that contains a new behind-the-scenes documentary.
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King | Home media
Returning Themes for The One Ring Themes for Mordor Themes for The Shire Themes for the Elves Themes for the Dwarves Themes for Gondor Themes for the Monsters of Middle Earth Themes for Middle Earth
Music of The Lord of the Rings film series | First appearance in "The Return of the King"
They would, however, later reconcile upon Lee's casting in Jackson's "Hobbit" films. Jackson only had a lock on 5 out of 10 reels, and had to churn out 3 reels in 3 weeks to help finish the film. It was finally completed on 12 November 2003. Jackson never had a chance to view the film in full due to the hectic schedule, and only saw the film from beginning to end on 1 December at the Wellington premiere; according to Elijah Wood, his response was "yup, it's good, pretty good".
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King | Editing
The name changes correspond to the companies which owned the rights at different times.
The Lord of the Rings (1979 radio series) | Introduction
"The Lord of the Rings" film series began production design in August 1997. Peter Jackson required complete realism and plausibility in his vision of Middle-earth, and hired Weta Workshop to create the various pieces of armour, weapons, prosthetics and creatures seen in the trilogy, as well as aged costumes and historically influenced sets.
Production of The Lord of the Rings film series | Production design
Additional music for the film was featured in The Rarities Archive release, attached to Doug Adams' book on the three film scores:Along with about 17 minutes of alternate material from the original release, about a minute of material in the fan credits, and some additional alternates, there are over four and a half hours of finalized music for "Return of the King," including the music for the trailer.
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (soundtrack) | Additional Music
The mixers finished on 15 November, after three months of non-stop work.
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King | Sound effects
The original manuscripts, which total 9,250 pages, now reside in the J. R. R. Tolkien Collection at Marquette University.
The Lord of the Rings | Writing
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King is a 2003 epic fantasy adventure film directed by Peter Jackson, based on the third volume of J. R. R. Tolkien's "The Lord of the Rings". The film is the final instalment in the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy and was produced by Barrie M. Osborne, Jackson and Fran Walsh, and written by Walsh, Philippa Boyens and Jackson. The film features an ensemble cast including Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Liv Tyler, Viggo Mortensen, Sean Astin, Cate Blanchett, John Rhys-Davies, Bernard Hill, Billy Boyd, Dominic Monaghan, Orlando Bloom, Hugo Weaving, Miranda Otto, David Wenham, Karl Urban, John Noble, Andy Serkis, Ian Holm, and Sean Bean.
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King | Introduction
Weta coined the term "bigature" for the 72 large miniatures produced for the film, in reference to their extreme size. Out of around six of the shooting crews, there was one specifically devoted to filming on the miniatures, working continuously for years until the end of "The Return of the King". Such miniatures include the 1:4 scale for Helm's Deep, which alongside Khazad-dûm and Osgiliath, was one of the first built. Most sets were constructed to allow compositing with the models and matte paintings, and also built in sections to make them easier to travel with, as the miniatures were not built in the studio where they would later be shot.
Production of The Lord of the Rings film series | Miniatures
This version was taken out of circulation at the time of the recording of the 1999 version and is no longer offered for checkout to Library of Congress patrons. Reference numbers were RC 10975 ("The Fellowship of the Ring"), RC 10976 ("The Two Towers"), and RC 10977 ("The Return of the King"). The Library of Congress recorded a third unabridged version of "The Lord of the Rings, A trip to Mordor" in 1999, narrated by David Palmer, on 4-track tape media. This version is also available on the new digital players provided for Library of Congress patrons. Reference numbers are RC 47486 / DB 47486 ("The Fellowship of the Ring"), RC 47487 / DB 47487 ("The Two Towers"), and RC 47488 / DB 47488 ("The Return of the King").
Adaptations of The Lord of the Rings | Library of Congress
Numerous corpses of actors and horses were also made.
Production of The Lord of the Rings film series | Weta Workshop
The theatrical Blu-ray version of "The Lord of the Rings" was released in the United States on 6 April 2010. There were two separate sets: one with digital copies and one without. The individual Blu-ray disc of "The Fellowship of the Ring" was released on 14 September 2010 with the same special features as the complete trilogy release, except there was no digital copy. The extended Blu-ray editions were released in the US on 28 June 2011. This version has a runtime of 238 minutes (the extended editions include the names of all fan club members at the time of their release; the additional 9 minutes in the Blu-ray version are because of expanded member rolls, not any additional story material).
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring | Blu-ray edition
Prime Video gave the series a multi-season commitment, believed to be for five seasons, as part of the initial deal with the Tolkien Estate, though the streaming service still had to give a formal greenlight to future seasons before work could begin on them. In July 2019, Shippey stated that the first season of the series was supposed to consist of 20 episodes. In November, Amazon officially ordered a second season of the series, and scheduled a longer-than-usual four or five month production break after completion of filming on the first two episodes. This was to allow all the footage for the first episodes to be reviewed, and so the series' writers room could be reconvened to begin work on the second season before filming on the first season continued.
The Lord of the Rings (TV series) | Seasons
Additional music for the film was featured in The Rarities Archive release, attached to Doug Adams' book on the three film scores:Along with about 4 minutes of alternate material from the original release, about 8 minutes of alternates in the fan credits, and some additional alternates, there are about 3:40 minute of finalized music from "The Two Towers".
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (soundtrack) | Additional Music
He later read "The Hobbit" and "The Silmarillion", and listened to the 1981 BBC radio adaptation. Assuming someone will one day adapt it to a live-action film, Jackson read on some previous attempts to bring the piece to the screen. He hadn't watched the Rankin and Bass TV Specials.
The Lord of the Rings (film series) | Previous attempts
Pick-up shoots were conducted from 2001 to 2003 for six weeks every year to refine each film's edit. For the first two films, the cast and crew often returned to sets; for the third, they had to shoot around the clock in a car park full of set parts. Pick-ups provided a chance for cast and crew to meet in person again, and during "The Two Towers" pick-ups, Sean Astin directed a short film entitled "The Long and Short of It". Notable scenes filmed in the pick-ups include the flashback with Boromir (where he is sent to Rivendell by his father Denethor) featured in "The Two Towers" Extended Edition, as well as the re-shot Witch-king scenes with his new helmet design, the improved Orc designs and the new character of Gothmog, and a re-shoot of Aragorn and Arwen kissing at the coronation scene, all for "The Return of the King".
Production of The Lord of the Rings film series | 2001–2004: Pick-ups
"The Lord of the Rings" has been adapted for film, radio, stage, and television.
The Lord of the Rings | Adaptations
Earlier versions of the script included additional characters like Fatty Bolger, Glorfindel, Elladan, Elrohir, Erkenbrand, Imrahil and Forlong. At one point, Jackson even considered reintroducing Tom Bombadil in a cameo. Gimli was going to swear throughout the films, and Arwen would join the Fellowship in Rohan and share a nude scene with Aragorn in the pools of the Glittering Caves. Jackson hired long-time collaborator Richard Taylor to lead Weta Workshop on five major design elements: armour, weapons, prosthetic makeup, creatures, and miniatures. At New Line's request, animation supervisor Jim Rygiel replaced Weta Digital's Mark Stetson. In November 1997, famed Tolkien illustrators Alan Lee and John Howe joined the project; most of the imagery in the films is based on their various illustrations, but Jackson also relied on the work of Ted Nasmith, who later had to turn down an offer to join Alan and John.
The Lord of the Rings (film series) | Production
The script by Brian Sibley and Michael Bakewell attempts to be as faithful as possible to the original novel, but there are some errors and alterations. They include:
The Lord of the Rings (1981 radio series) | Discrepancies with the novel
The 45-minute film will be released in four formats:
In Saturn's Rings | Introduction
Render time refers to the amount of time it took the computer to process the image into a usable format; it does not include the amount of time it took the texture artists to "draw" the frame. The hair dynamics of CG Gollum in "The Two Towers" were generated using Maya Cloth. Because of its technical limitations, Weta subsequently moved to the Syflex system for "The Return of the King".
Production of The Lord of the Rings film series | Animation and computer graphics effects
He wrote that the third film would not act as a bridge between "The Hobbit" and "The Lord of the Rings" films, but would continue to expand "The Hobbit" story by using material found in the "Lord of the Rings Appendices".
Peter Jackson | "The Hobbit"
Most of the Rings of Power were displayed as well, the only exception being the Seven Rings of the Dwarf-lords, which were barely seen in the books or the films.
The Lord of the Rings Motion Picture Trilogy: The Exhibition | Props and costumes
Ralph Bakshi's 1978 animated film "The Lord of the Rings" begins with the forging of the Rings of Power and the events of the War of the Last Alliance against Sauron, all of which are animated in a silhouette against a red background using rotoscope. The forging of the Rings of Power opens the prologue of Peter Jackson's "The Lord of the Rings" film series, primarily with "" (2001). In the film, the Three Elven Rings are shown being cast using a cuttlebone mold, an ancient primitive casting technique. These were given to Gil-galad (portrayed by Mark Ferguson), Círdan (Michael Elsworth), and Galadriel (Cate Blanchett).
Rings of Power | Adaptations
One piece of music required an instrument invented and crafted especially for the film: a fiddle with four pairs of strings instead of single strings. Actors Billy Boyd, Viggo Mortensen and Liv Tyler also contributed to the film's music. Boyd sings on screen as Faramir charges towards Osgiliath, Mortensen sings on screen as he is crowned King, and in the Extended Edition Tyler sings as Aragorn heals Éowyn.
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King | Score