John Ronald Reuel Tolkien CBE FRSL ( 3 January 1892 – 2 September 1973) was an English writer, poet, philologist, and university professor who is best known as the author of the classic high-fantasy works The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, andThe Silmarillion.
After Tolkien's death, his son Christopher published a series of works based on his father's extensive notes and unpublished manuscripts, including The Silmarillion. These, together with The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings form a connected body of tales, poems, fictional histories, invented languages, and literary essays about a fantasy world called Arda, and Middle-earth, within it. Between 1951 and 1955, Tolkien applied the term legendarium to the larger part of these writings.
AND THIS HOW A BOOK WRITTEN BY J RR TOLKIEN BECAME A MOVIE AND LEFT ITS PLACE IN THE HISTORY
After Tolkien's death, his son Christopher published a series of works based on his father's extensive notes and unpublished manuscripts, including The Silmarillion. These, together with The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings form a connected body of tales, poems, fictional histories, invented languages, and literary essays about a fantasy world called Arda, and Middle-earth, within it. Between 1951 and 1955, Tolkien applied the term legendarium to the larger part of these writings.
The Hobbit
Tolkien never expected his stories to become popular, but by sheer accident a book called The Hobbit, which he had written some years before for his own children, came in 1936 to the attention of Susan Dagnall, an employee of the London publishing firm George Allen & Unwin, who persuaded Tolkien to submit it for publication.[94] However, the book attracted adult readers as well as children, and it became popular enough for the publishers to ask Tolkien to produce a sequel.
The Lord of the Rings
The request for a sequel prompted Tolkien to begin what would become his most famous work: the epic novel The Lord of the Rings (originally published in three volumes 1954–1955). Tolkien spent more than ten years writing the primary narrative and appendices for The Lord of the Rings, during which time he received the constant support of theInklings, in particular his closest friend Lewis, the author of The Chronicles of Narnia. Both The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings are set against the background of The Silmarillion, but in a time long after it.
Tolkien at first intended The Lord of the Rings to be a children's tale in the style of The Hobbit, but it quickly grew darker and more serious in the writing.[154] Though a direct sequel to The Hobbit, it addressed an older audience, drawing on the immense backstory of Beleriand that Tolkien had constructed in previous years, and which eventually saw posthumous publication in The Silmarillion and other volumes. Tolkien's influence weighs heavily on the fantasy genre that grew up after the success of The Lord of the Rings.
The Lord of the Rings became immensely popular in the 1960s and has remained so ever since, ranking as one of the most popular works of fiction of the 20th century, judged by both sales and reader surveys.[155] In the 2003 "Big Read" survey conducted by the BBC, The Lord of the Rings was found to be the UK's "Best-loved Novel".[156] Australians voted The Lord of the Rings "My Favourite Book" in a 2004 survey conducted by the Australian ABC.[157] In a 1999 poll of Amazon.com customers, The Lord of the Rings was judged to be their favourite "book of the millennium".[158] In 2002 Tolkien was voted the 92nd "greatest Briton" in a poll conducted by the BBC, and in 2004 he was voted 35th in the SABC3's Great South Africans, the only person to appear in both lists. His popularity is not limited to the English-speaking world: in a 2004 poll inspired by the UK's "Big Read" survey, about 250,000 Germans found The Lord of the Rings to be their favourite work of literature
The Lord of the Rings (film series)
The Lord of the Rings is a film series consisting of three high fantasy adventure films directed by Peter Jackson. They are based on the novel The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien. The films are subtitled The Fellowship of the Ring (2001), The Two Towers(2002) and The Return of the King (2003). They were distributed by New Line Cinema.
Considered to be one of the biggest and most ambitious film projects ever undertaken, with an overall budget of $281 million (some sources say $310 million-$330 million),[3] the entire project took eight years, with the filming for all three films done simultaneously and entirely in New Zealand, Jackson's native country.[4] Each film in the series also had special extended editions released on DVD a year after their respective theatrical releases. While the films follow the book's general storyline, they do omit some of the novel's plot elements and include some additions to and deviations from the source material.
Set in the fictional world of Middle-earth, the films follow the hobbit Frodo Baggins (Elijah Wood) as he and a Fellowship embark on a quest to destroy the One Ring, and thus ensure the destruction of its maker, the Dark Lord Sauron (Sala Baker). The Fellowship becomes divided and Frodo continues the quest together with his loyal companion Sam (Sean Astin) and the treacherous Gollum(Andy Serkis). Meanwhile, Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen), heir in exile to the throne of Gondor, and the wizard Gandalf (Ian McKellen) unite and rally the Free Peoples of Middle-earth in the War of the Ring.
The series was a major financial success, with the films collectively being among the highest-grossing film series of all time. The films were critically acclaimed and heavily awarded, winning 17 out of 30 total Academy Award nominations. The final film in the series, The Return of the King, won all of its 11 Academy Awards nominations, tying it with Ben-Hur and Titanic for most Academy Awards received for a film. The series received wide praise for its innovative special and visual effects
Filming[edit]
Principal photography for all three films was conducted concurrently in many locations within New Zealand's conservation areas and national parks between 11 October 1999, and 22 December 2000, a period of 438 days. Pick-up shoots were conducted annually from 2001 to 2004. The series was shot at over 150 different locations,[26] with seven different units shooting, as well as soundstages around Wellington andQueenstown. As well as Jackson directing the whole production, other unit directors included John Mahaffie, Geoff Murphy, Fran Walsh, Barrie Osbourne, Rick Porras, and any other assistant director, producer, or writer available. Jackson monitored these units with live satellite feeds, and with the added pressure of constant script re-writes and the multiple units interpreting his envisioned result, he only got around four hours of sleep a night.[18] Due to the remoteness of some of the locations, the crew would also bring survival kits in case helicopters could not reach the location to bring them home in time.[14] The New Zealand Department of Conservation was criticised for approving the filming within national parks without adequate consideration of the adverse environmental effects and without public notification.[27] The adverse effects of filming battle scenes in Tongariro National Park meant that the park later required restoration work.[28]
Cast[edit]
See also: Middle-earth in film § Cast
The following is a list of cast members who voiced or portrayed characters appearing in the extended version of The Lord of the Rings film series.
Post-production[edit]
Each film had the benefit of a full year of post-production time before its respective December release, often finishing in October–November, with the crew immediately going to work on the next film. In this period's later part, Jackson would move to London to supervise the scoring and continue editing, while having a computer feed for discussions to The Dorchester Hotel, and a "fat pipe" of Internet connections fromPinewood Studios to look at the special effects. He had a Polycom video link and 5.1 surround sound to organise meetings, and listen to new music and sound effects generally wherever he was. The extended editions also had a tight schedule at the start of each year to complete special effects and music.[32]
Editing[edit]
To avoid pressure, Jackson hired a different editor for each film. John Gilbert worked on the first film, Mike Horton and Jabez Olssen on the second and longtime Jackson collaborator Jamie Selkirk and Annie Collins on the third. Daily rushes would often last up to four hours, with scenes being done throughout 1999–2002 for the rough (4½ hours) assemblies of the films.[14] In total, 1828 km (six million feet) of film[26] was edited down to the 11 hours and 23 minutes (683 minutes) of Extended running time. This was the final area of shaping of the films, when Jackson realised 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, with Jackson coming up with the concept of an Extended Edition later on, although after a screening to New Line they had to re-edit the beginning for a prologue. The Two Towers was always acknowledged by the crew as the most difficult film to make, as "it had no beginning or end", and had the additional problem of inter-cutting storylines appropriately. Jackson even continued editing the film when that part of the schedule officially ended, resulting in some scenes, including the reforging of Andúril, Gollum's back-story, and Saruman's demise, being moved to The Return of the King. Later, Saruman's demise was cut from the theatrical edition (but included in the Extended edition) when Jackson felt it was not starting the third film effectively enough.[33] As with all parts of the third film's post-production, editing was very chaotic. The first time Jackson actually saw the completed film was at the Wellington premiere.
Many filmed scenes remain 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 and an extended Council of Elrond,[14] and new scenes with an attack upon Frodo and Sam at the river Anduin by an Uruk-hai.[14] The major cut to The Two Towers featured Arwen and Elrond visiting Galadriel at Lothlórien, with Arwen then leading the Elven reinforcements to Helm's Deep.[18] This scene, and a flashback to Arwen and Aragorn's first meeting, was cut during a revision of the film's plot; the Elves' appearance was explained with a telepathic communication between Elrond and Galadriel.[18]
Éowyn was to have a greater role in defending the refugees in the Glittering Caves from Uruk-hai intruders,[34] while in Osgiliath, Faramir was to have a vision of Frodo becoming like Gollum,[18] with Frodo and Sam having an extended fight sequence.[35] Filmed for The Return of the King were two scenes present in the book; Sam using the Phial of Galadriel to pass the Watchers at Cirith Ungol, and further epilogue footage, with endings for Legolas and Gimli, Éowyn and Faramir's wedding and Aragorn's death and funeral.[36] Sauron was to fight Aragorn at the Black Gate, but with Jackson deciding the scene was inappropriate, a computer-generated Troll was used instead.[23] To give context for Wormtongue killing Saruman, and Legolas in turn killing Wormtongue, it was to be revealed Wormtongue poisoned Théodred.[37] The final scene cut was Aragorn having his armour fitted for the Battle of the Black Gate by the trilogy's armourers, which was the final scene filmed during principal photography.[23] Peter Jackson has stated that he would like to include some of these unused scenes in a future "Ultimate Edition" home video release, also including out-takes.[38]
Music[edit]
Main article: Music of The Lord of the Rings film series
Howard Shore composed, orchestrated, conducted, and produced the trilogy's music. He was hired in August 2000[39] and visited the set, and watched the assembly cuts of The Fellowship of the Ring and The Return of the King. In the music, Shore included many leitmotifs to represent various characters, cultures, and places. For example, there are leitmotifs for the hobbits as well as the Shire. Although the first film had some of its score recorded in Wellington,[14] virtually all of the trilogy's score was recorded in Watford Town Hall and mixed atAbbey Road Studios. Jackson planned to advise the score for six weeks each year in London, though for The Two Towers he stayed for twelve. As a Beatles fan, Jackson had a photo tribute done there on the zebra crossing.[18]
The score is primarily played by the London Philharmonic Orchestra, and many artists such as Ben Del Maestro, Enya, Renée Fleming,James Galway, Annie Lennox and Emilíana Torrini contributed. Even actors Billy Boyd, Viggo Mortensen, Liv Tyler, Miranda Otto(extended cuts only for the latter two), and Peter Jackson (for a single gong sound in the second film) contributed to the score. Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens also wrote the lyrics to various music and songs, which David Salo translated into Tolkien's languages. The third film's end song, "Into the West", was a tribute to a young filmmaker Jackson and Walsh befriended named Cameron Duncan, who died of cancer in 2003.[23]
Shore composed a main theme for The Fellowship rather than many different character themes, and its strength and weaknesses in volume are depicted at different points in the series. On top of that, individual themes were composed to represent different cultures. Infamously, the amount of music Shore had to write every day for the third film increased dramatically to around seven minutes.[23]
Sound[edit]
Sound technicians spent the early part of the year trying to find the right sounds. Some, such as animal sounds like tigers' and walruses', were bought. Human voices were also used. Fran Walsh contributed to the Nazgûl scream and David Farmer the Warg howls. Other sounds were unexpected: The Fell Beast's screech is taken from that of a donkey, and the mûmakil's bellow comes from the beginning and end of a lion's roar. In addition, ADR was used for most of the dialogue.
The technicians worked with New Zealand locals to get many of the sounds. They re-recorded sounds in abandoned tunnels for an echo-like effect in the Moria sequence. 20,000 New Zealand cricket fans provided the sound of the Uruk-hai army in The Two Towers, with Jackson acting as conductor during the innings break of a one-day International cricket match between England and New Zealand at Westpac Stadium.[18] They spent time recording sounds in a graveyard at night, and also had construction workers drop stone blocks for the sounds of boulders firing and landing in The Return of the King. Mixing took place between August and November at "The Film Mix", before Jackson commissioned the building of a new studio in 2003. The building, however, had not yet been fully completed when they started mixing for The Return of the King.[23]
Special effects[edit]
Main article: Special effects of The Lord of the Rings film series
The first film has around 540 effect shots, the second 799, and the third 1,488 (2,730 in total). The total increases to 3,420 with the extended editions. 260 visual effect artists began work on the series, and the number doubled by The Two Towers. The crew, led by Jim Rygiel and Randy Cook, worked long hours, often overnight, to produce special effects within a short space of time. Jackson's active imagination was a driving force. For example, several major shots of Helm's Deep were produced within the last six weeks of post-production of The Two Towers, and the same happened again within the last six weeks on The Return of the King.
Releases[edit]
Theatrical[edit]
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.[40]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 theMoria sequence, was shown at the Cannes Film Festival, and was very well received.[41] The showing also included an area designed to look like Middle-earth.[26]
The Fellowship of the Ring was released 19 December 2001. It grossed $47 million in its U.S. opening weekend and made around $871 million worldwide. A preview of The Two Towers was inserted just before the end credits near the end of the film's theatrical run.[42] A promotional trailer was later released, containing music re-scored from the filmRequiem for a Dream.[43] The Two Towers was released 18 December 2002. It grossed $62 million in its first U.S. weekend and out-grossed its predecessor, grossing $926 million worldwide. The promotional trailer for The Return of the King was debuted exclusively before the New Line Cinema film Secondhand Lions on 23 September 2003.[44] Released 17 December 2003, its first U.S. weekend gross was $72 million, and became the second film (after Titanic) to gross over $1 billion worldwide.
Home media[edit]
Each film was 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.[45] The extended cuts of the films and the included special features were spread over two discs, and a limited collectors edition was also released. 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 and an Argonath styled bookend with the Collector's Edition. The Two Towers, released on 18 November 2003, contains 44 minutes extra footage, a Lee painting of Gandalf the White's entrance and the Collector's Edition contained a Sméagol statue, with a crueller-looking statue of his Gollum persona available for order during a limited time.
The Return of the King was released on 14 December 2004, having 51 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 for order during a limited time. 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.
Warner Bros. released the trilogy's theatrical versions on Blu-ray Disc in a boxed set on 6 April 2010.[46] An extended edition Blu-ray box set was made available for pre-order from Amazon.com in March 2011 and was released on 28 June 2011.[47] Each film's extended Blu-ray version is identical to the extended DVD version; the running time includes an added credit sequence listing the names of "Lord of the Rings fan-club members" who contributed to the project.[48][49]
In 2014, brand new Blu-ray steelbook editions of the five-disc Extended Editions were released. The first of which, The Fellowship of the Ring, was released on 12 May 2014. The discs are identical to those found in the previous five-disc Blu-ray set.[citation needed]
| Film | Theatrical edition length | Extended edition length |
|---|---|---|
| The Fellowship of the Ring | 178 mins | 208 mins (228 with additional credits) |
| The Two Towers | 179 mins | 223 mins (235 with additional credits) |
| The Return of the King | 200 mins | 251 mins (263 with additional credits) |
Reception[edit]
Box office performance[edit]
| Film | Release date | Box office revenue | Box office ranking | Budget | Reference | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North America | Other territories | Worldwide | All time North America | All time worldwide | ||||
| The Fellowship of the Ring | 11 December 2001 | $315.544.750 | $555.985.574 | $871.530.324 | #32 #76(A) | #37 | $93.000.000 | [50] |
| The Two Towers | 12 December 2002 | $342.551.365 | $583.495.746 | $926.047.111 | #22 #61(A) | #29 | $94.000.000 | [51] |
| The Return of the King | 13 December 2003 | $377.845.905 | $742.083.616 | $1.119.929.521 | #17 #52(A) | #8 | $94.000.000 | [52] |
| Total | $1.035.942.020 | $1.881.564.936 | $2.917.506.956 | $281.000.000 | [53] | |||
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The Hobbit (film series)
The Hobbit is a film series consisting of three high fantasy adventure films directed by Peter Jackson. They are based on the 1937 novel The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien, with large portions of the trilogy inspired by the appendices to The Return of the King, which expand on the story told in The Hobbit, as well as new material and characters written especially for the films. The films are subtitledAn Unexpected Journey (2012), The Desolation of Smaug (2013), and The Battle of the Five Armies (2014).[4]
The screenplay was written by Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Jackson, and Guillermo del Toro, who was originally chosen to direct before his departure from the project. The films take place in the fictional world of Middle-earth sixty years before the beginning ofThe Lord of the Rings, and follow hobbit Bilbo Baggins (Martin Freeman), who is convinced by the wizard Gandalf the Grey (Ian McKellen) to accompany thirteen dwarves, led by Thorin Oakenshield (Richard Armitage), on a quest to reclaim the Lonely Mountain from the dragon Smaug (voiced by Benedict Cumberbatch). The films also expand upon certain elements from the novel and other source material, such as Gandalf's investigation at Dol Guldur, and the pursuit of Azog and Bolg, who seek vengeance against Thorin and his ancestors.
The films feature an ensemble cast that also includes James Nesbitt, Ken Stott, Evangeline Lilly, Lee Pace and Luke Evans, with several actors reprising their roles from The Lord of the Rings, including Cate Blanchett, Orlando Bloom, Ian Holm, Christopher Lee,Hugo Weaving, Elijah Wood and Andy Serkis. The films also feature Manu Bennett, Sylvester McCoy, Stephen Fry, Mikael Persbrandt, Barry Humphries, and Lawrence Makoare. Also returning for production, among others, were illustrators John Howeand Alan Lee, art director Dan Hennah, cinematographer Andrew Lesnie, and composer Howard Shore, while props were again crafted by Weta Workshop, with visual effects managed by Weta Digital.
The first film in the series premiered at the Embassy Theatre in Wellington, New Zealand on 28 November 2012. One hundred thousand people lined the red carpet on Courtenay Place, and the entire event was broadcast live on television in New Zealand andstreamed over the Internet. The second film of the series premiered at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, California on 2 December 2013. The third and final film premiered at Leicester Square in London on 1 December 2014.
Cast[edit]
See also: Middle-earth in film § Cast
The following is a list of cast members who voiced or portrayed characters appearing in The Hobbit films.
Casting[edit]
In early October 2010, it was confirmed by the studio that Martin Freeman had officially been cast in the role of Bilbo Baggins. It was revealed that he had earlier been approached by the producers to play a role in the films, but was forced to turn it down because of scheduling conflicts with theBBC television series Sherlock. At the time, Freeman was quoted as saying, "[I]f something could be worked out, that would be great. I did it [turned down the role] with a heavy heart, definitely."[90] On his casting, Peter Jackson was quoted as saying, "Despite the various rumours and speculation surrounding this role, there has only ever been one Bilbo Baggins for us. There are a few times in your career when you come across an actor who you know was born to play a role, but that was the case as soon as I met Martin Freeman. He is intelligent, funny, surprising and brave—exactly like Bilbo and I feel incredibly proud to be able to announce that he is our Hobbit."[91]
Later in October, it was revealed that several other cast members had joined the project, including Richard Armitage as Thorin Oakenshield,Graham McTavish as Dwalin, Aidan Turner as Kíli, Mark Hadlow as Dori, John Callen as Óin, Stephen Hunter as Bombur and Peter Hambleton asGlóin. On the casting of Armitage, Jackson was quoted as saying, "Richard is one of the most exciting and dynamic actors working on screen today and we know he is going to make an amazing Thorin Oakenshield. We cannot wait to start this adventure with him and feel very lucky that one of the most beloved characters in Middle Earth is in such good hands."[91] McTavish was quoted on his casting, "I think that I would be very lucky indeed if ever again in my career, I was offered an opportunity that was going to be so iconic in its influence and scale with regards to The Hobbit. I can't think of anything comparable."[92] Following McTavish's casting, scheduling conflicts arose while he was working on Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception, resulting in the game's storyline being modified so that McTavish could go to New Zealand to work on the film. On the casting of Turner, Jackson stated, "Aidan is a wonderfully gifted young actor who hails from Ireland. I'm sure he will bring enormous heart and humor to the role of Kíli."[93][94] On the casting of Hadlow, Jackson said, "I have worked with Mark Hadlow on many projects [Meet the Feebles and King Kong]; he is a fantastic actor. I am thrilled to be working with [him] on these movies."[93][94]Hadlow also plays Bert the Stone-troll. On his casting Callen stated, "I did wonder about my casting and how they had made the choice—maybe the long hair and the beard sold it, I thought. But now that has all gone. Given that Óin is almost 200 years old I can presume only that it was the age."[95] On being cast in the role, Hunter said, "Being cast in The Hobbit is really exciting and really an honour. I auditioned for the original Lord of the Rings way back when I signed with my agent in New Zealand. When I saw the films I thought, 'Man, I so want to do The Hobbit.'"[96]
On 1 November 2010, Jackson confirmed that James Nesbitt and Adam Brown had been added to the cast to play Bofur and Ori respectively.[97] It was previously reported that Nesbitt was in negotiations for a part in the film.[98] Jackson was quoted on Nesbitt's casting as saying, "James's charm, warmth and wit are legendary as is his range as an actor in both comedic and dramatic roles. We feel very lucky to be able to welcome him as one of our cast."[97] Nesbitt's daughters also appear in the film series as Sigrid and Tilda, the daughters of Bard the Bowman.[89] Commenting on Brown's casting, Jackson was quoted as saying, "Adam is a wonderfully expressive actor and has a unique screen presence. I look forward to seeing him bring Ori to life."[97] The role also marked Brown's first film appearance.[99]
On 7 December 2010, it was revealed that several other cast members had joined the project, including Cate Blanchett as Galadriel, Sylvester McCoy as Radagast the Brown,Mikael Persbrandt as Beorn, William Kircher as Bifur, Ken Stott as Balin and Jed Brophy as Nori.[100] Blanchett was the first returning cast member from The Lord of the Rings film trilogy to be cast in the films, even though her character does not appear in the novel. On her casting, Jackson said, "Cate is one of my favorite actors to work with and I couldn't be more thrilled to have her reprise the role she so beautifully brought to life in the earlier films."[100] McCoy, the former Doctor Who star, who appeared alongside McKellen in aRoyal Shakespeare Company's King Lear, was confirmed to be in negotiations to play a major role as a "wizard" in October 2010,[101] leading to speculation he could appear as Radagast the Brown.[102] During the production of The Lord of the Rings film trilogy, McCoy had been contacted about playing the role of Bilbo and was kept in place as a potential Bilbo for six months before Jackson went with Ian Holm.[103] On the casting of Persbrandt, Jackson was quoted as saying, "The role of Beorn is an iconic one and Mikael was our first choice for the part. Since seeing him read for the role we can't imagine anyone else playing this character."[100] On the casting of Stott, Jackson commented "Franand I have long been fans of Ken's work and are excited he will be joining us on this journey."[100] The casting of Brophy came after his collaboration with Jackson on several films, including Braindead, Heavenly Creatures, and all three Lord of the Rings films as various creatures.
On 7 January 2011, TheOneRing.net confirmed that Elijah Wood had joined the cast to reprise his role of Frodo Baggins in the project. As Frodo hadn't been born during the events of The Hobbit, the inclusion of Frodo indicated that parts of the story would take place shortly before or during the events of The Lord of the Rings. According to TheOneRing.net, "As readers of 'The Hobbit' know, the tale of 'The Downfall of The Lord of the Rings' and 'The Hobbit or There and Back Again,' are contained in the fictional 'Red Book of Westmarch.' In Peter Jackson's LOTR films, the book is shown on screen and written in by Bilbo and Frodo and handed off to Samwise Gamgee....The fictional book and either the telling from it or the reading of it, will establish Frodo in the film experiencing Bilbo's story. Viewers are to learn the tale of 'The Hobbit' as a familiar Frodo gets the tale as well."[104]
On 10 January 2011, it was confirmed that Ian McKellen and Andy Serkis would reprise their respective roles of Gandalf the Grey and Gollumfrom the The Lord of the Rings film trilogy.[105] Although both actors were expected to return for their roles McKellen was previously quoted in July 2010 on TVNZ's Good Morning that: "I'm not under contract and my time is running out. I don't want to give the producers the impression that I'm sitting waiting."[106] It was later revealed that Serkis would also serve as second unit director on the films.[107] Serkis stated, "I think I understand Peter's sensibility and we have a common history of understanding Middle-earth. A lot of the crew from The Lord of the Rings was returning to work on The Hobbit. There is really a sense of Peter wanting people around him who totally understand the material and the work ethic."[107]
On 11 January 2011, it was confirmed that Christopher Lee would reprise his role as Saruman the White.[108] Lee had originally said he would have liked to have shown how Saruman is first corrupted by Sauron,[109] but would not be comfortable flying to New Zealand at his age.[110] Lee went on to say that if a film were made, he would love to voice Smaug, as it would mean he could record his part in England and not have to travel.[111] On 10 January 2011, it was reported that Lee had entered into negotiations to reprise the role of Saruman.[112]
On 21 March 2011, Jeffrey Thomas joined the project as the character of Thrór, as did Mike Mizrahi as Thráin II.[113]
On 4 April 2011, Bret McKenzie was added to the cast as Lindir.[114] His father Peter McKenzie played the role of Elendil in The Lord of the Rings.
On 22 April 2011, Jackson confirmed via Facebook that Ian Holm had been added to the cast as old Bilbo Baggins.[115] During the early stages of pre-production, former director Guillermo del Toro indicated that he was interested in having Holm reprise the role of Bilbo, but acknowledged that he might be too old to take on such a physically demanding role. On his potential casting, del Toro stated, "[Holm] certainly is the paragon we aspire to. He will be involved in some manner, I'm sure."[41] He also indicated that he was open to the possibility of Holm narrating the films.[39] On 10 January 2011, Deadline Hollywood reported that Holm had entered into negotiations to play the older Bilbo.[112] On 3 March 2011, Holm revealed that he had been in talks with the producers about reprising the role, but that he had not heard back from them yet.[116]
In the early stages of production, the role of Thranduil had been linked to actor Doug Jones but on 29 April 2011, Jackson reported on Facebook that the role had gone to Lee Pace. On his casting, Jackson said, "Casting these Tolkien stories is very difficult, especially the Elven characters and Lee has always been our first choice for Thranduil. He's going to be great. We loved his performance in a movie called The Fall a few years ago and have been hoping to work with him since. When we were first discussing who would be right for Thranduil, Lee came into mind almost immediately."[117][118]
On 30 April 2011, Jackson announced that Dean O'Gorman had been hired for the role of Fíli.[117] Jackson stated, "Dean's a terrific Kiwi actor, who I am thrilled to be working with."[117] O'Gorman was a last minute replacement for Rob Kazinsky had originally been cast for the role in October 2010,[93] but left the film on 24 April 2011 "for personal reasons".[119]
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On 19 May 2011, Stephen Fry and Ryan Gage were confirmed to join the project as Master of Lake-town and Alfrid respectively.[121] Fry spoke of his role, saying "My character is an opportunity for sheer grossness... [Peter Jackson] had me eating testicles... gross appetites. I mustn't give too much away but I've got a bald cap and then on top of that a really bad combover wig and this wispy mustache and wispy beard and horrible blotchy skin and disgusting fingernails... And generally speaking a really unappetising piece of work. And a coward to boot and very, very greedy."[122] Gage was originally cast to play Drogo Baggins in December 2010, though according to Jackson, "Ryan is a great young actor who we originally cast in a small role, but we liked him so much, we promoted him to the much larger Alfrid part".
On 27 May 2011, Peter Jackson announced via Facebook that Orlando Bloom would reprise his role as Legolas.[123] Bloom revealed on 25 April 2011 that he had been in contact with Jackson, who had given him a copy of the screenplay and said that there was a high probability that he would return. He was quoted as saying, "I'm going to bet on it... But I can't really talk too much about it because it's still sort of in the ether. But I would love to go back to work with Peter Jackson. It would be an honour."[124]
19 June 2011, it was revealed that several other cast members had joined the project, including Luke Evans in the role of Bard the Bowman,Evangeline Lilly as Tauriel, Barry Humphries as the Great Goblin and Benedict Cumberbatch as Smaug and The Necromancer.[125] Cumberbatch portrayed both of his roles through motion capture, as did Humphries for his character.[126] The casting of Cumberbatch was prematurely revealed by his Sherlock co-star Martin Freeman during the BAFTA Television Awards in May 2011. Speculations of his undisclosed role were further fuelled when Ian McKellen wrote on his blog that Philippa Boyens showed him Cumberbatch's screen test, stating that it was "electrifying, vocally and facially".[127] Peter Jackson finally revealed on his Facebook page that Cumberbatch was set to play Smaug. Following this, it was also confirmed that he would be portraying The Necromancer as well.[128]
Billy Connolly joined the cast as Dáin II Ironfoot on 9 February 2012.[129] Connolly said of his character "...this guy will terrify the life out of you. I have a mohawk and tattoos on my head."[130]
In addition, John Bell plays Bain,[131][132] Manu Bennett plays Azog,[133] Craig Hall plays Galion,[134] Conan Stevens plays Bolg,[135] Ben Mitchell plays Narzug,[134] John Rawlsplays Yazneg,[136] Stephen Ure plays Fimbul and Grinnah, Kiran Shah plays a goblin scribe,[137] and Stephen Colbert was cast in an undisclosed cameo.[138]
Filming[edit]
Principal photography began on 21 March 2011 in Wellington, New Zealand. Filming took place at Wellington Stone Street Studios, the town of Matamata and at other undisclosed locations around New Zealand.[139]
The costumes for each of the Dwarves included six wigs and eight beards, which were worn by the actors, stunt doubles, and stand-ins.[140]
During July 2011, scenes from The Hobbit were filmed at Pinewood Studios, England. Sets were constructed on the F Stage and N&P Stages for the shoot.[141] Jackson recorded a video blog from the set, which featured Christopher Lee in full makeup and costume as Saruman.[141][142]
The second block of shooting in New Zealand began at the end of August and was completed in December 2011.[143]
Principal photography ended on 6 July 2012, after 266 days of filming.[144]
During May 2013, additional filming for the second and third films began in New Zealand and lasted for 10 weeks.[145]
Filming locations[edit]
| Fictional location | Specific location in New Zealand | General area in New Zealand |
|---|---|---|
| Forest River | Aratiatia Spillway | Taupo[146] |
| Laketown | Braemar Station | Tekapo[147] |
| Canaan Downs | Takaka[148] | |
| Trollshaws | Denize Bluffs | Mangaotaki[149] |
| Vales of Anduin | Earnslaw Burn | Mount Aspiring National Park[150] |
| Eweburn Station | Te Anau[151] | |
| Carrock | David's Knoll | Fiordland[152] |
| Greenstone Track | Greenstone[153] | |
| Harwoods Hole | Takaka[154] | |
| Hobbiton | Matamata | Waikato[155] |
| Miramar Peninsula | Wellington[156][157] | |
| Ohuto Station | Ohakune[158] | |
| Beorn's house | Paradise | Otago[159] |
| Forest River | Pelorus River | Marlborough[160] |
| Misty Mountains | The Remarkables | Otago[161] |
| Dale Hills | Rock and Pillar Range | Otago[161] |
| Speargrass Flat | Otago[161] | |
| Rhudaur | Strath Taieri | Middlemarch[162] |
| Treble Cone Ski Resort | Wanaka[163] | |
| Turoa Ski Area | Mount Ruapehu[158] | |
| Wanaka-Mt Aspiring Rd | Wanaka[163] |
Post-production[edit]
Music[edit]
Main article: Music of The Hobbit film series
The music of The Hobbit film series is being composed, orchestrated, conducted and produced by Howard Shore, who scored all three The Lord of the Rings films. Recording sessions for the first film began on 20 August 2012, at Abbey Road Studios.[172] The second and third films were recorded in New Zealand.[173]
The score for An Unexpected Journey was primarily played by the London Philharmonic Orchestra, as it was for The Lord of the Rings, although Jackson and Shore chose theNew Zealand Symphony Orchestra to score The Desolation of Smaug and The Battle of the Five Armies. Musicians Neil Finn and Ed Sheeran contributed to the score as well as some actors including Richard Armitage and the cast of dwarves and James Nesbitt (in the extended edition).[174]
Visual effects[edit]
Unlike the orcs in The Lord of the Rings trilogy who wore full-body makeup and prosthetics, many of those in The Hobbit have computer-generated faces.[175]
Release[edit]
Theatrical[edit]
The world premiere for The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey took place on 28 November 2012 in Wellington, New Zealand,[176] with the film's wide release in New Zealand on 12 December.[177] 100,000 people lined the red carpet on Wellington's Courtenay Place for the premiere.[178] The entire event was also broadcast live on TV3 and streamed over the Internet.[179] Tickets to the film's midnight screenings in New Zealand sold out within minutes of going on sale, prompting director Peter Jackson to say that the fans who missed out "may get something special" which could include getting to see the film "possibly even a minute or two before anyone else".[180] The film was released on 13 December 2012 in United Kingdom[181] and 14 December 2012 for some other parts of the world.[86] It has a runtime of 169 minutes (2 hours and 49 minutes).[182] The film grossed over $1 billion at the box office, surpassing both The Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers nominally.[183]
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug premiered on 2 December 2013 in Los Angeles, and was released internationally from 11 December 2013.[184] The final film The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies premiered on 12 December 2014 in London, and was released internationally from 11 December 2014. The release for the third film was originally set for an 18 July 2014 release, but was pushed back when X-Men: Days of Future Past, was announced to be released on the same date, as direct competition to the third installment.[185]
Home media[edit]
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey was released on Blu-ray and DVD in United States on 19 March 2013, and was released in the United Kingdom on 8 April 2013. As of July 7, 2013, DVD/Blu-ray sales in the United States were reported to be around $29,527,413, with almost 3 million units sold.[186] An Extended Edition containing 13 minutes of additional footage and original music was released on DVD and Blu-ray on 5 November 2013 in the US, and on 11 November 2013 in the UK.[187]
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug was released on DVD and Blu-ray on 7 April 2014 in the United Kingdom and on 8 April 2014 in the United States.[188] An Extended Edition containing 25 minutes of additional footage and original music[189] was released on 3 November 2014 in the UK, and on 4 November 2014 in the US.[190]
The Hobbit: The Battle of The Five Armies was released on Blu-ray and DVD on March 23, 2015 in the United Kingdom and on March 24 in the United States.[191][192][193] An Extended Edition of the film is scheduled for release in November 2015 and will be 20 minutes longer than the theatrical cut.
Reception[edit]
Box office performance[edit]
| Film | Release date | Box office gross | Box office ranking | Budget | Reference | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North America | Other territories | Worldwide | |||||
| An Unexpected Journey | 12 December 2012 | $303,003,568 | $714,000,000 | $1,017,003,568 | #18 | $200 million[194][195] | [196] |
| The Desolation of Smaug | 13 December 2013 | $258,366,855 | $702,000,000 | $960,366,855 | #24 | $225 million[194][197] | [198] |
| The Battle of the Five Armies | 17 December 2014 | $255,119,788 | $700,000,000 | $955,119,788 | #26 | $250 million[199] | [200] |
| Total | $816,490,211 | $2,116,000,000 | $2,932,490,211 | - | c. $745 million | [1][2][3] | |
| Average | $272.1 million | $705.3 million | $977.4 million | ||||
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