The first book in a trilogy in the series "Lord of the Rings" appeared through the efforts J.R.R. Tolkien back in the middle of the 20th century, and 50 years later, with the efforts Peter Jackson viewers were able to see the adaptation of the main fantasy of all time. Such a titanic work did not go unnoticed by fans and connoisseurs, it is a special pleasure to collect interesting facts about the vast universe. And so, the film trilogy Lord of the Rings interesting facts.
1. The films brought together both famous actors and many of those who were given an impetus in their careers by the film epic. Have you ever wondered what Aragorn would look like if played by Steward Townsend? This actor was involved at the beginning of filming, but Peter Jackson did not see the future “King of the Free People of the North” in the young man and replaced everyone with the beloved and familiar Viggo Mortensen. And instead of Hugo Weaving (Agent Smith from the Matrix), who played the lord of Elrond, there could be a legendary musician David Bowie. Orlando Boom was supposed to play Faramir, Lucy Lawless was supposed to be Galadriel, Uma Thurman was supposed to be Arwen, but in the end it turned out quite differently. By the way, the role of Gandalf could have gone to John Astin (the father of the actor who played the role of Sam Gamgee).
2. Actor Christopher Lee (Saruman) is the only member of the film crew (more than 3000 people) who personally knew J.R.R. Tolkien.
3. Initially, Tolkien envisioned The Lord of the Rings as a one-piece and indivisible novel. But the owners of the Allen Unwin publishing house decided to play it safe in case the book did not appeal to readers. It was decided to divide the novel into six parts, but after some time the editor-in-chief of the book decided to combine some of the parts. As a result, it turned out trilogy: The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers and The Return of the King.
4. Peter Jackson was not only a director who controlled the filming process, he also performed the role of episodic actors. For example, he can be seen in the first film at the tavern “prancing pony” (an onlooker who gnaws carrots). In The Two Towers, Jackson throws a spear at an orc as the defender of Helm's Deep, and in "The return of the king” Legolas kills him in the form of a pirate. Peter's children also starred in episodic roles - little hobbits to whom Bilbo told a fairy tale on his birthday. Other project leaders also appear in the scenes of the trilogy. The film featured the children of Peter Jackson, the people of Rohan hiding in Helm's Deep, and the children of Minas Tirith.
5. For Tolkien, the main character of The Lord of the Rings is not Frodo or Aragorn, but Sam Gamgee.
6. It was originally planned that the voice-over would recite Elijah Wood, but later the idea arose that the voice should belong to an older character. Thus we hear behind the scenes the voice of Galadriel Cate Blanchett.
7. Episode where Gandalf banging his head against the ceiling in Bilbo's house in The Fellowship of the Ring is a common accident. Ian McKellen after the blow decided not to stop the double and continued to play. The scene turned out to be very lively and real, especially since Peter Jackson liked the actor's actions so much and he included this accident in the film.
8. Peter Jackson gave the actors who played the roles of Frodo and Gollum each the Omnipotent Ring, which was used for filming. In this case, each of the actors thought that he received a single copy of the ring.
9. The Lord of the Rings trilogy received the most Academy Award nominations (30), ahead of titans like The Godfather (28) and Star Wars (21).
10. Gandalf's phrase: “The battle for Helm's Deep is over, the battle for Middle-earth has begun,” is a quotation from Winston Churchill's speech on June 18, 1940: “The battle for France is over. The Battle of Britain has begun."
11. The soundtrack of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, written by Howard Shore, was recognized as the best in history. The composer did a tremendous job, which was appreciated - he received three Oscar awards.
12. Gandalf's growth - about 2 meters. The growth of hobbits is about 90-120 centimeters. To emphasize the difference in height, quite often Ian McKellen (Gandalf) was placed much closer to the camera than Elijah Wood (Frodo). But this shooting technique is only effective if neither the actors nor the camera is moving. To shoot dynamic scenes, the creators developed a series of special platforms on which the actors were located, and which began to move simultaneously with the movements of the camera.
13. When writing The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, Tolkien created a unique map of Middle-earth. It is she who is considered by Gandalf in Bilbo's house.
14. Ian Holm (Bilbo) in the early 1980s played by Frodo. He participated in a radio show on BBC Radio 4. Given this fact, when choosing an actor for the role of Bilbo, Jackson gave his preference to the Hill.
15. Sindarin is an Elvish language created by Tolkien specifically for The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. The vocabulary is about 25 thousand words.
16. The last film of the film trilogy The Lord of the Rings (The Return of the King) - the only fantasy movie that received the coveted statuette Oscar in the Best Film category. By the way, The Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers were also in this nomination.
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