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Lord of the Ringshas shaped many a child’s life almost a century apart. Be it J. R. R. Tolkien’s literary series in the 1930s or Peter Jackson’s trilogies in the 2000s, the franchise has brought the world of epic high fantasy tales involving Elves, hobbits, kings, and wizards just a little bit closer to our fingertips.
![Lord of the Rings Return of the King [Credit New Line Cinema]](https://i2.wp.com/fwmedia.fandomwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/07124119/Lord-of-the-Rings-Return-of-the-King-Credit-New-Line-Cinema.jpg)
However, while the audience and critics have been in love with Peter Jackson’s masterpiece, the filmmaker has been slaving away in his studio to come up with ways to make the world seem more realistic on screen, rather than a CGI-infested botched job. Sir Ian McKellen then gladly served himself up as the victim of the director’s experimentation.
Ian McKellen Spills the Beans on His Gandalf Double
Sir Ian McKellenis known for many achievements and perhaps most of all, his mastery lies over Shakespearean theater. But even more iconic are his roles as Gandalf in theLord of the Ringsseries and Magneto in Fox’sX-Menfranchise.Although the actor was particularly excited to put on his helmet and lift the San Francisco Golden Gate Bridge right out of the water, Peter Jackson’sLord of the Ringshad an even more tantalizing premise for him.
In a2021 oral history retelling withThe Independent, McKellen revealed the trouble of working with hobbits, Elves, and humans in tandem and howPeter Jackson’s trickery with the camera was the only thing that could unite these three factions without looking disproportionately scaled with bad CGI.
![Peter Jackson on Lord of the Rings set with Sir Ian McKellen [Credit Warner Bros.]](https://i2.wp.com/fwmedia.fandomwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/07124059/Peter-Jackson-on-Lord-of-the-Rings-set-with-Sir-Ian-McKellen-Credit-Warner-Bros.jpg)
“I never really got over having to work with scale. I’d be standing on a box or Elijah [Wood] would be on his knees. If we had a two-shot I couldn’t look into his eyes and vice versa. I had to look at his midriff and he’d be looking at the tip of my pointy hat. The scale doubles were a large part of it too. They found a very large policeman called Tall Paul to double me.”
The experience was equally disconcerting for the hobbit actors, and Dominic Monaghan, who plays the part of Merry Brandybuck revealed:
“Tall Paul was often our Gandalf. He was like seven foot and we’d be on our knees. Ian would still be on set, unless it was just a walking shot. It was never just a day with the double, Ian was always there and we were always with Ian.”
“Always felt I was the unlucky person”: Peter Jackson Has a Very Good Reason to Try and Use Hypnosis to Forget Lord of the Rings
Paul Randall aka Tall Paul was revealed to be a 7’1” actor from New Zealand with a handful of acting credits who found his big break in fellow Kiwi filmmaker, Peter Jackson’s franchise. Over the span of the legendary films, Randall served as a body double for Legolas, Aragorn, and Boromir for their scenes with the hobbits.
The Legacy of Peter Jackson’sLord of the RingsTrilogy
Those who were born shortly before the turn of the new century are perhaps some of the luckiest people in the history of human evolution. The world of entertainment has rapidly progressed in the 21st century, bringing us such master auteurs like Peter Jackson,Christopher Nolan, Denis Villeneuve, and Greta Gerwig, and their respective masterpieces.
However, among most of the filmmakers of the era, Peter Jackson’sLord of the Ringswas the formative franchise that accompanied fans well into their adulthood, spawning spin-offs and prequels that last to this day. The epic high-fantasy film series was not merely magical in its arc but a truly otherworldly experience that can never be replicated for the fans.
“It’s not like the real thing”: Bernard Hill Unleashed the Fury of Rohirrim on Amazon’s Rings of Power as Series Looked Like a Cheap Lord of the Rings Knock-Off
Now, the franchise’s spin-off,The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Powerhas been streaming on Amazon Prime Video. Set thousands of years before the events ofLord of The RingsandThe Hobbit, the Amazon series focuses on the fabled Second Age of Middle-earth’s history and brings the story of Sauron and the history of the ring into the light.
Moreover,Warner Bros. Discovery is in talks to revive theLord of the Ringsfranchise (alongside other treasures such asHarry Potter) in a complete reboot. Meanwhile, Amazon’sThe Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Poweris set to premiere its second season in late 2024 on the streamer.
Lord of the Ringsfilms are available for streaming on Max.
Diya Majumdar
Senior Writer
Articles Published :2408
Diya Majumdar is a Senior Content Writer at FandomWire with over 2000 published articles on the website. Since 2022, she has been working as an entertainment journalist with a special focus on films and pop culture.Among the countless genres and themes of Hollywood, the ones that particularly favor Diya’s tastes include Game of Thrones, DC, and well-aged thrillers and classics.
