LoTR Most Breathtaking Scene Was Cut Because It Made Sauron Look Better
The battle scene between Aragorn and Sauron would have looked epic in the last movie of the trilogy, but it would have destroyed the logic of the movie and the essence of Sauron's character.
The director's cut of The Lord of the Rings turns out to be 3 hours longer than the theatrical version. But even that did not include all the scenes filmed by Peter Jackson and his team.
In the Lord of the Rings saga, deleted scenes can significantly change the perception of the film adaptation. And sometimes not in a favorable direction for the fans.
We all saw what Peter Jackson's imagination is capable of while watching The Hobbit. There were flying elves, carts with rabbits, fighting deers – in general, everything that was not in Tolkien's work.
Filming The Lord of the Rings, Jackson sometimes had crazy ideas. For example, the director shot the scene of the fighting Aragorn and Sauron, which took place in the final battle at the Black Gate.
This was a departure from the logic of the story, because as we know from the plot, Sauron cannot acquire his physical appearance without the Ring.
In the cut scene, Sauron first appears to Aragorn in the form of the beautiful Annatar, and only then does he show his true face.
The purpose of the scene was to show the fate of Isildur and Aragorn, who both faced Sauron on the battlefield.
In the end, the filmed scene was not included in the final version, and the talented professionals from the special effects department skillfully replaced Sauron with the battle troll.
However, the scene was cut not only because of a logical inconsistency, but also because Sauron is not the one who would heroically go out and fight his enemy one-on-one.
Despite his high title and great power, the Dark Lord spent his life running and hiding, preferring that his minions do all the work.
After losing the battle to Luthien, he hid from the wrath of Morgoth, refused to fight the Numenorean fleet of Ar-Pharazon, and did not participate in the War of the Last Alliance until he had no choice.
So Peter Jackson and the creators of the trilogy did not want to make Sauron seem better than he is, and apparently that was the right decision.