New LotR Movies Already Facing Impossible Challenge: Replacing OG Cast
Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings trilogy was a commercial and critical success, with each of the films Oscar-nominated for Best Picture and the three earning a combined $2.991 billion at the box office.
With the announcement of a remake coming from Warner Bros., fans are rightfully asking one question: How can the cast possibly live up to the standard of the originals?
Jackson's trilogy has a lot of flaws that leave it open for nitpicking, but the cast was not one of them.
It was led by the thespian Ian McKellen, while actors like Elijah Wood, Orlando Bloom, Sean Bean, Viggo Mortensen, and Sean Astin had their careers made by the franchise.
For many of these actors, Lord of the Rings is the role that comes to mind when discussing their careers. One can't mention Elijah Wood without bringing up Frodo – which inherently makes it hard to recast the character in a remake.
Beyond that, the sheer amount of time spent by each actor in character led to a familial feel and showed their devotion to the craft. The passion oozed through the screen.
The trilogy was shot consecutively, shot back-to-back-to-back from October 11, 1999, until December 22, 2000. Additional photography took place over the following three years.
The film was shot entirely in New Zealand, the place of Jackson's birth.
The actors spend the duration of the 438-day shoot together, filming at over 150 different locations, often in remote spots of New Zealand's sprawling landscape.
This long, often arduous shoot brought the cast together, and it shows in the final product. The relationship between the characters is at the heart of the films and the books that inspired them; no actor felt out of place in the ensemble cast.
Jackson was adamant about perfecting his cast, leading to the early dismissal of Stuart Townsend. Townsend was the original choice for Aragorn/Strider, part of filming for the first several weeks.
Jackson made the difficult decision of recasting him, deciding mid-shoot that he was too young and unfit for the role.
Viggo Mortensen's casting as Aragorn set production back a little bit, but it showed Jackson's determination to perfectly cast J.R.R. Tolkien's original vision of Lord of the Rings. And he succeeded.
He made a film series cast so well, it seems impossible to outdo it.
Warner Bros. quest to recreate the Lord of the Rings will be met with some hesitancy. Jackson's trilogy feels a little dated on a re-watch, but the casting is the one thing that holds up. To many fans, it feels like an impossible task.