Editing The Lord of the Rings (section)

== Adaptations ==

{{Main|Adaptations of The Lord of the Rings|l1=Adaptations of ''The Lord of the Rings''}}

''The Lord of the Rings'' has been adapted into various media, including radio, stage, motion pictures, and videogames.

=== Radio ===

The book has been adapted for radio four times. In 1955 and 1956, the [[BBC]] broadcast ''[[The Lord of the Rings (1955 radio series)|The Lord of the Rings]]'', a 13-part radio adaptation of the story. In the 1960s radio station [[WBAI]] produced a short [[Adaptations of The Lord of the Rings#Audio|radio adaptation]]. A 1979 dramatization of ''[[The Lord of the Rings (1979 radio series)|The Lord of the Rings]]'' was broadcast in the United States and subsequently issued on tape and CD. In 1981, the BBC broadcast ''[[The Lord of the Rings (1981 radio series)|The Lord of the Rings]]'', a new dramatization in 26 half-hour instal<!--yes, British English has just one -l- here-->ments.<ref>{{cite web |title=Riel Radio Theatre — The Lord of the Rings, Episode 2 |url=https://radioriel.org/content/daily-programme/riel-radio-theatre-the-lord-of-the-rings-episode-2/ |publisher=Radioriel |access-date=18 May 2020 |date=15 January 2009 |archive-date=15 January 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200115144511/https://www.radioriel.org/content/daily-programme/riel-radio-theatre-the-lord-of-the-rings-episode-2/ |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Genome BETA Radio Times 1923 – 2009 |url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/schedules/radio4/fm/1981-03-08#at-12.00 |publisher=[[BBC]] |access-date=24 August 2020 |date=1981 |quote=12.00: The Lord of the Rings: 1: The Long Awaited Party by J. R. R. Tolkien prepared for radio in 26 episodes by Brian Sibley Starring Ian Holm as Frodo and Michael Hordern as Gandalf}}</ref>

=== Motion pictures ===

{{Main|Middle-earth in motion pictures|Peter Jackson's interpretation of The Lord of the Rings|l2=Peter Jackson's interpretation of ''The Lord of the Rings''}}

A variety of filmmakers considered adapting Tolkien's book, among them [[Stanley Kubrick]], who thought it [[unfilmable]],<ref name="TolkienEncyl2006_15">{{harvnb|Drout|2006|p=15}}</ref><ref>See also interview in "Show" magazine vol. 1, Number 1 1970</ref> [[Michelangelo Antonioni]],<ref>{{cite book |last=Bramwell |first=Tony |title=Magical Mystery Tours: My Life with the Beatles |publisher=Pavilion Books |year=2014 |isbn=978-1-910232-16-3 |page=70}}</ref> [[Jim Henson]],<ref>{{cite book |last=Jones |first=Brian Jay |title=Jim Henson: The Biography |location=New York |publisher=Ballantine |year=2013 |page=304 |isbn=978-0-345-52611-3}}</ref> [[Heinz Edelmann]],<ref>{{cite news |date=28 March 2002 |title=Beatles plan for Rings film |work=CNN |url=http://edition.cnn.com/2002/SHOWBIZ/Movies/03/28/rings.beatles/index.html|url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020409143012/http://edition.cnn.com/2002/SHOWBIZ/Movies/03/28/rings.beatles/index.html |archive-date=9 April 2002}}</ref> and [[John Boorman]].<ref>Taylor, Patrick (19 January 2014). {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20181216210924/https://oneroomwithaview.com/2014/01/19/best-films-never-made-8-john-boormans-the-lord-of-the-rings/ Best Films Never Made #8: John Boorman's The Lord of the Rings."]}} ''OneRoomWithaView.com''. Retrieved 16 December 2018.</ref> A Swedish live action television film, ''[[Sagan om ringen (1971 film)|Sagan om ringen]]'', was broadcast in 1971.<ref>''K-Special'', "[http://www.svtplay.se/video/4364349/i-trollkarlens-hatt/i-trollkarlens-hatt-avsnitt-1 I trollkarlens hatt] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151027005737/http://www.svtplay.se/video/4364349/i-trollkarlens-hatt/i-trollkarlens-hatt-avsnitt-1 |date=2015-10-27 }}" (at 24m30s), [[Sveriges television]], 23 October 2015. Retrieved 26 October 2015.</ref> In 1978, [[Ralph Bakshi]] made an animated [[The Lord of the Rings (1978 film)|film version]] covering ''The Fellowship of the Ring'' and part of ''The Two Towers'', to mixed reviews.<ref>{{cite web |last=Gaslin |first=Glenn |date=21 November 2001 |title=Ralph Bakshi's unfairly maligned Lord of the Rings |work=[[Slate (magazine)|Slate]] |url=http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/culturebox/2001/11/hobbits_on_film.html}}</ref> In 1980, [[Rankin/Bass Productions|Rankin/Bass]] released [[The Return of the King (1980 film)|an animated TV special]] based on the closing chapters of ''The Return of the King'', gaining mixed reviews.<ref>{{cite web |last=Cassady |first=Charles |title=The Return of the King (1980) |url=https://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-reviews/the-return-of-the-king-1980 |website=Common Sense Media |date=9 July 2010 |access-date=2 August 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Greydanus |first=Stephen |title=The Return of the King (1980) |url=http://decentfilms.com/reviews/returnoftheking1980 |website=Decent Films |access-date=2 August 2020}}</ref> 
The 1991 Soviet Union live-action adaptation of ''The Fellowship of the Ring'', ''[[Khraniteli]]'', was aired once and thought lost,<ref>{{cite web |last=Romain |first=Lindsey |title=Russian 'Lord of the Rings' Adaptation Makes Its Way Online |url=https://nerdist.com/article/russian-lord-of-the-rings-lost-adaptation-youtube/ |website=Nerdist |access-date=4 April 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Selcke |first1=Dan |title=Watch a lost Soviet adaptation of The Lord of the Rings |url=https://winteriscoming.net/2021/04/02/watch-soviet-era-russian-adaptation-lord-rings/ |website=Winter is Coming |access-date=4 April 2021 |date=2 April 2021}}</ref> but was rediscovered and republished on the Web. It includes [[Tom Bombadil]] and the [[Barrow-wight]], omitted from Jackson's version.<ref name="Roth 2021">{{cite news |last=Roth |first=Andrew |title=Soviet TV version of Lord of the Rings rediscovered after 30 years |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/apr/05/soviet-tv-version-lord-of-the-rings-rediscovered-after-30-years |access-date=5 April 2021 |work=[[The Guardian]] |date=5 April 2021}}</ref>
In Finland, a live action television miniseries, ''[[Hobitit]]'', was broadcast in 1993 based on ''The Lord of the Rings'', with a flashback to Bilbo's encounter with Gollum in ''The Hobbit''.<ref>{{cite news |title=Yle teettää oman sovituksen Taru sormusten herrasta-sadusta |trans-title=Yle to produce its own version of the tale of ''The Lord of the Rings'' |work=[[Helsingin Sanomat]] |date=18 June 1991 |language=fi}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Kajava |first=Jukka |title=Tolkienin taruista on tehty tv-sarja: Hobitien ilme syntyi jo Ryhmäteatterin Suomenlinnan tulkinnassa |trans-title=Tolkien's tales have been turned into a TV series: The Hobbits have been brought to live in the Ryhmäteatteri theatre | work=[[Helsingin Sanomat]] |language=fi |date=29 March 1993 |url=http://www.hs.fi/paivanlehti/arkisto/?haku=Klonkku&ref=arkisto%2F&page=4}} {{Subscription required}}</ref>

A far more successful adaptation was [[Peter Jackson]]'s live action [[The Lord of the Rings (film series)|''The Lord of the Rings'' film trilogy]], produced by [[New Line Cinema]] and released in three instalments as ''[[The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring]]'' (2001), ''[[The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers]]'' (2002), and ''[[The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King]]'' (2003). All three parts won multiple [[Academy Awards]], including consecutive [[Academy Award for Best Picture|Best Picture]] nominations. The final instalment of this trilogy was the second film to break the one-billion-dollar barrier and won a total of 11 [[Academy Awards|Oscars]] (something only two other films in history, ''[[Ben-Hur (1959 film)|Ben-Hur]]'' and ''[[Titanic (1997 film)|Titanic]]'', have accomplished), including [[Academy Award for Best Picture|Best Picture]], [[Academy Award for Best Director|Best Director]] and [[Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay|Best Adapted Screenplay]].<ref>{{cite web |first=Adam |last=Rosenberg |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190512095324/http://mashable.com/2016/01/14/star-wars-oscars-numbers/ |url=http://mashable.com/2016/01/14/star-wars-oscars-numbers/ |title='Star Wars' ties 'Lord of the Rings' with 30 Oscar nominations, the most for any series |website=[[Mashable]] |date=14 January 2016 |archive-date=12 May 2019 |access-date=1 July 2019}}</ref><ref>''The Return of the King'' peak positions
* U.S. and Canada: {{cite web |title=All Time Domestic Box Office |website=[[Box Office Mojo]] |url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/alltime/domestic/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040604193553/https://www.boxofficemojo.com/alltime/domestic.htm |archive-date=4 June 2004}}
* Worldwide: {{cite web |title=All Time Worldwide Box Office |website=[[Box Office Mojo]] |url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/alltime/world/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040605104640/http://www.boxofficemojo.com/alltime/world/ |archive-date=5 June 2004}}</ref> Commentators including Tolkien scholars, literary critics and film critics are divided on [[The Lord of the Rings: film versus book|how faithfully Jackson adapted Tolkien's work, or whether a film version is inevitably different]], and if so the reasons for any changes, and the effectiveness of the result.<ref name="Bogstad Kaveny 2011">{{cite book |last1=Bogstad |first1=Janice M. |last2=Kaveny |first2=Philip E. |chapter=Introduction | editor1= Janice M. Bogstad | editor2= Philip E. Kaveny |title=Picturing Tolkien: Essays on Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings Film Trilogy |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jNjKrXRP0G8C&pg=PA5 |year=2011 |publisher=McFarland |isbn=978-0-7864-8473-7 |pages=5–23}}</ref>

''[[The Hunt for Gollum]]'', a 2009 film by [[Chris Bouchard]],<ref>{{cite news |last=Masters |first=Tim |title=Making Middle-earth on a shoestring |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/8022623.stm |work=BBC News |publisher=[[BBC]] |date=30 April 2009 |access-date=1 May 2009 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090503050355/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/8022623.stm |archive-date=3 May 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |first=Laura |last=Sydell |author-link=Laura Sydell |title=High-Def 'Hunt For Gollum' New Lord of the Fanvids |url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=103673352 |work=[[All Things Considered]] |publisher=[[NPR]] |date=30 April 2009 |access-date=1 May 2009 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090503012438/http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=103673352 |archive-date=3 May 2009}}</ref> and the 2009 ''[[Born of Hope]]'', written by Paula DiSante and directed by [[Kate Madison]], are [[fan film]]s based on details in the appendices of ''The Lord of the Rings''.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lamont |first=Tom |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2010/mar/07/born-of-hope-lord-rings |title=Born of Hope – and a lot of charity |work=[[The Guardian]] |date=7 March 2010 |access-date=5 January 2015 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150105134218/http://www.theguardian.com/film/2010/mar/07/born-of-hope-lord-rings |archive-date=5 January 2015 }}</ref>

From September 2022, [[Amazon (company)|Amazon]] has been presenting a multi-season television series of stories, ''[[The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power]]''. It is set at the beginning of the [[Second Age]], long before the time of ''The Lord of the Rings'', based on materials in the novel's appendices.<ref>{{cite web |title=Amazon will run a multi-season Lord of the Rings prequel TV series |url=https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2017/11/amazon-will-run-a-multi-season-lord-of-the-rings-prequel-tv-series/ |last=Axon |first=Samuel |date=13 November 2017 |website=[[Ars Technica]] |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171114012646/https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2017/11/amazon-will-run-a-multi-season-lord-of-the-rings-prequel-tv-series/ |archive-date=14 November 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite tweet |user=LOTRonPrime|number=1103656946509344768 |title=Welcome to the Second Age:https://amazon.com/lotronprime |date=7 March 2019|access-date=24 March 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200210204627/https://twitter.com/LOTRonPrime/status/1103656946509344768 |archive-date=10 February 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=White |first=Peter |title=Amazon Prime Video Reveals 'The Lord Of The Rings' Series Title & Teases Second Age Tales |url=https://deadline.com/2022/01/amazon-prime-video-reveals-the-lord-of-the-rings-series-title-1234915012/ |website=Deadline Hollywood |access-date=19 January 2022 |date=19 January 2022}}</ref>

In 2023, [[Warner Bros. Discovery]] began making a series of films set in Middle-earth, produced along with [[New Line Cinema]] and Freemode.<ref>{{cite web |last=Ronald |first=Issy |date=24 February 2023 |title=New 'Lord of the Rings' movie series in the works at Warner Bros. |url=https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/24/entertainment/lord-of-the-rings-warner-bros-movies-intl-scli/index.html |access-date=9 March 2023 |website=CNN}}</ref> The first was ''[[The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim]]'', an [[anime]] written by Jeffrey Addiss, Will Matthews and [[Philippa Boyens]], directed by [[Kenji Kamiyama]] and released in December 2024. It was based on the story of the legendary Rohan king [[Helm Hammerhand]].<ref>{{cite web |last=D'Alessandro |first=Anthony |date=10 June 2021 |title='The Lord Of The Rings' Goes On: Anime Film 'The War Of The Rohirrim' In Works At New Line |url=https://deadline.com/2021/06/lord-of-the-rings-anime-film-the-war-of-the-rohirrim-new-line-1234773024/ |access-date=29 April 2025 |website=Deadline}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Senzatimore |first=Renee |date=5 December 2024 |title='It Was Magnificent': Lord of the Rings' Peter Jackson Praises War of the Rohirrim as 'Essential Lore' |url=https://www.cbr.com/lord-of-the-rings-peter-jackson-war-of-the-rohirrim-praise/ |access-date=29 April 2025 |website=CBR}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=The Lord of The Rings: The War of The Rohirrim |url=https://www.lotrthewaroftherohirrim.com/synopsis/ |access-date=29 April 2025 |website=The Lord of The Rings: The War of The Rohirrim}}</ref>
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=== Audiobooks ===

In 1990, [[Recorded Books]] published an [[audiobook|audio version]] of ''The Lord of the Rings'',<ref>{{cite AV media |last=Inglis |first=Rob (narrator) |title=The Lord of the Rings |publisher=Recorded Books |year=1990 |isbn=1-4025-1627-4}}</ref> read by the British actor [[Rob Inglis]]. A large-scale musical theatre adaptation, ''[[The Lord of the Rings (musical)|The Lord of the Rings]]'', was first staged in [[Toronto|Toronto, Ontario, Canada]] in 2006 and opened in London in June 2007; it was a commercial failure.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/stage/gallery/2014/feb/25/the-fastest-west-end-flops-in-pictures |title=The fastest West End flops – in pictures |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |access-date=29 April 2017}}</ref>

In 2013, the artist Phil Dragash recorded the whole of the book, using the score from Peter Jackson's movies.<ref>{{cite web |title=Phil Dragash |url=https://www.phildragash.com/index.html |website=Phil Dragash |access-date=11 March 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Root & Twig |url=https://soundcloud.com/rootntwig |website=SoundCloud |access-date=11 March 2022 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Lord of The Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring – Soundscape by Phil Dragash |url=https://archive.org/details/the-fellowship-of-the-ring_soundscape-by-phil-dragash |website=archive.org |access-date=11 March 2022 |date=2013}}</ref>

During the [[COVID-19 lockdown]], [[Andy Serkis]] read the entire book of ''[[The Hobbit]]'' online to raise money for charity.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-52568497|title=Coronavirus: Andy Serkis reads entire Hobbit live online for charity|work=BBC News|date=9 May 2020}}</ref> He then recorded the work again as an audiobook.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://www.audible.com/pd/The-Hobbit-Audiobook/1705009050 |title=The Hobbit |via=www.audible.com}}</ref> The cover art was done by [[Alan Lee (illustrator)|Alan Lee]]. In 2021, Serkis recorded ''The Lord of the Rings'' novels.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Andy Serkis records Lord of the Rings audiobooks for HarperCollins |url=https://www.thebookseller.com/news/andy-serkis-records-lord-rings-audiobooks-harpercollins-1267526 |access-date=7 September 2021 |website=The Bookseller}}</ref>