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Synopsis

Monstrous spiders, dragon-aided epic battles, endangered hobbits and final farewells ... the finale of the Lord of the Rings trilogy boldly upped the ante. Although the first two films had excited viewers, critics and accountants, Return of the King sealed Peter Jackson's place in movie legend. Reviewers praised it with gusto and Return won a staggering 11 Oscars, a total matched only by Titanic and Ben-Hur. Return anointed a Hollywood empire in the Wellington suburb of Miramar; the box office figures weren't half bad, and nor was the effect on NZ tourism.

Credits (51)

 Peter Jackson
 Fran Walsh
 Barrie M Osborne

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Comments (1)

 Paul Taylor MSc

Paul Taylor MSc

But ... We picked up what was ready at hand !
And we all did it for the love of the road !
Nup' Covered-up ness !

Paul Taylor on Return of the King (Jackson Walsh)

Produced by

  • New Line Cinema
  • WingNut Films
  • The Saul Zaentz Company

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Related Titles (7)

 The Frighteners

Film, 1996 (Trailer)

Jackson's first project for an American studio

 The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

Film, 2002 (Trailer)

Second episode of the trilogy

 Bad Taste

Film, 1988 (Trailer)

Jackson's classic first feature

 The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

Film, 2001 (Trailer)

Episode one of the trilogy

 King Kong

Film, 2005 (Trailer)

Peter Jackson's big screen follow-up to Rings

 Larger Than Life

Short Film, 1997 (Full Length)

More oversize arachnids

 The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

Film, 2012 (Trailer)

Peter Jackson’s adaptation of The Hobbit

Collections.   See all collections ›  

Included in:

 The Horse Collection
 The Peter Jackson Collection

Quotes

We come to it, at last. The great battle of our time. 
They cursed us. Murderer they called us. They cursed us, and drove us away. And we wept, Precious, we wept to be so alone. [...] And we forgot the taste of bread ... the sound of trees ... the softness of the wind. We even forgot our own name. 
Every hour lost hastens Gondor's defeat. We have til dawn, then we must ride. 
New Zealand director, producer and co-writer Peter Jackson does author J.R.R. Tolkien proud by turning his tome into a film epic by which all future film epics will be judged. King pops your eyes, excites your senses and brings you in as close as a whisper for scenes of startling emotion. 

Awards

2004 Academy Awards
Best Picture
Director (Peter Jackson)
Adapted Screenplay (Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Peter Jackson)
Editing (Jamie Selkirk)
Art Direction-Set Decoration (Grant Major, Dan Hennah, Alan Lee)
Costume Design (Ngila Dickson, Richard Taylor)
Makeup (Richard Taylor, Peter King)
Visual Effects (Jim Rygiel, Joe Letteri, Randall William Cook, Alex Funke)
Sound Mixing (Michael Hedges, Hammond Peek, Christopher Boyes, Michael Semanick)
Original Score (Howard Shore)
Original Song ('Into the West' - Howard Shore, Fran Walsh, Annie Lennox)

2004 Bafta Awards
Best Film
Adapted Screenplay (Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Peter Jackson)
Cinematography (Andrew Lesnie) 
Special Visual Effects  (Joe Letteri, Jim Rygiel, Randall William Cook, Alex Funke)
Also nominated for Best Direction, Supporting Actor (Ian McKellen), Editing, Production Design, Costume Design, Make Up/Hair, Sound, Music

2004 Golden Globes
Best Motion Picture - Drama
Director (Peter Jackson)
Original Score (Howard Shore)
Original Song ('Into the West' - Howard Shore, Fran Walsh, Annie Lennox)

2005 Grammy Awards
Score Soundtrack Album (Howard Shore and engineer/mixer John Kurlander)
Song ('Into the West' - Howard Shore, Fran Walsh, Annie Lennox)

2004 Directors Guild of America
DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures (Peter Jackson, Carolynne Cunningham, Nikolas Korda, Zane Weiner, Guy Campbell, Marc Ashton)

2004 Directors Guild of Great Britain
DGGB Award - Directorial Achievement in International Film (Peter Jackson)

2004 New York Film Critics Circle Award
Award for Best Film

2004 Screen Actors Guild Awards (United States)
Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture

2004 National Board of Review (United States)
NBR Award - Best Acting by an Ensemble

2004 American Cinema Editors
Eddie Award for Editing - Dramatic Feature (Jamie Selkirk)

2004 Producers Guild of America Awards
Motion Picture Producer of the Year (Barrie M Osborne, Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh)

2004 Art Directors Guild (United States)
Excellence in Production Design - Period or Fantasy Film

2004 Costume Designers Guild Awards (United States)
CDG Award for Excellence in Costume Design - Period/Fantasy Film (Ngila Dickson

2004 Visual Effects Society Awards
Winner of four effects-based awards, including Visual Effects in a Visual Effects Driven Motion  Picture, and Outstanding Character Animation in a Live Action Motion Picture - plus another four nominations.

2004 Writers Guild of America
Nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay