Home Cinema 1 The Lord of the Rings star secretly played his character 20 years before the first film

1 The Lord of the Rings star secretly played his character 20 years before the first film

Isabella Smith
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1 The Lord of the Rings star secretly played his character 20 years before the first film


Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings The trilogy is perhaps the most famous book-film adaptation of all time. Somehow, he managed to do the unthinkable: he brought Middle-earth to life in a way that made it both accessible to new fans and appealing to those who grew up loving Tolkien’s original novels.

However, this was not the first successful adaptation of the novels. Twenty years before the release of Peter Jackson’s films, a radio series highlighted Lord of the Rings to life for the first time. And, interestingly, it featured one of the stars of the trilogy in a completely different role than the one he later brought to life on screen.

Who played Ian Holm in Lord of the Rings?

Bilbo Baggins from Lord of the Rings

Movie

Ian Holm’s character

Year of release

The Bofors pistol

Flynn

1968

Chariots of fire

Sam Mussabini

1981

Stranger

Ash

1979

The fifth element

Father Vito Corneille

1997

Ratatouille

Chief Skinner

2007

Ian Holm, one of the most renowned actors of our time, played Bilbo Baggins in Lord of the Rings trilogy. Although Bilbo does not play as large a role in Lord of the Rings as he does in The Hobbit (where he was expertly played by Martin Freeman), casting him correctly remained one of the biggest tasks facing the production. After all, making a bad choice meant alienating the audience and possibly leading to the downfall of the trilogy as a whole. Luckily, they found a perfect fit in Ian Holm. It captured all the eccentricities that appeared later in Bilbo’s life. As Bilbo grew, he became more and more alien (in part because his earlier adventures made it remarkably difficult for him to relate to the smaller-minded people of the Shire who cared very little about that). what the world looked like beyond their front door). This eventually culminated in the incident at his one hundred and eleventh birthday party, when he put on the ring and completely disappeared from view. He wanted to leave the Shire, because the world there seemed far too small to him now that he had already progressed beyond its walls. Ian Holm incorporated all these little quirks into his performance. There is a certain level of nostalgia in everything he does as Bilbo, especially when he remembers his previous exploits. He specifies that the old Hobbit wanted to embark on another adventure rather than continue living in his current state. Even if The Hobbit hadn’t yet been translated to the screen, his performance truly felt like the conclusion of a character arc we knew intimately, and it’s a testament to Holm’s prowess as an actor that he executed that.

Frodo and Shire

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Apart from Lord of the RingsIan Holm has had an exceptionally prolific career both on screen and stage. He burst onto the scene in 1968 with his role in The Bofors pistolearning him his first BAFTA for his performance as Flynn, the only shooter to show any respect for his superiors. He won his second BAFTA for Chariots of firewhere he played track coach Sam Mussabini. For this role he was also nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, although he ultimately lost it to John Gielgud for his role in Arthur. He was nominated for two other BAFTAs for Best Supporting Actor (neither of which he won): one for Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes, and one for The Madness of King George. His career on stage was equally successful. In 1967, he won the Tony for Best Actor in a Play for his role as Lenny in the famous play The return home. Then, in 1998, he put his talents to work on the Shakespearean side. He played the lead role in a version of King Lear and ultimately received the Olivier Award for Best Actor for this performance.

Who did Ian Holm play in the radio adaptation of The Lord of the Rings?

His role as Bilbo was not Ian Holm’s first contact with the world of Middle-earth, however. In 1981, Lord of the Rings was adapted for radio – and Ian Holm starred as Frodo. The three novels were divided into twenty-six half-hour episodes (although ultimately the series was released as a set of thirteen-hour episodes). While this is still a fairly comprehensive adaptation, many elements had to be removed to condense the story into something that could feasibly be released in a short period of time. As in Jackson’s films, the character of Tom Bombadil was removed entirely. Additionally, several other minor characters were removed rather than having dialogue written for them, as this streamlined the narrative a bit more. However, it also incorporates certain elements of Unfinished Taleswhich is interesting because it was trying to make the whole story a bit more linear rather than the sprawling epic that it is. This also slightly changed the structure of the novels (in the same way as the films) to make the narrative more chronological rather than being told in interwoven installments like the novels.

Frodo in front of the colorized images of Gimli and Arwen from Lord of the Rings

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The Hobbits of JRR Tolkiens’ Lord of the Rings combined traits of the other major races of Middle-earth, making them perfect heroes.

Before the release of Peter Jackson’s films, this one was considered the definitive adaptation of Tolkien’s incredible novels. Much of the dialogue is taken directly from the pages of the original novels, making it deeply faithful to the text. Not only that, but the actors were celebrated for their work. Ian Holm’s Frodo perfectly blended the young Hobbit’s idealism with his determination to ensure that Middle-earth does not fall into the hands of evil forces. He conjured powerful images of the world of Middle-earth in listeners’ imaginations, which is a great feat considering that all he had to work with was the soundscape of this fantasy world. Some researchers even still prefer it to Jackson’s adaptations, which is once again another testament to the excellence of this adaptation.

Who else was considered for the role of Bilbo?

Sylvester McCoy as Radagast the Brown in The Hobbit

Ian Holm was ultimately Peter Jackson’s first choice for the role, but in case he turned it down, Jackson still had to create a shortlist of actors who would have been excellent for the role. At the top of the list was the brilliant performer Sylvester McCoy. At this point, McCoy’s popularity had already skyrocketed, which would have drawn more people into the audience. He inherited the lead role in the hugely popular program Doctor Who and became the Seventh Doctor in 1987, succeeding Colin Baker. Although he started out as a lighter incarnation of the character, he quickly took a dark turn. He’s proven to be far more manipulative than any of his predecessors – which, interestingly, fans appreciated in his portrayal. Even to this day, he is considered one of the greatest actors to play the Doctor.

1-of-the-biggest-casting-decisions-of-Lord-of-the-rings-left-a-star-Harry-Potter-Furious

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Sylvester McCoy has finally left his mark on Middle Earth. When Peter Jackson returned to the universe to make the Hobbit trilogy, he sought out Sylvester McCoy to play Radagast the Brown, one of the other Istari. Interestingly, Radagast as a character does not appear in The Hobbit. At first he played only a very small role in Lord of the Rings novels (which were cut from the films, it should be noted). However, to give McCoy something to do (and flesh out the story as it spans three films), Radagast needs to be a bigger player in the story. He is one of Gandalf’s dearest companions and aids him in his pursuit of the Necromancer of Dol Guldur. He eventually gathers the courage to fight alongside the White Council when they confront the Necromancer once and for all. Radagast then goes on to lead the group of Eagles that appear at the Battle of the Five Armies.

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