Movies Like The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

Frequently asked about The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

Common questions people search for, with answers written by us at MoviesPack.

• Is Jamie Dornan in Lord of the Rings?▾

  No, Jamie Dornan is not in The Lord of the Rings trilogy. He is not credited in any of the three Peter Jackson films.

• Who refused to play Gandalf?▾

  Sean Connery famously turned down the role of Gandalf, reportedly because he did not understand the script. Patrick McGoohan and Anthony Hopkins have also been mentioned as actors who passed on or were considered for the role before Ian McKellen was cast.

• Which trilogy has 17 Oscars?▾

  The Lord of the Rings trilogy won 17 Academy Awards across its three films, with The Return of the King alone winning 11 Oscars in 2004, tying the record for most wins by a single film.

• Why does Frodo claim the Ring for himself at Mount Doom instead of destroying it?▾

  After carrying the Ring across Middle-earth, Frodo's will is finally overwhelmed by its corrupting power at the one place where it can be unmade. Standing on the edge of the Crack of Doom, he puts the Ring on and declares it his own, showing that no mortal can willingly destroy it. The Ring is only destroyed because Gollum bites it off Frodo's finger and then falls into the lava during his struggle for it.

• What is the Army of the Dead and why does Aragorn summon them?▾

  The Dead Men of Dunharrow are the cursed spirits of soldiers who broke an oath to fight for Aragorn's ancestor Isildur against Sauron. Bound to the mountain until they fulfill that oath, they can only be commanded by Isildur's heir. Aragorn calls on them to overwhelm the Corsair fleet at Pelargir and to break the siege at the Pelennor Fields, after which he releases them and the curse ends.

• Why does Denethor try to burn himself and Faramir alive?▾

  Denethor, the Steward of Gondor, has been secretly using a palantir, and Sauron has shown him visions designed to break his will. Believing Faramir is dying, that Boromir is already lost, and that Gondor cannot be saved, he gives in to despair and orders a pyre built for them both. Gandalf and Pippin save Faramir, but Denethor leaps from the top of Minas Tirith in flames.

• How does Eowyn manage to kill the Witch-king when he was supposed to be unkillable?▾

  A prophecy stated that the Witch-king of Angmar, lord of the Nazgul, could not be slain by any man. On the Pelennor Fields he confronts Eowyn, who has ridden into battle disguised as the soldier Dernhelm. After Merry stabs him behind the knee with a Barrow-blade enchanted against him, Eowyn reveals she is a woman and drives her sword into his helm, fulfilling the prophecy's loophole.

• Why does Frodo leave the Shire with the Elves at the end?▾

  Frodo's wounds from the Morgul blade, Shelob's sting, and the long burden of the Ring leave him unable to find peace in the Shire. As a Ring-bearer he is granted passage with Bilbo, Gandalf, and the last of the Elves on the ship sailing from the Grey Havens to the Undying Lands in the West. The departure marks the end of the Third Age and Frodo's chance to heal beyond Middle-earth.