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‘Rings’ director gets rousing welcome at New Zealand premiere
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Tuesday, December 2, 2003
WELLINGTON (REUTERS) — About 100,000 ecstatic fans welcomed “The Lord of the Rings” film director Peter Jackson as their returning king to New Zealand’s capitol on Monday for the world premiere of the climax of the award-winning trilogy.
Like a victorious general at the front of his army, Jackson led stars from “The Return of the King” for three miles through central Wellington, flanked by characters clad in armor and on black horses.
Filmed in New Zealand by homegrown director Jackson, “The Return of the King” is a multi-layered tale of a hobbit, Frodo, and his bid to save the world by destroying a golden ring with evil magical powers.
J.R.R. Tolkien, author of “The Hobbit” and “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy, invented the dwarf-like hobbits and a host of other creatures as part of his “Middle Earth” world.
Amid drifts of ticker tape thrown by fans, Jackson and cast members were besieged by crowds ten deep as they made their way up the 510 yards of red carpet to the theater.
Fans of the film trilogy spent thousands of dollars getting to New Zealand for the premiere.
Kim Ong of Singapore timed her trip to New Zealand to coincide with the premiere.
“I saw the first movie, which was wonderful. It blew us away. So since then, I’ve been waiting forever for the premiere,” she said.
Ong said she planned to spend at least a week visiting some of the film’s locations in New Zealand.
The first two parts of the trilogy (“The Fellowship of the Ring” and “The Two Towers”) are among the highest-grossing movies in box-office history. They have taken in a combined $1.8 billion.
Executive producer Michael Lynne of the film’s backers, New Line Cinema, a part of the Time Warner group, said Jackson had been the creative godfather of the trilogy.
“It is the end of a journey that started six years ago, and somehow together we have accomplished something truly unprecedented,” he said.
The books by the South African-born Tolkien, an Oxford professor who created languages and detailed histories for his characters and plots, have enjoyed a huge revival since the first two films were made. The third book in the “Rings” trilogy, which was written mostly in the 1940s, was published in 1955.
“These movies are made for people to enjoy them, and it makes us feel incredibly humble and proud,” Jackson told the throng.
Tipped to win an Oscar for best director at next year’s awards, Jackson said honors did not concern him.
“I’m just going to let everybody else decide that,” he said. “You can only do what you can do. You do the very best job you can … I don’t think I have any regrets.”
“The Fellowship” won Oscars for make-up, cinematography, visual effects and original score, while “The Two Towers” won awards for digital effects and sound editing.
Once work finishes on his next project, another remake of the classic “King Kong,” Jackson said he hopes to return to making smaller New Zealand-based movies.
However, it is possible a prequel to the “The Lord of the Rings,” called “The Hobbit,” could be made in the future, although the rights to the book have not yet been obtained, Jackson said.
Stars attending Monday’s premier at Wellington’s newly refurbished 852-seat art deco Embassy Theater included Liv Tyler, Sir Ian McKellen, Viggo Mortensen and Elijah Wood.
The film goes on commercial release in New Zealand December 18. Due to the time difference, it opens in much of the rest of the world December 17.
