“The Lord of the Rings” trilogy is undoubtedly one of the greatest pieces of work in the history of cinema. J.R.R Tolkien’s books were considered unadaptable due to their complexity and scale before Peter Jackson stepped in.
One of the biggest hurdles of any adaptation is finding the perfect cast. Picking the right actors who can do justice to the characters is a task easier said than done. It is safe to say that the trilogy was almost perfect in its choice of actors. However, there were some other seriously talented actors who were also considered for major roles in the series, including that of Aragorn.
Marvel’s Zeus Russell Crowe Turned Down The Role of Aragorn After Talks With Peter Jackson
From Maximus Decimus Meridius and John Nash to Zor-El and Zeus, Russell Crowe knows how to bring the written characters to life. He was also considered for a role in The Lord of the Rings. The role in question is that of Aragorn, the heir to Gondor.
Fans might find it hard to digest that someone other than Viggo Mortenson could have played the role of the king. However, Crowe was in fact considered for the role as he confirmed the rumors were true in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter.
However, things did not go quite well to turn into a contract. Crowe believes that the movie director Peter Jackson was not very impressed with him for the role. He revealed that Warner Bros. was pushing Jackson to hire Crowe for the role, but the director apparently was apparently not versed with the actor’s work.
“I didn’t think Peter Jackson wanted me on that film,” Crowe said “Because he was forced into talking to me, because there was a moment in time when everyone wanted me in everything.”
“I am talking to him on the phone, it is like, I don’t think he even knows what I have done,” “I just knew that my instinct was that he had somebody else in mind, which turned out to be Viggo, and he should be allowed to hire the actor who he wants.”
The offer eventually did not materialize for the Gladiator Star and went to Viggo Mortenson instead, as the rest is history. Further, Crowe was not the only actor rejected by Peter Jackson who went on to trouble our favorite Marvel Superheroes.
Jake Gyllenhaal’s Audition for Lord of the Rings Was One to Forget
The epic fight between the good and the evil of Middle-Earth was all portrayed with a hobbit at the center of the story. Frodo Baggins is one of the most loved characters of the trilogy and was played by Elijah Wood. To get the role, he surpassed many contenders including the soon-to-be Hollywood mega-star Jake Gyllenhaal.
Speaking on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, the Marvel superstar revealed that he did audition for the role of Frodo but it went horribly. Jackson did not approve of his American accent for the role and was not impressed when he took the One Ring in a casual manner. Gyllenhaal was then rejected for the role with Jackson telling him “You are the worst actor that I have ever seen.”
The Lord of the Rings trilogy can be streamed on HBO Max or Amazon Prime Video.
