Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers - Special
Extended Editions

Last Update: 22 August 2003


Source: IGN Filmforce
LOTR Extended Edition Films Headed for Theaters
See the extra-good versions of the first two before the third opens this December.

August 22, 2003 - This December, lucky fans of The Lord of the Rings will get the chance to
see the ultimate in-theater movie marathon.
 
New Line Cinema has announced that it will be releasing the extended DVD versions of both
The Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers in select U.S. and Canadian markets two
weeks before The Return of the King opens. About 100 theaters in the U.S. and 20 in
Canada will participate.
 
Fellowship will be first, hitting venues December 5th. The Two Towers will follow on the 12th,
and on the 16th, there will be a marathon in which audiences will be able to watch both
films back-to-back, directly followed by the first midnight showing of The Return of the King.
 
Although this is quite a limited release, New Line Cinema expects additional theaters to do
one-time showings of the two extended films.
 


Source: Variety
21 August 2003
'Rings' will bow before the 'King'

Before any king can return, New Line Cinema will re-release of the first two "Lord of the Rings"
pics worldwide, this time with additional scenes and footage added.

Just two weeks before the Dec. 17 release of "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" --
the final installment of the Peter Jackson-helmed epic trilogy -- the first two "Ring" entries will
be unspooling worldwide.

In memoranda sent to exhibitors on Wednesday, New Line laid out a game plan to promote the
third film by refreshing filmgoers' memories with "The Fellowship of the Ring" and "The Two
Towers."

Plan calls for putting the films on 100-150 screens in top 10 U.S. markets. Many other U.S.
cities will have one cinema participating in the special extended edition screenings. Running
times for the extended editions are 208 minutes for "Fellowship of the Ring" and 214 minutes
for "The Two Towers."

Advanced ticket sales are scheduled to begin in late September or early October on exhibitor
Web sites and movie ticketing sites like Fandango, MovieFone and Movietickets.com.

"The release of the third film affords us a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to give audiences a
compelling new theatrical experience of Peter Jackson's sprawling vision for this trilogy," said
Rolf Mittweg, prexy and chief operating officer for worldwide distribution and marketing.

The cost, one New Line insider estimated, will be between $10 million and $15 million. Due to
the extended length of the new prints, the move is being cast as a promotional tool rather than
a moneymaker.

"It is important to note," the memo says, "that these events are produced as a marketing/publicity
stunt and not as a revenue generating opportunity" and that media support will be limited largely
to the Internet and participating theaters.

Starting the week of Dec. 5, the extended DVD cut of "Fellowship of the Ring" will be released
in some 100 or so theaters in the U.S. and in 20 theaters in Canada.

Then, the week of Dec. 12, sequel "Two Towers" will unspool, just a month after having preemed
on DVD, leading up to a worldwide Dec. 16 daylong marathon, during which all three films will be
shown back-to-back. Exhib guidelines call for a 3 p.m. showing of "Fellowship" followed by a 7
p.m. screening of "Two Towers" and then an 11 p.m. screening of "Return of the King," which will
carry over into Dec. 17 -- the day of its global release.

Overseas, it's not yet clear whether all exhibs will be showing the new footage-added prints of
the previous "Rings" pics. According to one New Line insider, the decision is being left to exhibs,
which will make their requests known to New Line in the next few weeks.

Italy and Japan will not immediately be included in the foreign promotional blitz. Italo comedies
dominate that country around the holidays, and corporate sibling Warner Bros. will be carpeting
Japan with the next "Harry Potter" pic. Triad of "Rings" pics will instead screen in January in
Italy and February in Japan.

"King" is produced by Barrie M. Osborne, Fran Walsh and Jackson, with a screenplay by Walsh
& Philippa Boyens and Jackson, based on the book by J.R.R. Tolkien.


Source: Sci Fi.com
22 August 2003
Rings Films Re-Released
 
New Line Cinema will re-release the first two Lord of the Rings movies, with additional scenes
and footage, two weeks before the Dec. 17 premiere of the third installment, The Return of the
King, Variety reported. New Line plans to put the film on 100-150 screens in the top 10 U.S.
markets, the trade paper reported.
 
Other U.S. cities will have one cinema participating in the special extended-edition screenings,
the trade paper reported. Advanced ticket sales are scheduled to begin in late September or
early October on exhibitor Web sites and movie ticketing sites like Fandango, MovieFone
and Movietickets.com.
 
Starting the week of Dec. 5, the extended DVD cut of Fellowship of the Ring will be released
in some 100 or so theaters in the U.S. and in 20 theaters in Canada, the trade paper reported.
The week of Dec. 12, the sequel Two Towers will screen, leading up to a worldwide Dec. 16
daylong marathon during which all three films will be shown back to back, the trade paper
reported.


Source: E! Online
Whole Lotta Hobbit Going On
by Josh Grossberg
Aug 22, 2003, 10:30 AM PT
 
 
Attention, Frodo fanatics: Better load up on the popcorn and soda and invest in a comfy
cushion--because you're in for a sore butt.
 
Two weeks before The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King wraps things up on December
17, New Line Cinema plans to unleash in theaters special extended editions of the first two
installments in director Peter Jackson's epic adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's fantasy trilogy.
 
Cinephiles who couldn't get enough of The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
special edition DVD, which clocked in at 208 minutes and included scenes not in the theatrical
version, will be able to see the epic on the big screen in all its glory starting on December 5 in
about 100 movie houses in the U.S. and 20 in Canada.
 
A week later, on December 12, New Line will unspool the special 214-minute extended edition of
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. That version is slated to premiere as a DVD first on
November 18 (the DVD of last year's "official" theatrical release is due out on Tuesday).
 
But wait! There's more!
 
For those with serious Hobbit habits longing to venture into Middle Earth for more than a few hours,
New Line plans to screen all three films back-to-back-to-back on December 16 in a daylong
marathon that will carry over with The Return of the King's global release on December 17.
 
Per Daily Variety, New Line sent memos out to exhibitors across the country this week informing
them of the reissue and suggesting various screening strategies to maximize promotion leading up
to The Return of the King.
 
The goal, according to the studio, is not simply monetary, but it's intended to refresh moviegoers'
memories of the good-vs.-evil saga that has been lording over the box office and critics' lists for
the past two years.
 
"The release of the third film affords us a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to give audiences a
compelling new theatrical experience of Peter Jackson's sprawling vision for this trilogy," Rolf
Mittwg, New Line's head of worldwide distribution and marketing, told Variety.
 
The memo lays out guidelines for theaters calling for Fellowship to begin screening at 3 p.m.
on December 16, Two Towers to follow at 7 p.m., and the first official showing of Return of the
King kicking off at 11 p.m. and concluding early in the wee hours of the 17th.
 
The final installment is going to be the longest in the series, coming in at over three hours.
Jackson promised fans in a recent USA Today interview that the climactic clash between
Middle Earthlings and the fiendish Lord Sauron and his minions at Pelennor Fields will surpass
Two Towers' Battle of Helm's Deep in breadth and scope.
 
Jackson says the most satisfying part of Return of the King will be the emotional climax, something
he had to bring the entire cast back for additional shooting this spring and forced him to even
rework some key scenes.
 
"Everybody feels we are paying off the story now," Jackson said. "The scenes tend to be
more emotionally charged, which is why the actors enjoyed them and I enjoyed filming them.
It absolutely has to be the best. We owe it to people."
 
New Line is banking on the Lord of Rings capper to build enough buzz to finally garner Jackson
and his epic an Oscar. Despite a slew of nominations (Two Towers being the first sequel since
The Godfather Part II to be nominated for Best Picture) and some wins in technical categories,
the golden guy has proven elusive to the filmmaker. Many show-biz insiders believe the usually
fantasy-averse Motion Picture Academy is waiting for the finale before anointing Jackson's work.
 
Regardless of whether Jackson stocks up his trophy case, his Rings cycle has put him in a league
of his own.
 
The filmmaker recently sealed a deal with Universal Pictures for his next project, a massive retelling
of King Kong that will see him earn $20 million up front as well as gross points on the back end,
one of the most lucrative contracts ever for a director.
 
Advanced tickets for the rereleases are slated to go on sale in late September or early October
via movie-ticketing sites like Fandango, Moviefone and Movietickets.com as well as exhibitor
Websites.
 


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