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Lord of the Rings trilogy finalises China re-release dates

Lord of the Rings trilogy returns to China after successful Avatar re-run

Peony Hirwani
Thursday 15 April 2021 13:09 BST
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Lord of the Rings cast reunite on Zoom

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Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy is soon returning to Chinese cinemas.

According to local media reports, the trilogy has been “scheduled for re-release in China throughout April,” and will be screened in restored 4K versions.

The Fellowship of the Ring was supposed to be released on 9 April, which was pushed back a week. Therefore, the first part is set to be released on 16 April while Two Towers will be released on 23 April. The release date for The Return of the King is yet to be revealed.

“One ring to rule them all, One ring to find them. One ring to bring them all, and in the darkness bind them,” said the official Warner Bros announcement on Chinese microblogging website Weibo. It’s a reference to the ring verse and the inscription on the One Ring that controls the others rings of power in JRR Tolkien’s popular series.

“We invite you to return to Middle Earth and once again appreciate this heart-wrenching, immortal epic legend unfolding at a grand scale,” it said. “Let’s all come to witness the return of the legend on the big screen!”

This re-run follows the successful re-release of James Cameron’s 2009 sci-fi epic Avatar, which has gone to acquire roughly $50m (approx £36m) with no virtual promotion in the country.

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring Official Trailer #1

In 2020, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone was also re-released in the country right after the cinemas opened post Covid-19 lockdown, which ended up grossing $29.4m (approx £21m).

Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar and Inception were also re-released in China last year.

“It’s been really great having the chance to revisit theLord Of The Rings trilogy… The central theme of the world in a state of turmoil and the ordinary people, the Hobbits, in this case, make a big difference. It’s not a story of heroes or superheroes, it’s a story of ordinary people who set out to save their world, and through a long series of hardships they ultimately achieve that,” Jackson said in a video posted on Warner Bros account on Wednesday.

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