Return of the King

"Wow, she looks really stunning."

Looking at Eva seated in the business car, Lyman genuinely complimented her.

Eva was wearing a light purple off-shoulder gown, her long hair flowing, giving off an alluring and feminine vibe.

It seemed the costume stylists that John had arranged for her were quite useful.

They really brought out her aura.

"Do you think she looks good too?" Eva smiled and seemed quite satisfied with Lyman's reaction.

...

"Oh my, isn't this extravagant?"

At the scene outside the Loews Theater, Lyman looked at the red carpet that seemed ready to burst onto the sidewalk and the enthusiastic movie fans in awe.

"Is this the third installment? The first two movies already made such a grand entrance. It wouldn't be fitting if the final chapter were less impressive than before, especially since New Line Cinema intends to compete with this film for the Oscars. How can they not make some noise?" John sighed in agreement.

Oh right, Harvey Weinstein is one of the producers of this movie, but due to losing the rights lawsuit against New Line, they had a falling out for a while. Later, New Line privately promised Harvey a share of the profits, which brought the master of public relations back on board.

"Alright, let's get out of the car."

Seeing the key cast members stepping onto the stage, it was their turn.

Lyman opened the car door and got out first, then held Eva's arm and helped her out.

As they walked towards the interview area, Lyman didn't let go of Eva's hand.

His actions were sending a very clear signal.

It was almost like they were showcasing an intimate relationship in public. Behind them, John voluntarily kept some distance, looking more like a lonely singleton.

With Lyman's current fame, quite a few reporters also took notice of Eva.

For a moment, the flashing lights were blinding and causing people's eyes to hurt.

In front of the theater, the big New Zealander was still greeting guests as they entered. Standing beside him was the president of New Line Cinema, Shay.

"Director Jackson, congratulations on the film's release."

Lyman, still holding Eva's hand, walked up with a smile.

"Ah, you're here. Let's have a drink together tonight." Peter Jackson wore a casual smile and gave Lyman a hearty embrace.

"And who is this?"

"Eva Green, my girlfriend."

Lyman introduced.

"Mr. Jackson, hello." Eva extended her hand gracefully towards Peter.

"Hello. Thank you for coming to support."

The usual polite smile.

Once inside the theater, Lyman exchanged greetings with a few acquaintances before settling into his seat.

His seat was in the middle of the third row, surrounded by industry figures like directors and producers. Eva sat beside him.

After about half an hour, the interview segment with the cast and crew began.

While the people on stage were reminiscing about the filming process and sharing various interesting anecdotes, Lyman's gaze was fixed on a bespectacled middle-aged man.

This person was Richard Taylor, the leader of the special effects team responsible for "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King".

This person rose to fame almost alongside "The Lord of the Rings" series. From the first film onwards, this visual effects maestro from New Zealand began to make a name for himself. At the 72nd Oscars, he directly won the Best Makeup and Best Visual Effects awards. Later, he even founded the Weta Workshop.

Since then, his name has always been associated with prominent directors like Peter Jackson, Steven Spielberg, and James Cameron.

Apart from "The Lord of the Rings" series, he and his studio were also responsible for creating the magnificent scenes and character models on Pandora in "Avatar". He was a truly remarkable visual effects master.

As Lyman looked at him, he had an inkling of wanting to recruit him. Unfortunately, Wētā Workshop had already become an industry giant, and acquiring it would require billions. It was just wishful thinking.

...

As the movie began, Lyman found it quite engaging.

Though he had seen this film before, it didn't hinder him from watching it from a different perspective.

To be honest, Peter Jackson truly lived up to his title as a die-hard fan of J.R.R. Tolkien's work. Several scenes, such as the Battle of the Pelennor Fields and the Battle of the Black Gate, were brilliantly recreated with a blend of live-action shots and CG models to achieve the highest level of authenticity.

This guy had been planning the adaptation of "The Lord of the Rings" since 1995. At that time, his former employer was Miramax, and Harvey had provided $10M in funds for his preliminary preparations. One has to note that Harvey's vision was quite good, but he had a bad personality and liked to use some underhanded methods. Many directors who had worked with him eventually chose to leave him, except for Quentin Tarantino. After the project was approved, in order to find a buyer quickly, Harvey and Jackson visited various film studios.

In the end, it was the former president of New Line Cinema, Robert Shaye, who was interested. After seeing Jackson's early work, he even uttered the famous line, "The original "The Lord of the Rings" is a trilogy. Why not make the films this way?"

Yes, the concept of a trilogy was Shaye's idea. At that time, sequels were not a popular trend in Hollywood at all. Peter initially intended to adapt "The Lord of the Rings" into a single film, but upon hearing Shaye's proposal, he probably grew fond of the president and voluntarily transferred a portion of his adaptation rights to New Line. This is also why there were later conflicts between Harvey and New Line. All three parties had a share of the adaptation rights, but overall, Harvey had the least share, and Peter, betraying his former employer, switched to New Line.

Together, these actions left Harvey without much say in the project. Seeing the first film earn considerable profits, Harvey couldn't tolerate being sidelined like this. He decisively took both parties to court. But alas, court is not the same as the Oscars, and Harvey lacked influential connections. He was directly defeated, and in the end, had to accept defeat, handling the Oscars campaign for "The Lord of the Rings" series and trying to maximize his profits from it.

However, Peter's mindset at that time is quite understandable as well.

Before all this, he was merely a B-list director with a few minor successes. He had made three or four films, with a total box office revenue of less than $30M. Suddenly, he was entrusted with one of the film industry's unprecedented large-scale projects, the "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy, with a total budget of $300M.

Given such immense trust and generosity, it's no wonder he decided to part ways with Harvey. Harvey had never supported him like this before.

Comparing the two, there was no need to ask whom to choose.

Furthermore, to faithfully recreate Middle-earth, this guy spent three years just on scripting and simulating scenes. From 1995, when he began planning the adaptation, to the release of the first film in 2001, he spent a full six years.

Without this thorough understanding of the source material and the energy put into preparations, such brilliance would not have been achievable.

An epic fantasy trilogy that rightfully stands at the top.

Undoubtedly, this must be Peter's proudest achievement in his lifetime.