Noel, a devoted fan of The Lord of the Rings, had been organizing various protests ever since Gilbert announced his plan to adapt the story for the big screen.
Now, however, the media's focus enraged him because they were missing the real point.
Previously, discussions had centered on whether Gilbert could successfully pull off the adaptation. But now, the media was debating whether the film should be shot in China, almost assuming that Gilbert would inevitably complete The Lord of the Rings successfully.
Perhaps the success of Chicago had made the media overly confident in Gilbert's cinematic prowess, leaving little doubt that he would succeed with The Lord of the Rings.
After all, the budget for the trilogy had gradually increased to a staggering $350 million.
A project of this scale—if it failed—would deal a severe blow even to Gilbert, forcing him to recover for a while.
So unless he was absolutely certain, there was no way Gilbert would risk launching such a massive project.
Because of this logic, once The Lord of the Rings officially began filming, the media stopped questioning whether it could succeed.
Of course, skepticism still existed—there was no avoiding that.
But the primary debate had shifted, and with certain individuals deliberately guiding the conversation, the discussion now revolved around cultural and political issues.
This shift in media focus infuriated Noel, a hardcore fan of The Lord of the Rings. These media outlets were nothing but opportunistic turncoats—completely unreliable.
Thus, he continued to actively rally fans across different locations, organizing large-scale protests.
However, when he heard that Warner Bros. president Doug Walter had been assaulted by an extreme Lord of the Rings fan, he immediately realized that this approach was unsustainable.
Noel, though passionate about protesting, did not condone violent demonstrations, as they could easily backfire.
So, after holding several meetings, he decided to shift to a more peaceful method—silent sit-in protests rather than aggressive marches or demonstrations—to express his opposition to The Lord of the Rings adaptation.
That day, after attending a Lord of the Rings book club meeting in Los Angeles to discuss the next steps in their protest efforts, Noel returned to his friend's house.
He was originally from New York, but he had come to Los Angeles specifically to organize these protests.
Russell, the second-in-command of the book club and Noel's deputy, argued for more extreme measures, even suggesting that they should assault Robert Iger, the current head of Disney.
Or, to take things even further, he proposed shooting him—to let him feel some real power.
Noel immediately shut down this radical plan.
After all, Warner Bros. and Disney's media networks were already exploiting the previous assault incident to full effect, painting The Lord of the Rings fans in an extremely negative light.
If another similar event occurred, the protests would no longer seem justified but would instead be seen as irrational disruptions that endangered public safety.
The general public would turn against them, seeing The Lord of the Rings fans as a dangerous group.
Who would still support their cause then?
Because of this fundamental difference in approach, Noel and Russell had clashed during the meeting.
The Lord of the Rings book club had now split into two factions—one advocating for continued radical protest tactics, while the other supported Noel's approach of peaceful demonstrations.
This division had left the meeting in a sour state, ending in discord.
Noel's friend Thomas, also a member of the book club, approached him after they returned home.
"Noel, have you read today's reports?" Thomas asked.
"What reports?" Noel replied.
"I heard that the actors in The Lord of the Rings production can all speak Elvish fluently," Thomas said.
"No way," Noel scoffed. "Elvish is an incredibly difficult language. Is there really anyone who can speak it?"
"It's true. It's all over the newspapers," Thomas insisted.
If that were the case, then it meant Gilbert was truly approaching this adaptation with a fan's mindset.
Maybe—just maybe—the film's quality wouldn't be as bad as he feared.
Noel shook his head quickly, trying to drive this dangerous thought away.
Impossible. There was no way The Lord of the Rings could be successfully adapted into a film.
No way. Absolutely impossible.
But later that evening, as Noel turned on the television to watch the news, the broadcast suddenly switched to an interview with Anne Hathaway.
And when Anne Hathaway began speaking in a beautifully melodic language, Noel was utterly stunned.
As a hardcore Lord of the Rings fan, he had studied Elvish grammar based on Tolkien's writings.
So the moment Anne Hathaway spoke, he recognized it instantly—it was authentic Elvish.
He had heard that Anne Hathaway was cast as the Elven princess Arwen, and previously, he had been outraged by the decision, believing she was completely unsuitable for the role.
But as the elegant Elvish words flowed from Anne Hathaway's lips, Noel's perception shifted.
His mind involuntarily merged Anne Hathaway's image with Arwen's, and suddenly, he found himself believing—Anne Hathaway was Arwen.
A deep sense of shame washed over Noel.
How could he think Anne Hathaway was beautiful?
He was supposed to oppose this film! He couldn't allow himself to fall for it.
But the truth was—Anne Hathaway really was beautiful.
This perfectly illustrated the importance of casting.
If Gilbert had followed the later Hollywood trends and cast someone with a bloated face, thick lips, and dirty dreadlocks as Arwen, the backlash would have been even more explosive.
However, it wouldn't have been a positive shock. Furious Lord of the Rings fans might have been enraged enough to tear him apart.
But Anne Hathaway didn't have this problem. She wasn't the most perfect choice for Arwen, but in terms of beauty, she was undoubtedly outstanding.
Just this brief interview segment was enough to make many Lord of the Rings fans extremely curious about how the film adaptation would turn out.
Because of this interview, some fans even started questioning whether their protests had been too extreme.
Meanwhile, those who weren't Lord of the Rings fans found it fascinating—were actors really learning an entirely new language just for a film?
Gilbert's fans, on the other hand, were thrilled. They believed that Gilbert had never failed before, and this time would be no different. Anne Hathaway's performance was proof of that.
The interview achieved its intended effect, fulfilling its purpose.
In the newly renovated office of Warner Bros.' president, Doug Walter, who still had bandages wrapped around him, was hard at work, holding a meeting with department heads.
"Mr. President, your move was highly effective. The protests have significantly quieted down."
Doug Walter smirked proudly. "My method of weakening and even stopping the protests is very effective. The public will naturally grow tired of and resent extreme protests."
As it turned out, the incident where Doug Walter was attacked had been staged by himself.
For secrecy and the element of surprise, he hadn't even informed Gilbert beforehand—he had arranged everything himself.
Solomon, who had taken over as head of distribution, remarked, "When Director Gilbert finds out about all this, he'll probably be deeply moved."
Doug Walter, however, was indifferent. "I didn't do this to please Director Gilbert. I did it solely for the success of The Lord of the Rings film.
Do you all understand?"
The executives exchanged glances before nodding in unison. "We understand…"
Doug Walter nodded in satisfaction, gazing into the distance. "I wonder how the filming of The Lord of the Rings is progressing now."
Far away, on the film set of The Lord of the Rings, everything was bustling with activity.
To give the core creative team a clear concept of the Middle-earth world he was constructing, Gilbert had prepared storyboards early on.
These storyboards were essentially a series of sketch drawings, and several hired illustrators had helped Gilbert bring them to life.
However, these sketches were mostly conceptual—there were no markings indicating how each scene should be filmed.
As a result, the crew had to improvise in certain situations.
For example, the scene where Anne Hathaway's Arwen carries an unconscious Frodo while being pursued by the Ringwraiths was a product of on-the-spot adjustments.
Before filming, one of Anne Hathaway's stunt doubles had accidentally injured her leg, while the other had suffered food poisoning from eating Sichuan cuisine and was unable to participate.
Thus, the production team had to quickly find a skilled Chinese equestrian stunt double whose physique was similar to Anne Hathaway's to complete the scene.
Perhaps because the Chinese stunt double had a way with horses, the shoot went surprisingly smoothly without any major issues.
For close-up and featured shots, Anne Hathaway performed on horseback herself. Fortunately, she had undergone equestrian training, so filming these scenes wasn't a problem.
At the time, technology existed to allow actors to "ride" stationary mechanical horses, but Gilbert disdained such techniques and refused to use them.
During production meetings with department heads, Gilbert repeatedly emphasized his commitment to realism.
Unless something was physically impossible or couldn't be achieved practically, he insisted on real, practical filming.
For instance, the battle scene between Gandalf and Saruman was shot using a combination of real combat footage and CGI effects.
Specifically, Saruman's tower had been constructed in real life.
Early in the planning phase, the crew had traveled inland and selected a location in Lu Province, where they built a full-scale replica of the wizard's tower.
The structure was supported by a steel framework and made from lightweight materials, ensuring it would remain stable throughout filming.
However, according to local government plans, once the production wrapped, the temporary tower would be rebuilt using more durable materials to serve as a tourist attraction.
While these external details were interesting, the most peculiar aspect was that the wizard duel between Saruman and Gandalf involved close-quarters combat.
Anne Hathaway was baffled by this. She had assumed that wizards in The Lord of the Rings would primarily use magic, much like in modern fantasy games.
To this, Gilbert explained, "In The Lord of the Rings, 'wizard' isn't a profession—it's a race. Close combat is actually their most powerful method of fighting, and they are skilled in swordsmanship.
So when confronted face-to-face, wizards instinctively engage in melee combat rather than casting spells from a distance."
Anne Hathaway still didn't quite understand. "If that's the case, then what's the point of calling them wizards?"
Gilbert chuckled and shook his head. "If you really want to know, you'd have to ask Tolkien himself. He came up with these rules."
Although it seemed odd, Gilbert was simply staying faithful to the original book.
In Tolkien's writings, wizards were not native to Middle-earth but belonged to the same order as Sauron—the Maiar. Their powers were heavily restricted, meaning they couldn't use highly destructive spells.
Gilbert speculated that this was why wizards relied more on melee combat—after all, while magic could be restricted, fighting techniques were much harder to regulate.
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