The Lord of the Rings Trilogy Remastered to Be Released in IMAX Theaters

Fantasy films don't get much bigger than the Lord of the Rings trilogy and movie theaters don't [...]

By Patrick Cavanaugh

Fantasy films don't get much bigger than the Lord of the Rings trilogy and movie theaters don't get much bigger than IMAX, with the theater chain confirming that they will be showing the original films for the first time in the IMAX format starting on February 5th. Given the scope of the series, IMAX will be showing one film for the first week while the next week will see the release of the other installments, with each version of the films being the remastered edition that director Peter Jackson recently approved and released on home video. Given that this year marks the 20th anniversary of the series' debut and with Amazon Studios developing a new TV series based on the concept, it's the perfect time to revisit the classics.

"For the first time in IMAX, experience the magic of Middle-Earth. The Lord of the Rings trilogy is making its debut on the BIG screen. Remastered by Peter Jackson in stunning 4K, experience the epic in IMAX theatres Feb 5," IMAX shared on Twitter.

The Lords of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring debuts on February 5th while The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers and The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King open on February 12th.

Following the theatrical release of the films, Jackson oversaw the home video releases, which included special extended editions featuring new sequences cut from theaters and finished visual effects. Given the comprehensive nature of these editions, one might wonder why they would get another remaster, though Jackson recently detailed that the visual overhaul created a more seamless experience with the look of his The Hobbit trilogy.

"It was interesting going back and revisiting these films because I realized how inconsistent they were," Jackson shared in a featurette for the films. "And that's really due to the way in which the Lord of the Rings trilogy was shot first, about 20 years ago. The Lord of the Rings was shot on 35mm. The color timing was done on an old-fashioned mechanical way for the first Lord of the Rings movie. Then we switched to digital color timing for the 35mm negative for the next two."

He added, "They look like they were done today, not 20 years ago. This process, the way I see it, it's not about making the film different. It's simply taking a 20-year-old movie and making it feel like it's a modern film."

Check out The Lord of the Rings trilogy in select IMAX theaters starting February 5th. Details on the new LOTR 4K Blu-ray box sets can be found here.

Will you be seeing the films in IMAX theaters? Let us know in the comments below!

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