How did Peter Jackson get to direct LOTR?
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Jackson was first introduced to LOTR with Bakshi's cartoon in 1978... and after Jackson had directed The Frighteners, he spotted that Jurassic Park had paved a way for some immense CGI technology.
It all started in 1995 for Jackson really.
He started planning a fantasy movie, and had a lightning bolt thought and realised that nobody else doing LOTR.
So he joined up with Fran Walsh and Harvey Weinstein, and pitched the idea to Saul Zaentz, the copyright owner of LOTR-Movie adaptions, and said that he would make The Hobbit, and then make 2 films based on LOTR.
Universal Studios then offered Jackson King Kong which made the negotiations halt, and Zaentz then dropped the bomb that he didn't have the rights to The Hobbit.
Filming location disputes between Jackson and Universal then halted King Kong... and Jackson then decided, with Zaentz not having rights to The Hobbit, that he should just do LOTR.
After a few months writing the script treatment, Jackson secured the Weinsteins Miramax studio backing, $75m budget, to make 2 LOTR films.
In 1997, they started writing the script proper... then they realised $75m to cover both movies wasn't going to be enough cash and Miramax couldn't afford any more money.
The Weinsteins then cut the script of the 2 films into 1 film and slashed the budget down even more... and Jackson basically said no way.
He then took his original script to Mark Ordesky and Robert Shaye at New Line... and they both basically said "Wait... there's 3 books, but only a script for 2 movies. We'll fund you for 3 films, with a budget of $300m"
The rest is history.
It all started in 1995 for Jackson really.
He started planning a fantasy movie, and had a lightning bolt thought and realised that nobody else doing LOTR.
So he joined up with Fran Walsh and Harvey Weinstein, and pitched the idea to Saul Zaentz, the copyright owner of LOTR-Movie adaptions, and said that he would make The Hobbit, and then make 2 films based on LOTR.
Universal Studios then offered Jackson King Kong which made the negotiations halt, and Zaentz then dropped the bomb that he didn't have the rights to The Hobbit.
Filming location disputes between Jackson and Universal then halted King Kong... and Jackson then decided, with Zaentz not having rights to The Hobbit, that he should just do LOTR.
After a few months writing the script treatment, Jackson secured the Weinsteins Miramax studio backing, $75m budget, to make 2 LOTR films.
In 1997, they started writing the script proper... then they realised $75m to cover both movies wasn't going to be enough cash and Miramax couldn't afford any more money.
The Weinsteins then cut the script of the 2 films into 1 film and slashed the budget down even more... and Jackson basically said no way.
He then took his original script to Mark Ordesky and Robert Shaye at New Line... and they both basically said "Wait... there's 3 books, but only a script for 2 movies. We'll fund you for 3 films, with a budget of $300m"
The rest is history.
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Resident Evil: Retribution was my one-pointer
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The short answer though... is Jackson's script was so good even though it was only for 2 movies, New Line knew they had a winner.
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I honestly do not know how it happened. Guy was not really renowned back then and he was just given mountain of money to make a movie in a rather unpopular genre. It is a bit like... I do not know, engineer that made a nice car got money to create space shuttle?
He either have tons of charisma or is the most lucky guy in the world
He either have tons of charisma or is the most lucky guy in the world
My issue is that he hasn't done much since. Lovely Bones, King Kong and more Hobbits? I love his earlier work and want to see something fresh.
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It's nothing new today at least... look at all them blockbusters.... they are often directed by someone who had a low budget indie hit.
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Many careers in showbiz in all forms come down to a mix of luck and talent, how many stars wouldn't be stars today if they didn't get that first big break, or filmmakers if their early work wasn't seen by the right person at the right time.
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My issue is that he hasn't done much since. Lovely Bones, King Kong and more Hobbits? I love his earlier work and want to see something fresh.