Who directed the three-film adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings?

Peter Jackson directed the three-film adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings.

The film series consists of The Fellowship of the Ring, released in 2001, The Two Towers, released in 2002, and The Return of the King, released in 2003. Jackson directed all three films, which were produced as a connected production and filmed primarily in New Zealand.

The trilogy adapts Tolkien’s novel but makes changes to structure, characterization, pacing, and events. It includes an expanded role for some characters, rearranged storylines, and visual interpretations of places and peoples that had previously existed mainly in readers’ imaginations.

Peter Jackson also directed The Hobbit film trilogy, released from 2012 to 2014. That connection can lead to confusion with Guillermo del Toro, who was initially attached to direct The Hobbit before leaving the project. Jackson ultimately directed those films as well, but the Lord of the Rings trilogy remains his most famous Tolkien adaptation.