Peter Jackson directed the three-film The Lord of the Rings film series based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s novels.
Jackson directed The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, and The Return of the King, released in 2001, 2002, and 2003. The films were produced and largely filmed together in New Zealand, a production approach that helped maintain visual and narrative continuity across the trilogy.
The series became a major commercial and critical success. The Return of the King won all 11 Academy Awards for which it was nominated, including Best Picture and Best Director for Jackson.
The films adapt Tolkien’s story but do not reproduce every episode or character from the books. Tom Bombadil, for example, is absent, and several events are rearranged or compressed. Jackson later directed a film trilogy based on The Hobbit, released from 2012 to 2014.