The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King Movie Cast, Plot and Everything to Know

Amy Renner

Last modified: Dec. 22, 2008

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of...

Release Date: Wednesday, December 17, 2003

Starring: Elijah Wood • Ian McKellen • Sean Astin • Cate Blanchett • Billy Boyd

Screenwriter: Philippa Boyens • Barrie M. Osborne • Fran Walsh • Peter Jackson • Phillippa Boyens

PG-13 Action N/A

4.7 / 5

92% WILL SEE 8% WON'T SEE

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Plot

What's the story about?

Plot: The third of the trilogy. As the shadow of Mordor grows across the land, Aragorn is revealed as the hidden heir to the ancient kings. Gandolf miraculously returns and defeats the evil wizard, Saruman. Sam leaves his master for the dead after a battle with the giant spider, Shelob; but Frodo is still alive--in the hands of the Orcs. And while the armies of the Dark Lord are massing--and the one ring comes ever closer to the Cracks of Doom.

Action Adventure Drama Fantasy Sci-Fi Sequel

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Top Cast

The lead cast starring in The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.

Elijah Wood
The Toxic Avenger, The Monkey
I
Ian McKellen
X-Men: Days of Future Past, Beauty and the Beast
S
Sean Astin
Guns of Redemption, Love Hurts
Cate Blanchett
Black Bag, Rumours
B
Billy Boyd
Dog Man, The Forger
B
Bernard Hill
ParaNorman, Wimbledon
Dominic Monaghan
X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker
Viggo Mortensen
Green Book, On the Road
J
John Noble
Night Of The Harvest, The Mule
Hugo Weaving
Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole, Cloud Atlas
Liv Tyler
Captain America: Brave New World, Reign Over Me
Karl Urban
Mortal Kombat 2, Priest

Crew Behind the Film

The The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King behind-the-scenes crew and production team.

The film's writer Philippa Boyens last wrote Mortal Engines and The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies.

Director: —
Screenwriters: Philippa Boyens
Barrie M. Osborne
Fran Walsh
Producers: Peter Jackson
Barrie M. Osborne
Fran Walsh

Studios: —
Production Companies: —

Production Details

What we know about the The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King movie production.

Production Updates for The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

Dec 2004

Completed

Changed The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King movie production status. The movie is ready for release.

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Additional Information

Parent Rating: PG-13 Parents Strongly Cautioned for intense epic battle sequences and frightening images
Runtime: N/A
Tagline: Not available
Also known as: Not available
Language: English

All Trailers

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Release Dates

When was the film released?

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King was released in on Wednesday, December 17, 2003.

Movie Theaters

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On DVD, Blu-ray / 4K

2004-05-25 DVD

Buy/Rent on Digital (Ultra HD)

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Official Page and Social Links

Official Site

Across the Web

Follow the Updates

Mon., Dec. 22, 2008 2008-12-22

Added the soundtrack release date of November 25, 2003

Sun., Nov. 9, 2008 2008-11-09

Added the DVD release date of May 25, 2004

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