'Lord of the Rings' Will Return to Theaters This Spring - Inside the Magic

Peter Jackson created a fantastic Lord of the Rings experience for fans. Due to Return of the King reaching its 20th anniversary, fans can experience the epic ending on the big screen once again.

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Unlike before, this viewing of Lord of the Rings: Return of the King(2023) will be unlike anything else. Theaters won’t be showing the standard theatrical cut but the legendary 4-hour cut of the movie. This means that fans who had a problem watching James Cameron’s Avatar: The Way of Water (2022) or aren’t used to sitting down for such a long movie will have to prepare themselves for this debut.

Fans of the iconic trilogy know that the extended cut of the films is the way to experience the saga on Middle-Earth. Watching Frodo and Samwise travel through Mordor while Minas Tirith fends off evil in every direction is a dire moment in the saga that provides some of the greatest battles.

Related: ‘The Lord of the Rings’: Who is Aragorn?

One iconic moment that still stands the test of time is Viggo Mortensen’s Aragorn saying, “For Frodo,” before charging Sauron’s army at the gates of Mordor. With bandits, mercenaries, Witch King, Shelob, and more, Return of the King is not something fans want to miss. One source confirms online that the movie will release in theaters starting in April:

The 4+ hour extended cut of RETURN OF THE KING is coming to Cinemark & Regal theaters on April 13 to mark the film’s 20th anniversary 

The 4+ hour extended cut of RETURN OF THE KING is coming to Cinemark & Regal theaters on April 13 to mark the film’s 20th anniversary 👀 pic.twitter.com/a3rxUQ3OyD

— Film Codex (@FilmCodex) March 3, 2023

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One thing to note is that this deal is done with Regal and Cinemark theaters so if you only have an AMC theater near you, you are out of luck. Amazon is spending significant resources to create Rings of Power Season 2. Fans should expect more projects about Middle-Earth to hit the big screen as Prime Video won’t be the only source for new Lord of the Rings content.

While Rings of Power focuses on Sauron’s rise to power as he creates Mordor and the Rings, the series is said to create a fulfilling story leading up to the iconic trilogy. One day, fans will get to see the series back-to-back with the trilogy and might need an entire week to get through everything.

Do you plan to watch Return of the King in theaters? Let Inside the Magic know what you think!