In the world of filmmaking, a movie is considered a franchise if it has two or more parts. The Lord Of The Rings and The Hobbit are two great examples of a franchise. All the movies in the franchise have a similar plot, while some have a similar plot to the last movie. The Lord of the Rings movies and the Hobbit movies watch order chronology and release order is a list of the movies in the Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit franchise in chronological order from the first movie “The Fellowship of the Ring” to the latest movie “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies”. Let’s get started!
The line extended on the third film, and the first one of the three was released in mid-2002. Since then, we’ve seen three more films, and the first two of those, “The Fellowship Of The Ring” and “The Two Towers”, have been released one after the other. But which one came first? The chronological release order is: “The Fellowship Of The Ring”, “The Two Towers”, “The Return Of The King”, “The Hobbit”, “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey”, “The Hobbit: The Battle Of The Five Armies”. The “Simpsons Movie”, “Futurama: Into The Wild Green Yonder”, “Despicable Me 2”, “Spider-Man: Homecoming”,
To start with, the Lord of the Rings movies are based on a book by J.R.R. Tolkien, set in the time of the One Ring, while the Hobbit movies are based on another book by Tolkien, set before the events of Lord of the Rings. Now, many of you are wondering about the chronology of the two series. And, if you are a fan of the Lord of the Rings Movies, you are probably interested in the Hobbit Movies too. So, I am going to give you the chronological order of the Lord of the Rings Movies and the Hobbit Movies.
Six films, three Lord of the Rings films, and three Hobbit films are set in J. R. R. Tolkien’s Middle-Earth. In this post, we’ll teach you how to watch the Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit movies in the best sequence possible, sorting them by chronology, chronological order, and release date.
The ideal way to see The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit films is in this order:
- The Fellowship of the Ring (The Lord of the Rings) (2001)
- An Unexpected Journey in The Hobbit (2012)
- Smaug’s Desolation (The Hobbit) (2013)
- The Battle of the Five Armies in The Hobbit (2014)
- The Two Towers of The Lord of the Rings (2002)
- The Return of the King (The Lord of the Rings) (2003)
We’ve compiled a list of other methods to watch The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit films below; some of them are quite unique and are geared for diehard fans who have seen all six films many times. In addition, if you’re not sure where to view them, we’ve included a link to all six Middle-earth extended edition films.
Release Dates for The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit Films
Although this is the order in which we originally saw The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit films, it is not the order in which we like to watch them.
If this is your first time viewing these incredible films, which we cannot believe, we recommend that you watch them in chronological sequence; we will explain why later.
Nonetheless, we’ll organize all of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit films by release date here:
- The Fellowship of the Ring (The Lord of the Rings) (2001)
- The Two Towers of The Lord of the Rings (2002)
- The Return of the King (The Lord of the Rings) (2003)
- An Unexpected Journey in The Hobbit (2012)
- Smaug’s Desolation (The Hobbit) (2013)
- The Battle of the Five Armies in The Hobbit (2014)
Is The Hobbit a prequel to or a sequel to The Lord of the Rings?
Except for the prologue of the new film, which takes place approximately twenty minutes before The Fellowship of the Ring starts, The Hobbit takes place 60 years before the Lord of the Rings adventure.
Frodo (Elijah Wood) reunites with old Bilbo (Ian Holm) to discuss the older Hobbit’s impending 111th birthday celebration, which Gandalf attends at the start of Fellowship.
Chronological Order of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit Films
Watching The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit films in sequence chronologically is a superior way to view them, and we’ll explain why, especially for people who are watching them for the first time.
The sequence of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings films is chronological:
- An Unexpected Journey in The Hobbit (2012)
- Smaug’s Desolation (The Hobbit) (2013)
- The Battle of the Five Armies in The Hobbit (2014)
- The Fellowship of the Ring (The Lord of the Rings) (2001)
- The Two Towers of The Lord of the Rings (2002)
- The Return of the King (The Lord of the Rings) (2003)
And this is why: First and foremost, The Lord of the Rings films include certain spoilers, and seeing them first will take away some of the intensity from The Hobbit films. Watching the Lord of the Rings films first eliminates some major stakes from The Hobbit films.
Second, although The Hobbit films are enjoyable, they are not as excellent as The Lord of the Rings films. So we were a little disappointed since we had high hopes after watching the Lord of the Rings films. If you watch them in this manner, you will be rewarded more and more as time passes.
But, it must be noted, even this kind of viewing may have an impact on The Lord of the Rings films in certain ways.
Some sequences in The Hobbit destroy sections of the Lord of the Rings trilogy due to Peter Jackson’s modifications to the films that explicitly predict events in the LotR. Even so, it’s difficult for a first-time viewer to detect such things, and if you watch in sequence of release, there will be much more spoilers.
Still, there are some issues with this viewing sequence, and we are working our way to the optimum viewing order.
The Order in Which You Should Watch “The Lord of the Rings” and “The Hobbit” Films
This viewing sequence for The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit films addresses the most significant problem with chronological narrative order: numerous information that an audience is expected to know since The Hobbit was released after The Lord of the Rings.
As shown at the opening of Fellowship of the Ring, The Hobbit is recounted in flashback by elderly Bilbo, who is documenting his trip and making preparations for his 111th birthday.
Almost everything in that opening, including the narrative about the Necromancer and how it represents the return of Sauron, would be lost on someone unfamiliar with the original Lord of the Rings trilogy.
Furthermore, the cause for Gollum’s ring’s evil nature is never explicitly mentioned in the films, although it is believed that the viewer is aware.
So, here’s how to watch The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit movies in the ideal order:
- The Fellowship of the Ring (The Lord of the Rings)
- An Unexpected Journey in The Hobbit
- Smaug’s Desolation (The Hobbit)
- The Battle of the Five Armies in The Hobbit
- The Two Towers of The Lord of the Rings
- The Return of the King (The Lord of the Rings)
The second problem that this sequence addresses is that if you watch the films in release order, you’ll wind up seeing the Battle of the Five Armies, which fixes the issue with narrative order. This is a poor picture to finish on (in contrast to The Lord of the Rings), and it doesn’t tie up the broader narrative of the Rings of Power, which you saw three films ago in a far more appropriate conclusion to the epic as a whole.
Furthermore, the conclusion of Return of the King also concludes Bilbo’s tale, so you witness the conclusion of his story before ever understanding the entire length.
How will The Lord of the Rings TV program on Amazon fit into the timeline?
The official description for Amazon’s Lord of the Rings TV program has been released, giving fans a glimpse into their next journey in Middle-Earth. The narrative description was acquired by TheOneRing.Net and verified by IGN, and although it does not provide many new information, it does name some of the locations that will be included in the program, such as the Misty Mountains, Lindon, and Nmenor. The following is the complete content:
The heroic tales of Middle-legendary earth’s Second Age are brought to life for the first time on film in Amazon Studios’ upcoming series. This epic drama is set thousands of years before the events of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, and will transport viewers to a time when great powers were forged, kingdoms rose to glory and fell to ruin, unlikely heroes were put to the test, hope hung by the thinnest of threads, and the greatest villain to ever flow from Tolkien’s pen threatened to cover the entire world in darkness.
The series begins in a period of relative calm and follows an ensemble cast of people, both old and new, as they face the long-feared return of evil to Middle-earth. These countries and characters will carve out legacies that will live on long after they are gone, from the darkest depths of the Misty Mountains to the beautiful woods of the elf-capital of Lindon, to the stunning island kingdom of Nmenor, to the furthest corners of the globe.
TheOneRing.Net
As we can see from the description, Amazon’s The Lord of the Rings TV program will take place before both The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings films.
We think that towards the conclusion, it will merge with the beginning of The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, allowing us to continue our ideal The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings viewing sequence.
We saw Sauron destroyed by Isildur in the beginning of The Fellowship of the Ring, and we know that Sauron will be the primary villain in the Amazon TV program, so this might be his end as well. I also hope we won’t be seeing anything like that for a long time (at least five seasons plus spin-offs).
In sequence, watch The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings films —
This Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit watch list is mostly for first-time viewers or those who have seen the films before but wish to rewatch them. If you’re not sure where to look, we’ve included a link to Amazon for all six Middle-earth extended edition films.
You may watch them in any order you choose, including release order, chronologically, or in our, BEST, order. You won’t go wrong with any of them, but you’ll probably enjoy them the best if you watch them in the order we recommend for The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings.
If you’re unsure about the best order to read The Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit, and other Middle-Earth novels, have a look at our guide.
With the Lord of the Rings movies and the Hobbit movies all out at the same time, it seems like a good time to watch them all back-to-back. Technically, you could watch them in the order they were released. But for this exercise, we will watch them chronologically and release order.. Read more about how to watch lord of the rings and let us know what you think.
Frequently Asked Questions
What comes first the Hobbit or Lord of the Rings?
The Hobbit is a book written by J.R.R Tolkien, and the Lord of the Rings is a series of books written by J.R.R Tolkien and others in his world.
Should I watch the Hobbit movies before Lord of the Rings?
You can watch the Hobbit movies before or after Lord of the Rings. It is up to you.
What are the rings chronological order?
The rings are in chronological order from the outside of the Beat Saber world to the inside.
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