benedict cumberbatch

Join us here at TheOneRing.net in wishing a very happy birthday to everyone’s favorite dragon/dark lord, Benedict Cumberbatch. Okay, he’s also our favorite detective, soldier, spy, crypotgrapher, mad scientist and monster. One thing is for certain, his distinctive voice and vocal skills added depth to both his roles as Smaug the dragon and The Necromance in The Hobbit movies, and were a delight to listen and tremble to. Many happy returns, oh Benedict, the Tremendous!

Staffer Justin spots the Hobbit connections in yesterday’s Golden Globes awards ceremony:

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies was not nominated in any categories at the 2015 Golden Globes, but it was still very present at the ceremony. From the outset of the first award, Benedict Cumberbatch raised his hand to present on stage with Jennifer Aniston. Smaug the prankster was just getting warmed up.

A few minutes later during a photo-op gag featuring Meryl Streep and Margaret Cho, Benedict repeated his famous #Cumberbomb in what was probably one of the most DVR-rewind moments of the night. (Click the image for the animated GIF!)  BC at Golden globes

Eddie Redmayne took home best dramatic actor for The Theory of Elvenking errr Every Ring errr Everything, but few knew about his Hobbit connection! Mr Redmayne originally auditioned for Bilbo way back when, and the audition did not go very well. Watch the video below to see him telling Graham Norton about it.

radagastFans on Twitter also spotted BOFUR himself James Nesbitt in the audience!

Several awards including Screenplay and Comedy Actor went to BIRDMAN. We are talking about the same bird man right?

Martin Freeman and the team in FARGO won for Best Miniseries. That makes Martin one of the most gilded TV actors between Sherlock and Fargo.

Even without any nods to The Hobbit, the fact that Middle-earth has touched the careers of so many wonderful actors makes for a fun awards watching experience. Awards season is just getting started – will you help us bring it to an eagle-soaring completion at #OneLastParty?

One Last Party fundraiser!

one last party logo Our One Last Party fundraiser on Indiegogo is 80% funded and we’re pretty stoked!

If you’d like to join us as a Party of Special Magnificence in Hollywood in February — a toast to all SIX Middle-earth movies, then now is the time to throw in your support! Even if you can’t make it to Hollywood (or if you’ve already contributed), you can help out by retweeting or sharing our fundraiser across social media to get the word out.

Visit our campaign page to see how you can help — so we can all celebrate Peter Jackson’s Middle-earth movies together!

one last party botfa poster  We’re into the final week of The One Last Party Indiegogo campaign, and only 20% away from our goal! With a last push in these closing days we can get there – and hold a celebration of this journey of fandom we’ve been on together!

We’ve been eager, from the start, to provide ways for fans to be involved with this celebration, even if you can’t make it to Los Angeles. The campaign includes signed collectibles and stunning art work available as perks; an opportunity to get access to a live stream of the party; and a special ‘Thank You’ which we will send to Peter Jackson, with the names of all who pledge.  There are also ‘Supporter of Special Magnificence’ tshirts available, which feature the words, ’17 years is far too short a time to party among such excellent and admirable fans’.

The One Last Party is about the Fellowship of Fandom, and we hope that everyone who enjoys TheOneRing.net will feel able to be a part of it in some way. Which leads us to the awesome GIVEAWAY we have to announce!

Thanks to one very generous supporter, who is keen to see the campaign reach its goal, we have got our hands on a Battle of the Five Armies poster, signed at San Diego ComicCon by:

one last party botfa poster2Dwalin – Graham McTavish
Gollum – Andy Serkis
Tauriel – Evangeline Lilly
Thranduil – Lee Pace
Legolas – Orlando Bloom
Bard – Luke Evans
Smaug – Benedict Cumberbatch
Frodo – Elijah Wood
Galadriel – Cate Blanchett

This poster (measuring 13′ by 20′), together with the holographic wristband that was needed to get it at SDCC, will be given away to one lucky supporter, chosen at random from all the pledges of $10 and above that we receive THIS WEEK (Monday 12th to Sunday 18th January).

one last party botfa poster3The poster will only be given away IF we reach our goal! If we get to $180k by (or before!) the deadline on Sunday 18th, one name will be chosen at random to receive this amazing poster and wristband.  Each new pledge of $10 or higher during this final week will be a separate entry into the draw; the more times you pledge, the more chances you have to win!

(If you don’t want to run the risk of not winning, remember, you could pledge for the ‘Gimli, Son of Gloin’ perk and get a larger poster signed by 12 cast members!)

Help us reach our goal, be part of the celebration, and this fabulous signed poster could be on its way to you!

Huge thanks to the generous supporter who has donated this amazing item; and to all who have supported The One Last Party so far. Together we can make this celebration a reality!  Click here to visit the campaign: theonelastparty.com

 

(Please note, the poster is displayed on a frame in the photographs; the frame is not included in the giveaway! Poster will be shipped carefully packaged in a tube.)

One Last Party fundraiser!

one last party logo Our One Last Party fundraiser on Indiegogo is almost 80% funded and we’re pretty stoked!

If you’d like to join us as a Party of Special Magnificence in Hollywood in February — a toast to all SIX Middle-earth movies, then now is the time to throw in your support! Even if you can’t make it to Hollywood (or if you’ve already contributed), you can help out by retweeting or sharing our fundraiser across social media to get the word out.

Visit our campaign page to see how you can help — so we can all celebrate Peter Jackson’s Middle-earth movies together!

smaug colbertIn a rare move, Stephen Colbert was granted an interview (er…audience) with none other than Smaug himself on his American television show “The Colbert Report”. As many of you know, Stephen is a great Tolkien fan, and Smaug seemingly left his last press interview of the day just for him.

The two share some of their common political interests, and Smaug discusses some of the difficulties of working on the Peter Jackson’s Hobbit trilogy – as well as his distaste for several “pretender” Hollywood dragons. Continue reading “Stephen Colbert interviews Smaug the Magnificent”

As you know, The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies had its world premiere in London last week. Members of the cast and crew gathered in the city, with some of them seeing the film the night before the premiere, but many heading down the red carpet to experience the completed movie for the first time.

TORn Senior Staffer greendragon was there to catch up with the folks in Leicester Square that night. Amongst those who stopped by to chat with her were stars Martin Freeman, Richard Armitage, Orlando Bloom, Ian McKellen and others, as well as director Peter Jackson and screen writer Philippa Boyens. In addition to hearing what they thought of the film, and how it felt to be at the end of their (long expected? unexpected?) journey, greendragon made sure to invite them all to celebrate at The One Last Party in Los Angeles next February – which, of course, YOU can attend too. (Click here for more information.)

Enjoy this footage from that star-studded night in London:

 

 

[Special thanks to cameraman and editor Matthew Rodriguez; should you be looking for a film maker in London, you can reach him at rodriguezrmatthew at gmail.com]

[Buy tickets to The One Last Party here]

star-wars-the-force-awakens-millennium-falcon-imaxBy now you have no doubt seen the new Star Wars teaser for ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’, and if not, it’s time to shake off that Turkey Coma from Thanksgiving yesterday and get thee to a theater, or you can find it here: ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ The biggest question that has set off the inter webs since it’s debut is ‘Who is narrating this?’ It sounds like Smaug, er, that is, it sounds like Benedict Cumberbatch. He has not been officially attached to the film, but did visit the set and was extremely coy on a recent installment of the Graham Norton show about any possible involvement, which can be seen here: BC on Graham Norton. In a recent article today, Collider.com says the narration comes from confirmed cast member Andy Serkis, quoted below:

Contrary to rumors that began spreading right after the trailer hit, the actor providing the ominous voiceover narration is not Benedict Cumberbatch. It is in fact confirmed cast member Andy Serkis. With regards to his character’s allegiance, his words are rather ambiguous. It’s easy to imagine that voice belonging to either an old shaman-type Jedi or an age-old Sith. Which is it? We likely won’t find out for a very long time.
Read more at Collider.com’s Burning Questions answered

 

star-wars-the-force-awakens-lightsaberOf course, the narration could be anyone really, well, anyone with a nice, deep accented voice that could be equal parts menacing or world weary. As soon as we have a confirmation, we’ll pass it along. But in the mean time, what are your impressions of the new trailer? BTW, that new Sith Lightsaber is very cool with the feel of an old school broadsword.

Update: Hitfix has confirmed Collider’s story that the narration was performed by cast member Andy Serkis, but was unable to give any further details on what role he plays beyond being a pivotal character and not having much screen time. You can find more info at Hitfix story confirms Andy’s narration.