In 2001, director Peter Jackson brought Middle-earth to the big screen. Now, we get to return to the world of The Lord of the Rings (LOTR), as the extended version of The Fellowship of the Ring hits Philippine cinemas just in time for its 25th anniversary.
As confirmed by the SM Cinema Marketing team, the extended version runs 30 minutes longer than the film’s original theatrical cut. This means that it clocks in at roughly 3 hours and 28 minutes, compared to the original’s 2 hours and 58 minutes.
The LOTR extended editions were first released on home video a year after their theatrical cuts were released in cinemas. “The theatrical versions are the definitive versions,” Jackson told IGN in 2019. “I regard the extended cuts as being a novelty for the fans that really want to see the extra material.”
The Fellowship of the Ring will be screened at 40 SM Cinema locations nationwide for one weekend only, from January 23 to 25. These locations include SM Megamall, SM MOA, SM North EDSA, SM Aura, SM City Bacolod, SM CDO Downtown, SM City Cebu, SM City Tarlac, and more.
While the extended versions of the other two films in the trilogy, The Two Towers and The Return of the King, are also set to hit theaters in the United States, we’ll just have to wait and see if Philippine cinemas will do the same.
