Game of Thrones may have delivered its fair share of epic battles, but all of them pale in comparison to The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers' 40-minute Battle for Helm's Deep. However, making that lengthy sequence a reality was even more challenging than you might expect.
Talking to The Telegraph (via SFFGazette.com), filmmaker Peter Jackson reflected on attempting to create that massive sequence, all while dealing with New Line Cinema executive Barrie Osbourne. The studio was keeping a close eye on Jackson after the trilogy's budget began to spiral out of control, and the Battle for Helm's Deep...well, it was pretty freaking expensive.
So, how did the director keep cameras rolling with pressure mounting from New Line? He chose to ignore them.
"It was a period of time when New Line were at their most angry with us in terms of the budget," Jackson recalls. "I am on the parapet, probably with Viggo [Mortensen, aka Aragorn], and I see Barrie. It took him about 30 minutes to huff and puff his way to get on the top, and so I kept on shooting."
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"Barrie arrives and says, 'I have the studio, I’ve got to connect you with Michael Lynne of New Line.' I ask why. He says, 'Oh, he’s going to threaten to sue you and sell the house from under you to cover the cost overruns.'"
"Barrie was just the messenger, but it was one of the only points where I really snapped," the filmmaker continues. "I said, 'Just tell Michael Lynne that I’m shooting this f***ing film and I’m doing the best job I can, and I’m not going to interrupt my day with a phone call like that.'"
Ultimately, things worked out for Jackson and The Lord of the Rings trilogy, with massive critical, commercial, and awards success following each of the movies. It's interesting that this scene was the one that nearly broke him and the budget, though not surprising given how complex and lengthy the whole thing was.
What was your favourite moment in Jackson's trilogy? Let us know in the comments section.