Lord of the Rings Gold & Silver Gold Coin Dragons Quest Myth Medal J R R Tolkien

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Seller: lasvegasormonaco ✉️ (3,239) 99.7%, Location: Manchester, Take a look at my other items, GB, Ships to: WORLDWIDE, Item: 266732658568 Lord of the Rings Gold & Silver Gold Coin Dragons Quest Myth Medal J R R Tolkien.  
Lord of the Rings Bi Metal Coin Silver and Gold Plated Coin to Commemorate the Film Trilogy which was completed in the same year The Famous Gold Ring is behind an image of Modor Fortress it also has a mountain  and the words "Lord of the Rings" The back has Gandolf standing in front of the Balrog with the famous quote from the film "You shall not pass!" Comes in air-tight acrylic coin holder  The coin is 40mm in diameter, weighs about  1 oz In Excellent Condition Starting at a Penny...With No Reserve..If your the only bidder you win it for 1p....Grab a Bargain!!!! Would make an Excellent Gift or Collectable Keepsake to a a great trilogy Click Here to Check out my Fantasy Coins Bid with Confidence - Check My 100% Positive Feedback from over 900 Satisfied Customers I have over 10 years of Ebay Selling Experience - So Why Not Treat Yourself? I have got married recently and need to raise funds to meet the costs also we are planning to move into a house together  I always combined postage on multiple items Instant Feedback Automatically Left Immediately after Receiving Payment All Items Sent out within 24 hours of Receiving Payment.

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The Lord of the Rings (film series) The Lord of the Rings Directed by Peter Jackson Screenplay by Fran Walsh Philippa Boyens Peter Jackson Stephen SinclairTT Based on The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien Produced by Barrie M. Osborne Peter Jackson Fran Walsh Tim SandersFOTR Starring Elijah Wood Ian McKellen Liv Tyler Viggo Mortensen Sean Astin Cate Blanchett John Rhys-Davies Christopher Lee Billy Boyd Dominic Monaghan Orlando Bloom Hugo Weaving Andy Serkis Sean Bean Cinematography Andrew Lesnie Edited by John GilbertFOTR Michael HortonTT Jamie SelkirkROTK Music by Howard Shore Production companies New Line Cinema WingNut Films Distributed by New Line Cinema Release date 2001–2003 Running time Total (3 films): 558 minutes (theatrical) 686 minutes (extended) Countries New Zealand United States Language English Budget Total (3 films): $281 million Box office Total (3 films): $2.991 billion We want everyone to have equal access to knowledge, forever.  Hi. This Wednesday, please pitch in £2 or whatever you like to make access to free knowledge possible. Wikipedia and the twelve other Wikimedia projects are special, like a public park or library where we can all go to learn. We are financially secure because each year, enough people choose to donate. If you'd like to help, please donate £2 or whatever seems right. Thank you. — The Wikimedia Foundation The Lord of the Rings is a series of three epic fantasy adventure films directed by Peter Jackson, based on the novel The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien. The films are subtitled The Fellowship of the Ring (2001), The Two Towers (2002), and The Return of the King (2003). Produced and distributed by New Line Cinema with the co-production of WingNut Films, the series is an international venture between New Zealand and the United States. The films feature an ensemble cast including Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Liv Tyler, Viggo Mortensen, Sean Astin, Cate Blanchett, John Rhys-Davies, Christopher Lee, Billy Boyd, Dominic Monaghan, Orlando Bloom, Hugo Weaving, Andy Serkis and Sean Bean. Set in the fictional world of Middle-earth, the films follow the hobbit Frodo Baggins as he and the Fellowship embark on a quest to destroy the One Ring, to ensure the destruction of its maker, the Dark Lord Sauron. The Fellowship eventually splits up and Frodo continues the quest with his loyal companion Sam and the treacherous Gollum. Meanwhile, Aragorn, heir in exile to the throne of Gondor, along with Legolas, Gimli, Boromir, Merry, Pippin and the wizard Gandalf, unite to save the Free Peoples of Middle-earth from the forces of Sauron and rally them in the War of the Ring to aid Frodo by distracting Sauron's attention. The three films were shot simultaneously in Jackson's native New Zealand from 11 October 1999 until 22 December 2000, with pick-up shots done from 2001 to 2003. It was one of the biggest and most ambitious film projects ever undertaken, with a budget of $281 million (equivalent to $457 million in 2021). The first film in the series premiered at the Odeon Leicester Square in London on 10 December 2001; the second film premiered at the Ziegfeld Theatre in New York City on 5 December 2002; the third film premiered at the Embassy Theatre in Wellington on 1 December 2003. An extended edition of each film was released on home video a year after its release in cinemas. The Lord of the Rings is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential film series ever made. It was a major financial success and is among the highest-grossing film series of all time with $2.991 billion in worldwide receipts. All three films received widespread acclaim from critics and audiences, who lauded the acting, direction, writing, production values, score, ambition, emotional depth, groundbreaking special effects and faithfulness to the source material. The series received numerous accolades, winning 17 Academy Awards out of 30 total nominations, including Best Picture for The Return of the King. In 2021, The Fellowship of the Ring was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".[1] Films The Fellowship of the Ring Main article: The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring In the Second Age of Middle-earth, the lords of Elves, Dwarves, and Men are given Rings of Power. Unbeknownst to them, the Dark Lord Sauron forges the One Ring in Mount Doom, instilling into it a great part of his power, to dominate the other Rings so he might conquer Middle-earth. A final alliance of Men and Elves battles Sauron's forces in Mordor. Isildur of Gondor severs Sauron's finger and the Ring with it, thereby vanquishing Sauron and returning him to spirit form. With Sauron's first defeat, the Third Age of Middle-earth begins. The Ring's influence corrupts Isildur, who takes it for himself and is later killed by Orcs. The Ring is lost in a river for 2,500 years until it is found by Gollum, who owns it for over four and a half centuries. The ring abandons Gollum and it is subsequently found by a hobbit named Bilbo Baggins, who is unaware of its history. Sixty years later, Bilbo celebrates his 111th birthday in the Shire, reuniting with his old friend, the wizard Gandalf the Grey. Bilbo departs the Shire for one last adventure, and he leaves his inheritance, including the Ring, to his nephew Frodo. Gandalf investigates the Ring, discovers its true nature, and learns that Gollum was captured and tortured by Sauron's Orcs, revealing two words during his interrogation: "Shire" and "Baggins." Gandalf returns and warns Frodo to leave the Shire. As Frodo departs with his friend, gardener Samwise Gamgee, Gandalf rides to Isengard to meet with the wizard Saruman, but discovers his alliance with Sauron, who has dispatched his nine undead Nazgûl servants to find Frodo. Frodo and Sam are joined by fellow hobbits Merry and Pippin, and they evade the Nazgûl before arriving in Bree, where they are meant to meet Gandalf. However, Gandalf never arrives, having been taken prisoner by Saruman. The hobbits are then aided by a Ranger named Strider, who promises to escort them to Rivendell; however, they are ambushed by the Nazgûl on Weathertop, and their leader, the Witch-King, stabs Frodo with a Morgul blade. Arwen, an Elf and Strider's beloved, locates Strider and rescues Frodo, summoning flood-waters that sweep the Nazgûl away. She takes him to Rivendell, where he is healed by the Elves. Frodo meets with Gandalf, who escaped Isengard on a Great Eagle. That night, Strider reunites with Arwen, and they affirm their love for each other. Facing the threat of both Sauron and Saruman, Arwen's father, Lord Elrond, decides against keeping the Ring in Rivendell. He holds a council of Elves, Men, and Dwarves, also attended by Frodo and Gandalf, that decides the Ring must be destroyed in the fires of Mount Doom. Frodo volunteers to take the Ring, accompanied by Gandalf, Sam, Merry, Pippin, Elf Legolas, Dwarf Gimli, Boromir of Gondor, and Strider—who is actually Aragorn, Isildur's heir and the rightful King of Gondor. Bilbo, now living in Rivendell, gives Frodo his sword Sting, and a chainmail shirt made of mithril. The Fellowship of the Ring makes for the Gap of Rohan, but discover it is being watched by Saruman's spies. They instead set off over the mountain pass of Caradhras, but Saruman summons a storm that forces them to travel through the Mines of Moria. After finding the Dwarves of Moria dead, the Fellowship is attacked by Orcs and a cave troll. They hold them off but are confronted by Durin's Bane: a Balrog residing within the mines. While the others escape, Gandalf fends off the Balrog and casts it into a vast chasm, but the Balrog drags Gandalf down into the darkness with him. The devastated Fellowship reaches Lothlórien, ruled by the Elf-queen Galadriel, who privately informs Frodo that only he can complete the quest and that one of his friends in the Fellowship will try to take the Ring. Meanwhile, Saruman creates an army of Uruk-hai in Isengard to find and kill the Fellowship. The Fellowship travels by river to Parth Galen. Frodo wanders off and is confronted by Boromir, who tries to take the Ring as Lady Galadriel had predicted. Uruk-hai scouts then ambush the Fellowship; their leader, Lurtz, mortally wounds Boromir as he fails to stop them from taking Merry and Pippin as prisoners. Aragorn arrives and kills Lurtz before comforting Boromir as he dies, promising to help the people of Gondor in the coming conflict. Fearing the Ring will corrupt his friends, Frodo decides to travel to Mordor alone, but allows Sam to come along, recalling his promise to Gandalf to look after him. As Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli set out to rescue Merry and Pippin, Frodo and Sam make their way down the mountain pass of Emyn Muil, journeying on to Mordor. The Two Towers Main article: The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers Awakening from a dream of Gandalf fighting the Balrog in Moria, Frodo Baggins finds himself, along with Samwise Gamgee, lost in the Emyn Muil near Mordor. They discover that they are being tracked by Gollum, a former bearer of the One Ring. Capturing Gollum, Frodo takes pity and allows him to guide them, reminding Sam that they will need Gollum's help to infiltrate Mordor. Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli pursue a band of Uruk-hai to save their companions Merry and Pippin, entering the kingdom of Rohan. The Uruk-hai are ambushed by a group of Rohirrim, allowing Merry and Pippin to escape into Fangorn Forest. Meeting Aragorn's group, the Rohirrim's leader Éomer explains that he and his men have been exiled by Rohan's king, Théoden, who is under the control of Saruman and his servant Gríma Wormtongue. Éomer believes Merry and Pippin were killed during the raid but leaves the group two horses. In Fangorn, Aragorn's group encounters Gandalf, who after his fight against the Balrog was resurrected as Gandalf the White to help save Middle-earth. Gandalf leads the trio to Rohan's capital, Edoras, where Gandalf frees Théoden from Saruman's control. Aragorn stops Théoden from executing Wormtongue, who flees. Learning of Saruman's plans to destroy Rohan with his Uruk-hai army, Théoden evacuates his citizens to the fortress of The Hornburg at Helm's Deep. Gandalf departs to find Éomer and his followers, hoping they will fight for their restored king. Aragorn befriends Théoden's niece, Éowyn, who becomes infatuated with him. When the refugees travelling to Helm's Deep are attacked by Saruman's Warg-riding Orcs, Aragorn falls from a cliff and is presumed dead. He is found by Théodred's horse Brego and rides to Helm's Deep, witnessing Saruman's army marching to the fortress. In Rivendell, Arwen is told by her father Elrond that Aragorn will not return. He reminds her that if she remains in Middle-earth, she will outlive Aragorn by thousands of years, and she reluctantly departs for Valinor. Elrond is contacted by Galadriel of Lothlórien, who convinces him that the Elves should honour their alliance to men, and they dispatch an army of Elves to Helm's Deep. In Fangorn, Merry and Pippin meet Treebeard, an Ent. Convincing Treebeard that they are allies, they are brought to an Ent Council, where the Ents decide not to take part in the coming war. Pippin asks Treebeard to take them in the direction of Isengard, where they witness the deforestation caused by Saruman's war effort. Enraged, Treebeard and the Ents storm Isengard, trapping Saruman in his tower. Aragorn arrives at Helm's Deep, bringing word that Saruman's army is close and Théoden must prepare for battle despite being vastly outnumbered. The army of Elves from Lothlórien arrives, as does Saruman's army, and a battle ensues. The Uruk-hai breach the outer wall with explosives and during the ensuing charge kill the Elves' commander, Haldir. The defenders retreat into the keep, where Aragorn convinces Théoden to meet the Uruk-hai in one last charge. At dawn, as the defenders are overwhelmed, Gandalf and Éomer arrive with the Rohirrim, turning the tide of the battle. The surviving Uruk-hai flee into Fangorn Forest and are killed by the trees. Gandalf warns that Sauron will retaliate. Gollum leads Frodo and Sam through the Dead Marshes to the Black Gate, but recommends they enter Mordor by another route. Frodo and Sam are captured by Rangers of Ithilien led by Faramir, younger brother of the late Boromir. Frodo helps Faramir catch Gollum to save him from being killed by the Rangers. Learning of the One Ring, Faramir takes his captives to Gondor to bring the ring to his father Denethor. Passing through the besieged city of Osgiliath, Frodo tries to explain to Faramir the true nature of the ring, and Sam explains that Boromir was driven mad by its power. A Nazgûl nearly captures Frodo, who falls under the ring's power, but Sam saves him and reminds him that they are fighting for the good still left in Middle-earth. Impressed by Frodo's resolve, Faramir releases them. Feeling betrayed, Gollum decides he will reclaim the Ring by leading Frodo to "Her" upon arriving at Cirith Ungol. The Return of the King Main article: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King The hobbit, Sméagol, is fishing with his cousin Déagol, who discovers the One Ring in the river. Sméagol's mind is ensnared by the Ring, and he kills his cousin for it. Increasingly corrupted physically and mentally, he retreats into the Misty Mountains and becomes known as Gollum. Centuries later, during the War of the Ring, Gandalf leads Aragorn, Legolas, Gimli, and King Théoden of Rohan to Isengard, where they reunite with Merry and Pippin. Gandalf retrieves Saruman's palantír, and the group returns to Edoras to celebrate their victory at Helm's Deep.[a] Pippin looks into the palantír, seeing Sauron and a burning tree. Gandalf deduces that the enemy plans to attack Gondor's capital Minas Tirith; he rides there to warn Gondor's steward Denethor. Pippin, who accompanies him, swears fealty to Denethor, whose now-dead heir Boromir had saved his life;[b] on Gandalf's instruction, he triggers the lighting of the beacons, which call for help from Rohan. Frodo, who carries the Ring, and Sam continue their journey towards Mordor, unaware that Gollum, now their guide, plans to betray them and take the Ring for himself. The trio witness the Witch-king of Angmar, lord of the nine Nazgûl, setting off towards Gondor with his army of Orcs. Gollum conspires to frame Sam for eating food supplies and desiring the Ring; influenced by the growing power of the Ring, Frodo is taken in by the deception, and orders Sam to go home. Gollum then tricks Frodo into venturing into the lair of the giant spider Shelob. Frodo narrowly escapes and confronts Gollum, who falls down a chasm after a scuffle. Shelob discovers, paralyzes, and binds Frodo, but is wounded and driven away by a returning Sam, who, mourning Frodo's apparent death, takes the Ring. Sam realizes his mistake when a group of Orcs takes Frodo captive, but manages to rescue Frodo as the Orcs fight among themselves. Now inside Mordor, the hobbits continue towards Mount Doom, their destination. As King Théoden gathers his army, Elrond tells Aragorn that Arwen is dying, having refused to leave Middle-earth. Elrond gives Aragorn Andúril, reforged from the shards of King Elendil's sword Narsil, and urges him to commit to claiming Gondor's throne, to which he is heir. Joined by Legolas and Gimli, Aragorn travels the Paths of the Dead, and pledges to release the ghosts there from their curse should they come to Gondor's aid. Meanwhile, Faramir, who was earlier overwhelmed and driven back to Minas Tirith by the Witch-king, is gravely wounded in a suicide charge; believing his son to be dead, Denethor falls into madness. Gandalf marshals the defenders, but the huge Orc army breaks into the city. Denethor attempts to burn himself and Faramir on a pyre, but Pippin alerts Gandalf and they rescue Faramir. Denethor, set ablaze and in agony, jumps to his death. Théoden arrives and leads his army against the Orcs. Despite initial success against Orcs in the ensuing battle, they are decimated by the Oliphaunt-riding Haradrim and the Witch-king mortally wounds Théoden; however, his niece Éowyn slays the Witch-king with Merry's help. Théoden dies in his niece's arms. Aragorn then arrives with his Army of the Dead, who overcome Sauron's forces and win the battle. Their oath fulfilled, the Dead are released from their curse. Aragorn decides to march on Mordor to distract Sauron from Frodo, now extremely weak, and Sam; all of Sauron's remaining forces march to meet Aragorn's diversion, allowing the hobbits to reach Mount Doom. Gollum, who survived his earlier fall, attacks them, but Frodo still manages to enter the mountain. There, he succumbs to the Ring's power, putting it on his finger, but Gollum manages to bite off his finger and reclaim it. They struggle together and both fall off the ledge. Frodo clings to it with one hand as remorse and guilt flood his mind in the wake of his succumbing to the ring, when Sam's unwavering faith and belief in his friend convinces him to make one final reach for Sam's hand, saving Frodo's life. Gollum falls and dies; the Ring, which fell with him, disintegrates in the lava, causing Barad-dûr to crumble as The Eye of Sauron explodes, destroying the dark lord once and for all. Aragorn's army emerges victorious as its enemies and the lands of Mordor collapse into the earth, and Mount Doom erupts, with Frodo and Sam narrowly escaping the lava. Gandalf rescues the hobbits with the help of eagles, and the surviving Fellowship is happily reunited in Minas Tirith. Aragorn is crowned King of Gondor and marries Arwen. The Hobbits return home to the Shire, where Sam marries Rosie Cotton. A few years later, Frodo who is still traumatised, departs Middle-earth for the Undying Lands with his uncle Bilbo, Gandalf, and the Elves. He leaves Sam the Red Book of Westmarch, which details their adventures. Sam returns to the Shire, where he embraces Rosie and their children. Cast and crew The trilogy is notable for featuring an extensive cast including (alphabetically from left to right): Sean Astin, Sean Bean, Cate Blanchett, Orlando Bloom, Billy Boyd, Christopher Lee, Viggo Mortensen, Ian McKellen, Dominic Monaghan, John Rhys-Davies, Andy Serkis, Liv Tyler, Karl Urban, Hugo Weaving, and Elijah Wood. Casting Jackson began abstract discussions on casting during the development of the scripts with Miramax.[2] Jackson, Walsh and Boyens compiled a casting wishlist, which included Cate Blanchett for Galadriel and Ian Holm for Bilbo.[3] Wondering whether Patrick Stewart would be right for the part of Gandalf, Philippa Boyens drew a tape of him performing opposite Ian McKellen, only to suggest the latter to Jackson.[4] McKellen became Jackson's first choice for Gandalf.[5] Christopher Lee sent Jackson a photograph of him in a wizard's costume, wanting to play Gandalf,[6] but Jackson decided Lee would instead be better as Saruman. Miramax wanted a recognisable name for Gandalf, and suggested Max von Sydow or Paul Scofield and, wanting an American star, even mentioned Morgan Freeman.[2][7] When New Line took over, they suggested Christopher Plummer or Sean Connery for the part (both declined),[8] and put a veto against Richard Harris when his name came up[citation needed]. When von Sydow inquired for the part later, his agent told him they were looking for an English actor.[9] While casting, Jackson looked for backup options for the various parts, including Lucy Lawless and Nicole Kidman for Galadriel; Anthony Hopkins or Sylvester McCoy (eventually cast as Radagast in The Hobbit trilogy) for Bilbo; Paul Scofield, Jeremy Irons, Malcolm McDowell or Tim Curry for Saruman.[10] For Gandalf, they looked into Tom Baker, Tom Wilkinson, Sam Neill, Bernard Hill (who was instead cast as Théoden)[4] and Peter O'Toole,[11] and into several older actors who auditioned for other parts, such as Patrick McGoohan and Anthony Hopkins. Miramax and Jackson discussed Sir Daniel Day-Lewis for Aragorn, starting "fanciful internet speculation"[8] that Day-Lewis was approached for the part numerous times, although Jackson eventually inquired about him. Jackson cast Stuart Townsend, whom the studio deemed too young. After shooting began, Jackson agreed and decided to recast the role. They approached Viggo Mortensen, but also spoke to Russell Crowe (who auditioned for Boromir previously), as a backup choice.[12] Patrick McGoohan, their first choice for Denethor, proved "quite grumpy"[13] when they met, and they instead looked into Donald Sutherland and John Rhys-Davies, and ultimately cast John Noble. Davies was recast as Gimli, instead of Billy Connolly (later cast as Dáin in The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies), Robert Trebor and Timothy Spall. In conversations with Miramax, Liam Neeson's name came up[2] for Boromir, but he declined. New Line suggested Nicolas Cage, but the filmmakers declined[8] and cast Sean Bean. Cast See also: Middle-earth in film § Cast The following are the cast members who voiced or portrayed characters appearing in the extended version of the films.[14][15][16] Character The Fellowship of the Ring The Two Towers The Return of the King The Fellowship Frodo Baggins Elijah Wood Aragorn Viggo Mortensen Boromir Sean Bean Meriadoc "Merry" Brandybuck Dominic Monaghan Samwise Gamgee Sean Astin Gandalf Ian McKellen Gimli John Rhys-Davies Legolas Orlando Bloom Peregrin "Pippin" Took Billy Boyd The Shire and Bree Bilbo Baggins Ian Holm Ian Holm Mrs. Bracegirdle Lori Dungey Barliman Butterbur David Weatherley Rosie Cotton Sarah McLeod Sarah McLeod Gaffer Gamgee Norman Forsey Norman Forsey Elanor Gamgee Alexandra Astin Bree Gate-Keeper Martyn Sanderson Farmer Maggot Cameron Rhodes Old Noakes Bill Johnson Everard Proudfoot Noel Appleby Noel Appleby Mrs. Proudfoot Megan Edwards Otho Sackville Peter Corrigan Lobelia Sackville-Baggins Elizabeth Moody Ted Sandyman Brian Sergent Rivendell and Lothlórien Arwen Liv Tyler Celeborn Marton Csokas Marton Csokas Elrond Hugo Weaving Figwit Bret McKenzie Bret McKenzie Galadriel Cate Blanchett Haldir Craig Parker Rúmil Jørn Benzon Isengard and Mordor Gollum / Sméagol Andy Serkis Gorbag Stephen Ure Gothmog Lawrence Makoare Craig Parker (voice) Gríma Wormtongue Brad Dourif Grishnákh Stephen Ure Lurtz Lawrence Makoare Mauhúr Robbie Magasiva Andy Serkis (voice) Mouth of Sauron Bruce Spence The One Ring Alan Howard (voice) Alan Howard (voice) Saruman Christopher Lee Sauron Sala Baker Alan Howard (voice) Sala Baker Alan Howard (voice) Shagrat Peter Tait Sharku Jed Brophy Snaga Jed Brophy Andy Serkis (voice) Uglúk Nathaniel Lees Witch-king of Angmar Brent McIntyre Andy Serkis (voice) Lawrence Makoare Rohan and Gondor Damrod Alistair Browning Denethor John Noble Éomer Karl Urban Éothain Sam Comery Éowyn Miranda Otto Faramir David Wenham Freda Olivia Tennet Gamling Bruce Hopkins Grimbold Bruce Phillips Háma John Leigh Haleth Calum Gittins Irolas Ian Hughes King of the Dead Paul Norell Madril John Bach Morwen Robyn Malcolm Théoden Bernard Hill Théodred Paris Howe Strewe Treebeard John Rhys-Davies (voice) Historical figures Déagol Thomas Robins (hand only) Thomas Robins Elendil Peter McKenzie Gil-galad Mark Ferguson Isildur Harry Sinclair Harry Sinclair Crew Crew The Fellowship of the Ring The Two Towers The Return of the King Director Peter Jackson Producers Barrie M. Osborne, Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh, and Tim SandersFOTR Screenwriters Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Peter Jackson, and Stephen SinclairTT Composer Howard Shore Cinematographer Andrew Lesnie Editors John GilbertFOTR Michael HortonTT Jamie SelkirkROTK Production designers Dan Hennah and Grant Major Conceptual designers Alan Lee and John Howe Costume designers Ngila Dickson and Richard Taylor Visual effects supervisor Jim Rygiel Production companies New Line Cinema and WingNut Films Distributing company New Line Cinema  FOTR indicates he only worked on The Fellowship of the Ring.  TT indicates he only worked on The Two Towers.  ROTK indicates he is only credited as editor on The Return of the King. Development Main article: Middle-earth in film Peter Jackson at the premiere of The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King on 1 December 2003 at the Embassy Theatre in Wellington. Previous attempts Previous attempts to film Tolkien's works were made by William Snyder, Peter Shaffer and John Boorman. These attempts resulted in a couple of unproduced scripts, concept art and an animated short. Other filmmakers and producers to have had an interest in adapting Tolkien are said to include Walt Disney, Al Brodax, Forrest Ackerman, Denis O'Dell (who considered Richard Lester to direct, but instead approached David Lean, Stanley Kubrick and Michelangelo Antonioni) and George Lucas. The rights to adapt Tolkien's works passed through the hands of several studios, having been briefly leased to Rembrandt Films before being sold perpetually to United Artists. In 1976, UA passed the rights to The Lord of the Rings (and a part of the rights to The Hobbit) to Fantasy Films.[17] In 1977, an animated adaptation of The Hobbit was produced as a TV special by Rankin and Bass, and in 1978 Ralph Bakshi made an animated feature of the first half of The Lord of the Rings. While profitable, the film did not make enough money to automatically warrant the sequel which would close the story, and an argument with producer Saul Zaentz led Bakshi to abandon the project. Rankin/Bass then followed in 1980 with an animated TV adaptation of The Return of the King. Several other Tolkienesque fantasy films were produced at the time, including Jim Henson and Frank Oz's The Dark Crystal and Lucas's Willow.[18] At the time of the release of Bakshi's film, a teenaged Peter Jackson had not read the book, but "heard the name",[19] and went to see the film: "I liked the early part—it had some quaint sequences in Hobbiton, a creepy encounter with the Black Rider on the road, and a few quite good battle scenes—but then, about half way through, the storytelling became very disjointed and disorientating and I really didn't understand what was going on. However, what it did do was to make me want to read the book—if only to find out what happened!"[20] Jackson bought a tie-in paperback edition. He later read The Hobbit and The Silmarillion, and listened to the 1981 BBC radio adaptation. Assuming someone would one day adapt it to a live-action film, Jackson read up on some previous attempts to bring the piece to the screen.[21] He had not watched the Rankin and Bass TV specials.[22][23] Pitch to Miramax In 1995, while completing post-production on The Frighteners, Jackson and Fran Walsh discussed making an original fantasy film, but could not think of a scenario that was not Tolkien-esque, and eventually decided to look up the film rights. They went to Harvey Weinstein from Miramax, who got the rights from Saul Zaentz. Jackson knew it would take multiple films to do Tolkien justice,[24][25] but initially pitched a single trilogy: one film based on The Hobbit and, if that would prove successful, two Lord of the Rings films shot back-to-back.[21] Jackson began rereading The Hobbit, looking at illustrations and commissioning concept art from the book, but the rights eventually proved unattainable, having been split between Zaentz and United Artists. Weinstein tried to buy the studio's share of the rights, but was unsuccessful.[citation needed] With The Hobbit postponed for a later prequel, Jackson proceeded with making two or more[25] Lord of the Rings films: "We pitched the idea of three films and Miramax didn't really want to take that risk, but we agreed on two."[24] He began writing the scripts with Walsh and Stephen Sinclair, storyboarding with Christian Rivers and discussing casting ideas with the Weinsteins. Meanwhile, Weta Digital began software development for the digital effects required,[24] and WETA Workshop were producing props and concept art. Sinclair later dropped out of the project, but Jackson felt that some of his contributions survived into the finished scripts, particularly the middle film, The Two Towers, for which he is credited.[citation needed] Move to New Line As the scripts took shape, it became clear that the budget required would exceed Miramax's capabilities. The Weinsteins suggested cutting the project to one film.[24] Jackson inquired whether it could be around four hours in duration, but Miramax insisted on two hours, suggesting major cuts to the story, which Jackson refused. Harvey Weinstein threatened to replace Jackson with screenwriter Hossein Amini and directors John Madden or Quentin Tarantino. Jackson believed this was an empty threat to get him to concede to making a one-film version himself.[26] Harvey Weinstein eventually relented to putting the project on a turnaround, but the onerous conditions were meant to prevent the project from being taken up by another studio.[26] Jackson got an audience with New Line CEO Robert Shaye, who accepted the project, but requested that it be expanded into a trilogy. New Line had many promising reasons that the trilogy would be successful which led them to sign on.[27] Final Cut rights were shared contractually between Jackson and Bob Shaye, but there was never any interference in Jackson's cut.[28] Initially, each film had a production budget of $60 million, however New Line accepted Jackson's request of an increased budget after a 26-minute preview of The Fellowship of the Ring was presented at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival.[29][30] Production Main article: Production of The Lord of the Rings film series Alan Lee, a Tolkien illustrator who assisted in the visual design, at Worldcon 2005 in Glasgow. Jackson began storyboarding and screenwriting the series with Christian Rivers, Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens in 1997 and assigned his crew to begin designing Middle-earth at the same time.[31] Jackson, Walsh and Boyens did not write each film to correspond exactly to its respective book, opting instead to write a three-part adaptation with some sequences missing, some sequences created from scratch, and some sequences moved from one area to another regardless of its placement in the books. To allow the story to be clearer for viewers, Jackson takes a more chronological approach to the story than Tolkien's complex interlacing of storylines. During shooting, the screenplays continued to evolve, in part due to contributions from cast members looking to further explore their characters.[32] Earlier versions of the script included additional characters like Fatty Bolger, Glorfindel, Elladan, Elrohir, Erkenbrand, Imrahil and Forlong.[33] At one point, Jackson even considered reintroducing Tom Bombadil in a cameo.[34] Gimli was going to swear throughout the films, and Arwen would join the Fellowship in Rohan and share a nude scene with Aragorn in the pools of the Glittering Caves.[35] Jackson hired long-time collaborator Richard Taylor to lead Weta Workshop on five major design elements: armour, weapons, prosthetic makeup, creatures and miniatures. At New Line's request, animation supervisor Jim Rygiel replaced Weta Digital's Mark Stetson. In November 1997, famed Tolkien illustrators Alan Lee and John Howe joined the project;[32] most of the imagery in the films is based on their various illustrations,[36] but Jackson also relied on the work of Ted Nasmith, who later had to turn down an offer to join Alan and John. Jackson wanted realistic designs in the style of historical epics rather than fantasy films, citing Braveheart as an inspiration:[37][38][39][40][41] "It might be clearer if I described it as an historical film. Something very different to Dark Crystal or Labyrinth. Imagine something like Braveheart, but with a little of the visual magic of Legend. [...] It should have the historical authority of Braveheart, rather than the meaningless fantasy mumbo-jumbo of Willow.[42] Production designer Grant Major was charged with the task of converting Lee and Howe's designs into architecture, creating models of the sets, while Dan Hennah worked as art director, scouting locations and organizing the building of sets. Ngila Dickson collaborated with Richard Taylor on producing costumes, while Peter King and Peter Owen designed makeup and hair. Most of these crew members (and others) returned to work on The Hobbit.[43] Jackson and cinematographer Andrew Lesnie considered shooting in large format like 65 mm film[42][44] and/or to master the films at 4K, but both were cost-prohibitive and couldn't be done on New Zealand soil.[45][44] They decided to shoot on fine-grain Super 35 mm film and subject the films to rigorous digital grading. The house of Bilbo and Frodo Baggins in the Shire, as filmed in New Zealand Principal photography for all three films was conducted concurrently in many locations within New Zealand's conservation areas and national parks. Filming took place between 11 October 1999 and 22 December 2000. Pick-up shoots were conducted annually from 2001 to 2004.[46] The series was shot at over 150 different locations, with seven different units shooting, as well as soundstages around Wellington and Queenstown.[47][page needed] Along with Jackson directing the whole production, other unit directors included John Mahaffie, Geoff Murphy, Fran Walsh, Barrie M. Osborne, Rick Porras and any other assistant director, producer, or writer available. Miniature Photography took place throughout the entire period, amounting to over 1,000 shooting days.[citation needed] Weta Digital developed new technologies to allow for the groundbreaking digital effects required for the trilogy, including the development of the MASSIVE software to generate intelligent crowds for battle scenes, and advancing the art of motion capture, which was used on bipedal creatures like the Cave Troll or Gollum. With Jackson's future films, motion-capture technology came to be pushed so far that it became referred to as "digital makeup", although it was later clarified that during The Lord of the Rings period, it was still fairly reliant on the CG animators.[48] Each film had the benefit of a full year of post-production time before its respective December release, often finishing in October–November, with the crew immediately going to work on the next film. Jackson originally wanted to edit all three films with Jamie Selkirk, but this proved too much work. The next idea was to have John Gilbert, Michael Horton and Selkirk, respectively, editing the three films simultaneously, but after a month that proved too difficult for Jackson,[49] and the films were edited in consecutive years, although Selkirk continued to act as "Supervising Editor" on the first two entries. Daily rushes would often last up to four hours, and by the time The Fellowship of the Ring had been released, assembly cuts of the other two films (41⁄2 hours each) were already prepared.[38][32] In total, 1,828 km (six million feet) of film was edited down to the 11 hours and 26 minutes (686 minutes) of extended running time.[47] Music Main article: Music of The Lord of the Rings film series Howard Shore, composer of the music of the films. Howard Shore composed, orchestrated, conducted and produced the trilogy's music. Shore visited the set in 1999, and composed a version of the Shire theme and Frodo's Theme before Jackson began shooting.[50] In August 2000 he visited the set again, and watched the assembly cuts of The Fellowship of the Ring and The Return of the King.[51] In the music, Shore included many (85 to 110) leitmotifs to represent various characters, cultures and places—the largest catalogue of leitmotifs in the history of cinema, surpassing, for comparison, that of the entire Star Wars film series. For example, there are multiple leitmotifs just for the hobbits and the Shire. Although the first film had some of its score recorded in Wellington, virtually all of the trilogy's score was recorded in Watford Town Hall and mixed at Abbey Road Studios.[32] Jackson planned to advise the score for six weeks each year in London, though for The Two Towers he stayed for twelve.[52] The score is primarily played by the London Philharmonic Orchestra, ranging from 93 to 120 players throughout the recording. London Voices, the London Oratory School Schola boy choir, and many artists such as Ben Del Maestro, Sheila Chandra, Enya, Renée Fleming, James Galway, Annie Lennox and Emilíana Torrini contributed. Even actors Billy Boyd, Viggo Mortensen, Liv Tyler, Miranda Otto (extended cuts only for the latter two) and Peter Jackson (for a single gong sound in the second film) contributed to the score. Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens served as librettists, writing lyrics to various music and songs, which David Salo translated into Tolkien's languages. The third film's end song, "Into the West", was a tribute to a young filmmaker Jackson and Walsh befriended named Cameron Duncan, who died of cancer in 2003.[53] Shore composed a main theme for the Fellowship rather than many different character themes, and its strength and weaknesses in volume are depicted at different points in the series. On top of that, individual themes were composed to represent different cultures. Infamously, the amount of music Shore had to write every day for the third film increased dramatically to around seven minutes.[53] The music for the series has been voted best movie soundtrack of all time for the six years running, passing Schindler's List (1993), Gladiator (2000), Star Wars (1977) and Out of Africa (1985), respectively.[54] Soundtracks Main article: Recordings of the music for The Lord of the Rings film series Title U.S. release date Length Composer Label The Fellowship of the Ring: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack 20 November 2001 71:29 Howard Shore Reprise Records The Two Towers: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack 10 December 2002 72:46 The Return of the King: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack 25 November 2003 72:05 Reception Box office The trilogy's online promotional trailer was first released on 27 April 2000, and set a new record for download hits, registering 1.7 million hits in the first 24 hours of its release.[55] The trailer used a selection from the soundtrack for Braveheart and The Shawshank Redemption among other cuts. In 2001, 24 minutes of footage from the series, primarily the Moria sequence, was shown at the 54th Cannes Film Festival, and was very well received.[56] The showing also included an area designed to look like Middle-earth.[47] The Fellowship of the Ring was released on 19 December 2001. It grossed $47.2 million in its U.S. opening weekend and made over $897 million worldwide. A preview of The Two Towers was inserted just before the end credits near the end of the film's theatrical run.[57] A promotional trailer was later released, containing music re-scored from the film Requiem for a Dream.[58] The Two Towers was released 18 December 2002. It grossed $62 million in its first U.S. weekend and out-grossed its predecessor with over $947 million worldwide. The promotional trailer for The Return of the King was debuted exclusively before the New Line Cinema film Secondhand Lions on 23 September 2003.[59] Released 17 December 2003, its first U.S. weekend gross was $72.6 million, and became the second film, after Titanic (1997), to gross over $1 billion worldwide. Each film is linked to the "Box office" section of its article. Film U.S. release date Box office gross All-time ranking Budget Ref(s) U.S. and Canada Other territories Worldwide U.S. and Canada Worldwide Rank Peak Rank Peak The Fellowship of the Ring 19 December 2001 $315,710,750 $581,979,322 $897,690,072 78 9 64 5 $93 million [60][61] The Two Towers 18 December 2002 $342,551,365 $604,943,730 $947,495,095 57 7 56 4 $94 million [62][63] The Return of the King 17 December 2003 $377,845,905 $768,185,007 $1,146,030,912 45 6 24 2 $94 million [64][65] Total $1,036,108,020 $1,955,108,059 $2,991,216,079 $281 million [note 1]  Sources other than Box Office Mojo that refer to the trilogy's budget being $281 million include: The New York Times,[66] The Independent,[67][68] The Telegraph,[69] Business Insider,[70] Collider,[71] and IndieWire.[72][73] Critical and public response The Lord of the Rings trilogy received widespread acclaim and is ranked among the greatest film trilogies ever made.[74] Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times wrote that "the trilogy will not soon, if ever, find its equal",[75] while Todd McCarthy of Variety described the films as "one of the most ambitious and phenomenally successful dream projects of all time".[76] The Fellowship of the Ring was voted the greatest fantasy movie of all time in a reader's poll conducted by American magazine Wired in 2012, while The Two Towers and The Return of the King placed fourth and third respectively.[77] The Independent ranked The Lord of the Rings trilogy at No. 2 on its list of "10 greatest movie trilogies of all time".[78] The Lord of the Rings trilogy is ranked at No. 2 in /Film's list of "The 15 Greatest Trilogies Of All Time",[79] while Empire ranked it at No. 1 in its list of "The 33 Greatest Movie Trilogies".[80] The series appears in the Dallas–Fort Worth Film Critics Association: Top 10 Films, Time's All-Time 100 Movies, and James Berardinelli's Top 100.[81] In 2007, USA Today named the series as the most important films of the past 25 years.[82] Entertainment Weekly put it on its end-of-the-decade, "best-of" list, saying, "Bringing a cherished book to the big screen? No sweat. Peter Jackson's trilogy — or, as we like to call it, our preciousssss — exerted its irresistible pull, on advanced Elvish speakers and neophytes alike."[83] Paste named it one of the 50 Best Movies of the Decade (2000–2009), ranking it at No. 4.[84] In another Time magazine list, the series ranks second in "Best Movies of the Decade".[85] In addition, six characters and their respective actors made the list of 'The 100 Greatest Movie Characters', also compiled by Empire, with Viggo Mortensen's portrayal of Aragorn ranking No. 15, Ian McKellen's portrayal of Gandalf ranking No. 30, Ian Holm's portrayal of Bilbo Baggins (shared with Martin Freeman for his portrayal of the same character in The Hobbit films) ranking No. 61, Andy Serkis' portrayal of Gollum ranking No. 66, Sean Astin's portrayal of Samwise Gamgee ranking No. 77, and Orlando Bloom's portrayal of Legolas ranking No. 94.[86] Each film is linked to the "Critical response" section of its article. Film Rotten Tomatoes Metacritic CinemaScore[87] The Fellowship of the Ring 91% (8.20/10 average rating) (235 reviews)[88] 92/100 (34 reviews)[89] A− The Two Towers 95% (8.50/10 average rating) (255 reviews)[90] 87/100 (39 reviews)[91] A The Return of the King 93% (8.70/10 average rating) (274 reviews)[92] 94/100 (41 reviews)[93] A+ Industry response The series drew acclaim from within the industry, including from the film directors Steven Spielberg, James Cameron and George Lucas.[94][95] John Boorman, who once wrote a script for a Lord of the Rings film, said he was happy his own version was unmade[96] as Jackson's film trilogy was "of such scope and magnitude that it can only be compared to the building of the great Gothic cathedrals."[97] Forrest J. Ackerman, who once presented a film treatment to Tolkien, and appeared on Jackson's Bad Taste said his pitch "could never have been given the grand treatment that Peter Jackson afforded it."[98] Arthur Rankin said Jackson was making "marvellous films."[99] However, some filmmakers were more critical. Heinz Edelmann, who pitched the idea of an animated feature when United Artists considered shooting the films with the Beatles, thought it was "badly directed."[100] Ralph Bakshi, who made an animated film based on the first half of the trilogy, didn't watch the films, but was told[101] that Jackson's film was derivative of his.[102] Ahead of the films' release, he said he did not "understand it" but that he does "wish it to be a good movie." Later, he begruged Saul Zaentz for not notifying him of the live-action film, and said that Jackson had his film to study and therefore had "a little easier time than I did."[103] Afterwards, he grumbled that Jackson "didn't understand"[104] Tolkien and created "special effects garbage" to sell toys,[105] as well as being derivative of his own film.[103] Bakshi further blamed Jackson for not acknowledging the influence that the animated film had on him, saying (falsely) that he denied having seen Bakshi's film at all[103] until being forced to mention him, at which point (according to Bakshi) he mentioned Bakshi's influence "only once" as "PR bolony."[105] However, he did praise Jackson's special effects[106] and, in 2015, even apologized for some of his remarks.[105] Bakshi's animator Mike Ploog[107] and writer Peter Beagle both praised the live-action film. Accolades Main article: List of accolades received by The Lord of the Rings film series Ian McKellen received multiple accolades for his portrayal of Gandalf, including a nomination for Best Supporting Actor at the 74th Academy Awards. The three films together were nominated for a total of 30 Academy Awards, of which they won 17, both records for any movie trilogy.[108] The Fellowship of the Ring earned 13 nominations, the most of any film at the 74th Academy Awards, winning four; The Two Towers won two awards from six nominations at the 75th Academy Awards; The Return of the King won in every category in which it was nominated at the 76th Academy Awards, setting the current Oscar record for the highest clean sweep, and its 11 Academy Awards wins ties the record held by Ben-Hur (1959) and Titanic (1997).[109] The Return of the King also became only the second sequel to win the Oscar for Best Picture after The Godfather Part II (1974). Additionally, members of the production crew won the Academy Award for Technical Achievement for the rendering of skin textures on creatures on The Return of the King,[110] and Stephen Regelous won the Academy Award for Scientific and Engineering Award for the design and development of MASSIVE, "the autonomous agent animation system used for the battle sequences in The Lord of the Rings trilogy."[111] The Lord of the Rings film series at the Academy Awards[112][113][114] Category 74th Academy Awards 75th Academy Awards 76th Academy Awards The Fellowship of the Ring The Two Towers The Return of the King Picture Nominated Nominated Won Director Nominated Won Adapted Screenplay Nominated Won Supporting Actor Nominated[c] Art Direction Nominated Nominated Won Cinematography Won Costume Design Nominated Won Film Editing Nominated Nominated Won Makeup Won Won Original Score Won Won Original Song Nominated[d] Won[e] Sound Editing Won Sound Mixing[f] Nominated Nominated Won Visual Effects Won Won Won  As depicted in The Two Towers (2002)  As depicted in The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)  For Ian McKellen as Gandalf.  For "May It Be".  For "Into the West".  Before the 76th Academy Awards, and since the 93rd Academy Awards known as 'Best Sound'. Each film in the series won the Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation, the MTV Movie Award for Movie of the Year, and the Saturn Award for Best Fantasy Film. The first and third films also won the BAFTA Award for Best Film. The New York Film Critics Circle awarded The Return of the King its Best Picture Award at the 2003 Awards Ceremony, hosted by Andrew Johnston, chair of the organization at that time, who called it "a masterful piece of filmmaking."[115] Comparisons with the written work Main article: Peter Jackson's interpretation of The Lord of the Rings Commentators have compared Jackson's film trilogy with Tolkien's written work, remarking that while both have been extremely successful commercially, they differ in many respects. Critics have admired Jackson's ability to film the long and complex work at all; the beauty of the cinematography, sets and costumes; and the epic scale of his version of Tolkien's story. They have however found the characters and the story greatly weakened by Jackson's emphasis on action and violence at the expense of psychological depth; the loss of Tolkien's emphasis on free will and individual responsibility; and the replacement of Frodo's inner journey by an American monomyth with Aragorn as the hero.[116][117] As for whether the film trilogy is faithful to the novel, opinions range from Verlyn Flieger's feeling that a film adaptation is not even worth attempting,[117][118] Wayne G. Hammond's opinion that the film sacrifices the book's richness of characterization and narrative for violence, thrills and cheap humour,[119] or Christopher Tolkien's view that Jackson's interpretation is unacceptable,[120] to granting, with Jackson and Boyens, that the film version is inevitably different.[121] From that standpoint, critics such as Brian Rosebury and Tom Shippey have described the films as a partial success, giving some of the feeling and capturing some of the key themes of the novel.[122][123] Yvette Kisor considers that Jackson was unfaithful to many of Tolkien's details, but succeeded in achieving something of the same impact and feelings of providence, eucatastrophe and interconnectedness. Dimitra Fimi suggests that Jackson was continuing Tolkien's tradition of adapting folklore, incorporating both the fans' views on that folklore and cinematic traditions such as the zombie in the film trilogy to produce its own modern folklore.[116][117] Home media The first two films were released on two-disc standard edition DVDs containing previews of the following film. The success of the theatrical cuts brought about four-disc extended editions, with new editing, added special effects and music.[124] Jackson came up with the idea of an extended cut for LaserDisc and DVD formats while in preproduction.[42] He could insert some of the violence that he thought he would have to trim to get a PG-13 rating for the theatre, and he could tailor the pacing to the demands of the small screen, which he said were "completely different".[125] He observed that the extended cuts will be "ultimately seen as the more definitive versions of the films".[126][a] The extended cuts of the films and the supplemental special features (labelled "appendices" in homage to the books) were spread over two discs each,[b] and a limited collector's edition was also released featuring sculpted bookends. The Fellowship of the Ring was released on 12 November 2002, containing 30 minutes of extra footage.[c] The Two Towers, released on 18 November 2003, contains 46 minutes of extra footage.[d] The Return of the King was released on 14 December 2004, with 52 minutes more footage.[e] The extended cuts have also played at cinemas, most notably the first two for a 16 December 2003 marathon screening (dubbed "Trilogy Tuesday") culminating in a screening of the third film.[f] In 2006, both versions of each film were released together in a limited edition, which includes a new feature-length documentary for each film (but not the extras from the previous releases).[128] Warner Bros. released the trilogy's theatrical versions on Blu-ray in a boxed set on 6 April 2010.[129] An extended edition Blu-ray box set was released on 28 June 2011.[130] Each film's extended Blu-ray version is identical to the extended DVD version, including the appendices.[127] In 2014, Blu-ray steelbook editions of the five-disc extended editions were released. The first, The Fellowship of the Ring, was released on 24 March 2014.[131] The discs are identical to those found in the previous five-disc Blu-ray set.[132] The Blu-ray releases were criticized for colour timing issues which degraded the look of the films.[133] The Lord of the Rings trilogy was released in Ultra HD Blu-ray in 2020, featuring both the theatrical and extended editions of the films.[134] The films, along with those of The Hobbit trilogy, were remastered to give all six films a more consistent colour treatment.[135] Jackson explained that visual effects shots were improved for this release by "[removing] and [painting] out any imperfections," but that they had not been "[upgraded] or [enhanced]".[136] An audio remastering was made as well, with the films receiving a new Dolby Atmos mix.[133] A 31-disc collector's set including both versions of all six films in 4K and Blu-ray formats, was released in 2021 for the 20-year anniversary of the first film;[137] this, however, does not include the appendices.[138] As of 2017, The Lord of the Rings films had a home media revenue of more than $2.4 billion.[139] Each film is linked to the "Home media" section of its article. Film Theatrical edition length Extended edition length The Fellowship of the Ring 178 minutes (2 hr, 58 min)[140] 208 minutes (3 hr, 28 min)[141] The Two Towers 179 minutes (2 hr, 59 min)[142] 226 minutes (3 hr, 46 min)[143] The Return of the King 201 minutes (3 hr, 21 min)[144] 252 minutes (4 hr, 12 min)[145] Total runtime 558 minutes (9 hr, 18 min) 686 minutes (11 hr, 26 min) Legacy The release of the films saw a surge of interest in The Lord of the Rings and Tolkien's other works, vastly increasing his impact on popular culture.[146] The success of the films spawned numerous video games and many other kinds of merchandise. The Hobbit trilogy From 2012 to 2014 Peter Jackson and his studio Wingnut Films made The Hobbit trilogy consisting of the films The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug and The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies. The trilogy works as a prequel to The Lord of the Rings films. Reunion On 31 May 2020, through his YouTube channel, actor Josh Gad aired a virtual cast reunion via Zoom as the fourth episode of the web series Reunited Apart, a charity fundraising effort during the CVID-19 pandemic, with The Lord of the Rings reunion supporting Share Our Strength's campaign called "No Kid Hungry". A large part of the original cast participated, including Sean Astin, Sean Bean, Orlando Bloom, Billy Boyd, Ian McKellen, Dominic Monaghan, Viggo Mortensen, Miranda Otto, John Rhys-Davies, Andy Serkis, Liv Tyler, Karl Urban and Elijah Wood. In addition to the cast, director Peter Jackson, screenwriter Philippa Boyens and composer Howard Shore were also present. Furthermore, filmmaker Taika Waititi and castmate Bernard Hill also made an appearance.[147][148][149] On 2 June 2020, Josh Gad announced that the charity had raised over $100,000.[150] Effects on the film industry and tourism Air New Zealand painted this Airbus A320 in The Lord of the Rings livery to promote The Return of the King in 2003–2004. See also: Tolkien tourism As a result of the series' success, Peter Jackson has become a major figure in the film industry in the mould of Steven Spielberg and George Lucas, in the process befriending some industry heavyweights like Bryan Singer and Frank Darabont. Jackson has since founded his own film production company, Wingnut Films, as well as Wingnut Interactive, a video game company. He was also finally given a chance to remake King Kong in 2005. The film was a critical and box office success, although not as successful as The Lord of the Rings series. Jackson has been called a "favourite son" of New Zealand.[151] In 2004, Howard Shore toured with The Lord of the Rings Symphony, playing two hours of the score. Along with the Harry Potter films, the series has renewed interest in the fantasy film genre. Tourism in New Zealand is up, possibly due to its exposure in the series,[152] with the country's tourism industry waking up to an audience's familiarity.[153] In 2002 the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa in Wellington created a travelling exhibition of the film trilogy, The Lord of the Rings Motion Picture Trilogy: The Exhibition.[154] It visited cities around the world including Boston, London, Sydney, Singapore and Houston.[155] Legal disputes The Lord of the Rings left a legacy of court cases over profits from the trilogy. Sixteen cast members (Noel Appleby, Jed Brophy, Mark Ferguson, Ray Henwood, Bruce Hopkins, William Johnson, Nathaniel Lees, Sarah McLeod, Ian Mune, Paul Norell, Craig Parker, Robert Pollock, Martyn Sanderson, Peter Tait and Stephen Ure) sued over the lack of revenue from merchandise bearing their appearance. The case was resolved out of court in 2008. The settlement came too late for Appleby, who died of cancer in 2007.[156] Saul Zaentz also filed a lawsuit in 2004 claiming he had not been paid all of his royalties.[17] The next year, Jackson himself sued the studio over profits from the first film, slowing development of The Hobbit prequels until late 2007.[157] The Tolkien Trust filed a lawsuit in February 2008, for violating Tolkien's original deal over the rights that they would earn 7.5% of the gross from any films based on his works.[158] The Trust sought compensation of $150 million.[159] A judge denied them this option, but allowed them to win compensation from the act of the studio ignoring the contract itself.[160] On 8 September 2009, the dispute was settled.[161] Video games See also: Middle-earth in video games Numerous video games were released to supplement the film series. They are The Two Towers, The Return of the King, The Third Age, The Third Age (Game Boy Advance), Tactics, The Battle for Middle-earth, The Battle for Middle-earth II, The Battle for Middle-earth II: The Rise of the Witch-king, Conquest, Aragorn's Quest, War in the North, Lego The Lord of the Rings, Guardians of Middle-earth, Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor, and Middle-earth: Shadow of War.[162] Notes  The extended editions also feature longer credit sequences listing the names of "The Lord of the Rings fan-club members" who contributed to the project.[127]  The folding cases are decorated with drawn concept art behind each DVD and an in-sleeve map of the Fellowship's travels during the film; a folding booklet includes map-style guides to the appendices.  The case features an Alan Lee painting of the Fellowship entering Moria, with the Moria Gate depicted on the back of the outer sleeve. An Argonath-styled bookend was included with the collector's edition.  The case features a Lee painting of Gandalf the White's entrance. The collector's edition includes a Sméagol statue, with a crueller-looking statue of his Gollum persona available to order for a limited time.  The case exhibits a Lee painting of the Grey Havens. A model of Minas Tirith is included with the collector's edition, with Minas Morgul available by order for a limited time.  Attendees were given a limited-edition keepsake from Sideshow Collectibles containing a random frame of film from each of the three movies. References  Tartaglione, Nancy (14 December 2021). "National Film Registry Adds Return Of The Jedi, Fellowship Of The Ring, Strangers On A Train, Sounder, WALL-E & More". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 14 December 2021.  "Peter Jackson Rebukes Harvey Weinstein's Denial On Ashley Judd & Mira Sorvino". 15 December 2017. 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Archived from the original on 5 October 2007. Retrieved 15 May 2019.  "J.R.R. Tolkien Trust Sues New Line Cinema for Portion of 'Lord of the Rings' Profits". findlaw.com. Archived from the original on 23 March 2008.  Alex Viega (12 February 2008). "Tolkien Estate Sues New Line Cinema". San Francisco Chronicle. Associated Press. Archived from the original on 17 April 2008. Retrieved 3 May 2008.  "No punitive damages in Rings case". BBC News. 26 September 2008. Archived from the original on 29 September 2008. Retrieved 27 September 2008.  Alex Dobuzinskis (8 September 2009). "Legal settlement clears way for "Hobbit" movie". Reuters. Archived from the original on 11 September 2009. Retrieved 8 September 2009. The Hollywood studio behind a film based on 'The Hobbit' and trustees for author J.R.R. Tolkien's estate said on Tuesday they had settled a lawsuit that clears the way for what is expected to be a blockbuster movie based on the book.  "The Lord of the Rings". Stern Pinball. 21 October 2003. Archived from the original on 2 June 2020. Retrieved 2 June 2020. Sources cited Nathan, Ian (2018). Anything You Can Imagine: Peter Jackson and the Making of Middle Earth. HarperCollins. ISBN 978-0008192501. External links Wikiquote has quotations related to The Lord of the Rings (movies). Wikivoyage has a travel guide for The Lord of the Rings tourism. Wikimedia Commons has media related to The Lord of the Rings film trilogy. 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Find sources: "Fantasy" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (July 2020) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) "The Fairy of the Dawn" in The Violet Fairy Book (1906) Fantasy Media AnimeArtArtistsAuthorsComicsFilmsPodcastsLiteratureMagazinesMangaPublishersLight novelsTelevisionWebcomics Genre studies CreaturesHistory Early historyMagic Magic itemMagic systemMagicianReligious themesTropesFantasy worlds Campaign settings Subgenres Bangsian fantasy‎Children's fantasyComedyContemporary fantasyDark fantasy‎Dieselpunk‎Fairy tale‎Fairy tale parody‎FantasticFantastiqueFantasy of mannersGaslamp fantasyGhost story‎Gothic fiction‎GrimdarkHard fantasyHeroic fantasyHigh fantasy‎Historical fantasy‎IsekaiKaiju‎LitRPGLovecraftian horrorLow fantasyMagic realism‎Magical girl‎Mythopoeia‎MythpunkOccult detective fiction‎Romantic fantasy‎Science fantasy‎Shenmo fiction‎SolarpunkSplatterpunkSteampunk‎Superhero fictionSupernatural fictionSword-and-sandalSword and sorceryTokusatsu‎Urban fantasy‎Weird fiction‎West‎ern fantasyWuxia‎ Fandom Harry Potter fandomTolkien fandom Categories FantasyAwardsSubgenresTelevisionTropes  Portal vte vampire, face of little green man, feather pen (quill) and fire-breathing dragon – to the right of that are scripted words "Speculative (over) Fiction" Speculative fiction Alternate history Fantasy fiction AnimeFandomFantasy artFiction magazinesFilmsGenresHistoryLegendary creaturesLiteraturePodcastsQuestsArtifactsRacesSuperheroesTelevisionThemesWorldsWriters Science fiction Horror fiction Miscellaneous icon Portal vte Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy literature and drama. From the twentieth century, it has expanded further into various media, including film, television, graphic novels, manga, animations and video games. Fantasy is distinguished from the genres of science fiction and horror by the respective absence of scientific or macabre themes, although these genres overlap. In popular culture, the fantasy genre predominantly features settings that emulate Earth, but with a sense of otherness.[1] In its broadest sense, however, fantasy consists of works by many writers, artists, filmmakers, and musicians from ancient myths and legends to many recent and popular works. Traits Skeleton Fantasy Show (骷髏幻戲圖) by Li Song (1190–1264) Most fantasy uses magic or other supernatural elements as a main plot element, theme, or setting. Magic, magic practitioners (sorcerers, witches and so on) and magical creatures are common in many of these worlds. An identifying trait of fantasy is the author's use of narrative elements that do not have to rely on history or nature to be coherent.[2] This differs from realistic fiction in that realistic fiction has to attend to the history and natural laws of reality, where fantasy does not. In writing fantasy the author uses worldbuilding to create characters, situations, and settings that may not be possible in reality. Many fantasy authors use real-world folklore and mythology as inspiration;[3] and although another defining characteristic of the fantasy genre is the inclusion of supernatural elements, such as magic,[4] this does not have to be the case. Fantasy has often been compared to science fiction and horror because they are the major categories of speculative fiction. Fantasy is distinguished from science fiction by the plausibility of the narrative elements. A science fiction narrative is unlikely, though seemingly possible through logical scientific or technological extrapolation, where fantasy narratives do not need to be scientifically possible.[2] Authors have to rely on the readers' suspension of disbelief, an acceptance of the unbelievable or impossible for the sake of enjoyment, in order to write effective fantasies. Despite both genres' heavy reliance on the supernatural, fantasy and horror are distinguishable from one another. Horror primarily evokes fear through the protagonists' weaknesses or inability to deal with the antagonists.[5] History Another illustration from The Violet Fairy Book (1906) Main article: History of fantasy Early history Main article: Early history of fantasy Elements of the supernatural and the fantastic were a part of literature from its beginning. Fantasy elements occur throughout ancient religious texts such as the Epic of Gilgamesh.[6] The ancient Babylonian creation epic, the Enûma Eliš, in which the god Marduk slays the goddess Tiamat,[7] contains the theme of a cosmic battle between good and evil, which is characteristic of the modern fantasy genre.[7] Genres of romantic and fantasy literature existed in ancient Egypt.[8] The Tales of the Court of King Khufu, which is preserved in the Westcar Papyrus and was probably written in the middle of the second half of the eighteenth century BC, preserves a mixture of stories with elements of historical fiction, fantasy, and satire.[9][10] Egyptian funerary texts preserve mythological tales,[8] the most significant of which are the myths of Osiris and his son Horus.[8] Myth with fantastic elements intended for adults were a major genre of ancient Greek literature.[11] The comedies of Aristophanes are filled with fantastic elements,[12] particularly his play The Birds,[12] in which an Athenian man builds a city in the clouds with the birds and challenges Zeus's authority.[12] Ovid's Metamorphoses and Apuleius's The Golden Ass are both works that influenced the development of the fantasy genre[12] by taking mythic elements and weaving them into personal accounts.[12] Both works involve complex narratives in which humans beings are transformed into animals or inanimate objects.[12] Platonic teachings and early Christian theology are major influences on the modern fantasy genre.[12] Plato used allegories to convey many of his teachings,[12] and early Christian writers interpreted both the Old and New Testaments as employing parables to relay spiritual truths.[12] This ability to find meaning in a story that is not literally true became the foundation that allowed the modern fantasy genre to develop.[12] The most well known fiction from the Islamic world is One Thousand and One Nights (Arabian Nights), which is a compilation of many ancient and medieval folk tales. Various characters from this epic have become cultural icons in Western culture, such as Aladdin, Sinbad and Ali Baba.[13] Hindu mythology was an evolution of the earlier Vedic mythology and had many more fantastical stories and characters, particularly in the Indian epics. The Panchatantra (Fables of Bidpai), for example, used various animal fables and magical tales to illustrate the central Indian principles of political science. Chinese traditions have been particularly influential in the vein of fantasy known as Chinoiserie, including such writers as Ernest Bramah and Barry Hughart.[13] Beowulf is among the best known of the Old English tales in the English speaking world, and has had deep influence on the fantasy genre; several fantasy works have retold the tale, such as John Gardner's Grendel.[14] Norse mythology, as found in the Elder Edda and the Younger Edda, includes such figures as Odin and his fellow Aesir, and dwarves, elves, dragons, and giants.[15] These elements have been directly imported into various fantasy works. The separate folklore of Ireland, Wales, and Scotland has sometimes been used indiscriminately for "Celtic" fantasy, sometimes with great effect; other writers have specified the use of a single source.[16] The Welsh tradition has been particularly influential, due to its connection to King Arthur and its collection in a single work, the epic Mabinogion.[16] There are many works where the boundary between fantasy and other works is not clear; the question of whether the writers believed in the possibilities of the marvels in A Midsummer Night's Dream or Sir Gawain and the Green Knight makes it difficult to distinguish when fantasy, in its modern sense, first began.[17] Modern fantasy Illustration from 1920 edition of George MacDonald's novel The Princess and the Goblin Although pre-dated by John Ruskin's The King of the Golden River (1841), the history of modern fantasy literature is usually said to begin with George MacDonald, the Scottish author of such novels as The Princess and the Goblin and Phantastes (1858), the latter of which is widely considered to be the first fantasy novel ever written for adults. MacDonald was a major influence on both J. R. R. Tolkien and C. S. Lewis. The other major fantasy author of this era was William Morris, an English poet who wrote several novels in the latter part of the century, including The Well at the World's End. Despite MacDonald's future influence with At the Back of the North Wind (1871), Morris's popularity with his contemporaries, and H. G. Wells's The Wonderful Visit (1895), it was not until the 20th century that fantasy fiction began to reach a large audience. Lord Dunsany established the genre's popularity in both the novel and the short story form. H. Rider Haggard, Rudyard Kipling, and Edgar Rice Burroughs began to write fantasy at this time. These authors, along with Abraham Merritt, established what was known as the "lost world" subgenre, which was the most popular form of fantasy in the early decades of the 20th century, although several classic children's fantasies, such as Peter Pan and The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, were also published around this time. Juvenile fantasy was considered more acceptable than fantasy intended for adults, with the effect that writers who wished to write fantasy had to fit their work into forms aimed at children.[18] Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote fantasy in A Wonder-Book for Girls and Boys, intended for children,[19] although works for adults only verged on fantasy. For many years, this and successes such as Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1865), created the circular effect that all fantasy works, even the later The Lord of the Rings, were therefore classified as children's literature. Political and social trends can affect a society's reception towards fantasy. In the early 20th century, the New Culture Movement's enthusiasm for Westernization and science in China compelled them to condemn the fantastical shenmo genre of traditional Chinese literature. The spells and magical creatures of these novels were viewed as superstitious and backward, products of a feudal society hindering the modernization of China. Stories of the supernatural continued to be denounced once the Communists rose to power, and mainland China experienced a revival in fantasy only after the Cultural Revolution had ended.[20] Fantasy became a genre of pulp magazines published in the West. In 1923, the first all-fantasy fiction magazine, Weird Tales, was published. Many other similar magazines eventually followed, including The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction; when it was founded in 1949, the pulp magazine format was at the height of its popularity, and the magazine was instrumental in bringing fantasy fiction to a wide audience in both the U.S. and Britain. Such magazines were also instrumental in the rise of science fiction, and it was at this time the two genres began to be associated with each other. By 1950, "sword and sorcery" fiction had begun to find a wide audience, with the success of Robert E. Howard's Conan the Barbarian and Fritz Leiber's Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser stories.[21] However, it was the advent of high fantasy, and most of all J. R. R. Tolkien's The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, which reached new heights of popularity in the late 1960s, that allowed fantasy to truly enter the mainstream.[22] Several other series, such as C. S. Lewis's Chronicles of Narnia and Ursula K. Le Guin's Earthsea books, helped cement the genre's popularity. The popularity of the fantasy genre has continued to increase in the 21st century, as evidenced by the best-selling status of J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter series, Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time series, George R. R. Martin's Song of Ice and Fire series, Steven Erikson's Malazan Book of the Fallen sweeping epic, Brandon Sanderson's The Stormlight Archive series and Mistborn series, and A. Sapkowski's The Witcher saga. Media Further information: Fantasy art, Fantasy film, Fantasy television, and Role-playing game Several fantasy film adaptations have achieved blockbuster status, most notably The Lord of the Rings film trilogy directed by Peter Jackson, and the Harry Potter films, two of the highest-grossing film series in cinematic history. Meanwhile, David Benioff and D. B. Weiss would go on to produce the television drama series Game of Thrones for HBO, based on the book series by George R. R. Martin, which has gone on to achieve unprecedented success for the fantasy genre on television.[citation needed] Fantasy role-playing games cross several different media. Dungeons & Dragons was the first tabletop role-playing game and remains the most successful and influential. According to a 1999 survey in the United States, 6% of 12- to 35-year-olds have played role-playing games. Of those who play regularly, two thirds play D&D.[23] Products branded Dungeons & Dragons made up over fifty percent of the RPG products sold in 2005.[24] The science fantasy role-playing game series Final Fantasy has been an icon of the role-playing video game genre (as of 2012 it was still among the top ten best-selling video game franchises). The first collectible card game, Magic: The Gathering, has a fantasy theme and is similarly dominant in the industry.[25] Classification By theme (subgenres) See also: List of genres § Fantasy Fantasy encompasses numerous subgenres characterized by particular themes or settings, or by an overlap with other literary genres or forms of speculative fiction. They include the following: Bangsian fantasy, interactions with famous historical figures in the afterlife, named for John Kendrick Bangs Comic fantasy, humorous in tone Contemporary fantasy, set in the modern world or a world based on a contemporary era but involving magic or other supernatural elements Dark fantasy, including elements of horror fiction Extruded fantasy product, derogatory term for derivative works[26] Fables, stories with non-human characters, leading to "morals" or lessons Fairy tales themselves, as well as fairytale fantasy, which draws on fairy tale themes Fantastic poetry, poetry with a fantastic theme Fantastique, French literary genre involving supernatural elements Fantasy of manners, or mannerpunk, focusing on matters of social standing in the way of a comedy of manners Gaslamp fantasy, using a Victorian or Edwardian setting, influenced by gothic fiction Gods and demons fiction (shenmo), involving the gods and monsters of Chinese mythology "Grimdark" fiction, a somewhat tongue-in-cheek label for fiction with an especially violent tone or dystopian themes Hard fantasy, whose supernatural aspects are intended to be internally consistent and explainable, named in analogy to hard science fiction Heroic fantasy, concerned with the tales of heroes in imaginary lands High fantasy or epic fantasy, characterized by a plot and themes of epic scale Historical fantasy, historical fiction with fantasy elements Isekai, people transported from the real world to a different one, mainly in Japanese fiction (anime, light novels and manga) Juvenile fantasy, children's literature with fantasy elements LitRPG, set in a table-top or computer role-playing game, and depicting the progression and mechanics of the game Low fantasy, characterized by few or non-intrusive supernatural elements, often in contrast to high fantasy Magic realism, a genre of literary fiction incorporating minor supernatural elements Magical girl fantasy, involving young girls with magical powers, mainly in Japanese fiction Paranormal romance, romantic fiction with supernatural or fantastic creatures Romantic fantasy, focusing on romantic relationships Science fantasy, fantasy incorporating elements from science fiction such as advanced technology, aliens and space travel but also fantastic things Steampunk, a genre which is sometimes a kind of fantasy, with elements from the 19th century steam technology (historical fantasy and science fantasy both overlap with it) Sword and sorcery, adventures of sword-wielding heroes, generally more limited in scope than epic fantasy Urban fantasy, set in a city Weird fiction, macabre and unsettling stories from before the terms "fantasy" and "horror" were widely used; see also the more modern forms of slipstream fiction and the New Weird Xianxia (genre), Chinese martial-arts fiction often incorporating fantasy elements, such as gods, fairies, demons, magical realms and reincarnation By the function of the fantastic in the narrative In her 2008 book Rhetorics of Fantasy,[27] Farah Mendlesohn proposes the following taxonomy of fantasy, as "determined by the means by which the fantastic enters the narrated world",[28] while noting that there are fantasies that fit none of the patterns: Portal fantasy In "portal-quest fantasy" or "portal fantasy", a fantastical world is entered, behind which the fantastic elements remain contained. A portal-quest fantasy typically tends to be a quest-type narrative, whose main challenge is navigating the fantastical world.[29] Notable examples include L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900), C. S. Lewis' The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (1950),[30] and Stephen R. Donaldson's late-1970s series The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant.[31] In Japan, the genre of portal fantasy is known as isekai (Japanese: 異世界, transl. "different world" or "otherworld"). Immersive fantasy In "immersive fantasy", the fictional world is seen as complete, its fantastic elements are not questioned within the context of the story, and the reader perceives the world through the eyes and ears of viewpoint characters native to the setting. This narrative mode "consciously negates the sense of wonder" often associated with science fiction, according to Mendlesohn. She adds that "a sufficiently effective immersive fantasy may be indistinguishable from science fiction" as the fantastic "acquires a scientific cohesion all of its own". This has led to disputes about how to classify novels such as Mary Gentle's Ash (2000) and China Miéville's Perdido Street Station (2000).[32] Intrusion fantasy In "intrusion fantasy", the fantastic intrudes on reality (unlike portal fantasies), and the protagonists' engagement with that intrusion drives the story. Usually realist in style, these works assume the default world as their base. Intrusion fantasies rely heavily on explanation and description.[33] Immersive and portal fantasies may themselves host intrusions. Classic intrusion fantasies include Dracula by Bram Stoker (1897) and Mary Poppins (1934) by P. L. Travers.[34] In French-speaking countries, it is considered as a genre distinct from fantasy, the fantastique. Liminal fantasy In "liminal fantasy", the fantastic enters a world that appears to be our own. The marvelous is perceived as normal by the protagonists at the same time as it disconcerts and estranges the reader. This is a relatively rare mode. Such fantasies often adopt an ironic, blasé tone, as opposed to the straight-faced mimesis more common to fantasy.[35] Examples include Joan Aiken's stories about the Armitage family, who are amazed that unicorns appear on their lawn on a Tuesday, rather than on a Monday.[34] Subculture Avon Fantasy Reader 18 See also: Fantasy fandom Professionals such as publishers, editors, authors, artists, and scholars within the fantasy genre get together yearly at the World Fantasy Convention. The World Fantasy Awards are presented at the convention. The first WFC was held in 1975 and it has occurred every year since. The convention is held at a different city each year. Additionally, many science fiction conventions, such as Florida's FX Show and MegaCon, cater to fantasy and horror fans. Anime conventions, such as Ohayocon or Anime Expo frequently feature showings of fantasy, science fantasy, and dark fantasy series and films, such as Majutsushi Orphen (fantasy), Sailor Moon (urban fantasy), Berserk (dark fantasy), and Spirited Away (fantasy). Many science fiction/fantasy and anime conventions also strongly feature or cater to one or more of the several subcultures within the main subcultures, including the cosplay subculture (in which people make or wear costumes based on existing or self-created characters, sometimes also acting out skits or plays as well), the fan fiction subculture, and the fan video or AMV subculture, as well as the large internet subculture devoted to reading and writing prose fiction or doujinshi in or related to those genres. According to 2013 statistics by the fantasy publisher Tor Books, men outnumber women by 67% to 33% among writers of historical, epic or high fantasy. But among writers of urban fantasy or paranormal romance, 57% are women and 43% are men.[36] Analysis Fantasy is studied in a number of disciplines including English and other language studies, cultural studies, comparative literature, history and medieval studies. For example, Tzvetan Todorov argues that the fantastic is a liminal space. Other work makes political, historical and literary connections between medievalism and popular culture.[37] Related genres Horror Science fantasy Science fiction Superhero fiction Supernatural fiction Utopian and dystopian fiction See also icon Fantasy portal Fantasy literature Outline of fantasy List of fantasy authors List of fantasy novels List of fantasy worlds List of genres List of high fantasy fiction List of literary genres Fantastique Theosophical fiction Worldbuilding References  G., Saricks, Joyce (2001). The readers' advisory guide to genre fiction. American Library Association. pp. 36–60. ISBN 0-8389-0803-9. OCLC 46769544.  ed. Edward James and Farah Mendlesohn, Cambridge Companion to Fantasy Literature, ISBN 0-521-72873-8  John Grant and John Clute, The Encyclopedia of Fantasy, "Fantasy", p 338 ISBN 0-312-19869-8  Diana Waggoner, The Hills of Faraway: A Guide to Fantasy, p 10, 0-689-10846-X  Charlie Jane Anders (24 December 2015). "The Key Difference Between Urban Fantasy and Horror". io9. Retrieved 11 February 2017.  Grant, John; Clute, John (1997). "Gilgamesh". The Encyclopedia of Fantasy. London, England: Palgrave Macmillan. p. 410. ISBN 0-312-19869-8.  Keefer, Kyle (24 October 2008). The New Testament as Literature: A Very Short Introduction. Very Short Introductions. Vol. 168. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press. pp. 109–113. ISBN 978-0195300208.  Moscati, Sabatino (9 August 2001). The Face of the Ancient Orient: Near Eastern Civilization in Pre-Classical Times. Mineola, New York: Dover Publications, Inc. pp. 124–127. ISBN 978-0486419527.  Wilkinson, Toby (3 January 2017). Writings from Ancient Egypt. London, England: Penguin Classics. ISBN 978-0141395951.  Hart, George (2003). "Tales of fantasy". In Warner, Marina (ed.). Egyptian Myths. World of Myths. Vol. 1. London, England and Austin, Texas: British Museum Press and University of Texas Press, Austin. pp. 301–309. ISBN 0-292-70204-3.  Hansen, William F. (1998). Anthology of Ancient Greek Popular Literature. Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press. p. 260. ISBN 0-253-21157-3.  Mathews, Richard (2002) [1997]. Fantasy: The Liberation of Imagination. New York City, New York and London, England: Routledge. pp. 11–14. ISBN 0-415-93890-2.  John Grant and John Clute, The Encyclopedia of Fantasy, "Chinoiserie", p 189 ISBN 0-312-19869-8  John Grant and John Clute, The Encyclopedia of Fantasy, "Beowulf", p 107 ISBN 0-312-19869-8  John Grant and John Clute, The Encyclopedia of Fantasy, "Nordic fantasy", p 691 ISBN 0-312-19869-8  John Grant and John Clute, The Encyclopedia of Fantasy, "Celtic fantasy", p 275 ISBN 0-312-19869-8  Brian Attebery, The Fantasy Tradition in American Literature, p 14, ISBN 0-253-35665-2  C. S. Lewis, "On Juvenile Tastes", p 41, Of Other Worlds: Essays and Stories, ISBN 0-15-667897-7  Brian Attebery, The Fantasy Tradition in American Literature, p 62, ISBN 0-253-35665-2  Wang, David Dewei (2004). The Monster that is History: History, Violence, and Fictional Writing in Twentieth-century China. University of California Press. pp. 264–266. ISBN 978-0-520-93724-6.  L. Sprague de Camp, Literary Swordsmen and Sorcerers: The Makers of Heroic Fantasy, p 135 ISBN 0-87054-076-9  Jane Yolen, "Introduction" p vii–viii After the King: Stories in Honor of J.R.R. Tolkien, ed, Martin H. Greenberg, ISBN 0-312-85175-8  Dancey, Ryan S. (7 February 2000). "Adventure Game Industry Market Research Summary (RPGs)". V1.0. Wizards of the Coast. Retrieved 23 February 2007.  Hite, Kenneth (30 March 2006). "State of the Industry 2005: Another Such Victory Will Destroy Us". GamingReport.com. Archived from the original on 20 April 2007. Retrieved 21 February 2007.  ICv2 (9 November 2011). "'Magic' Doubled Since 2008". Retrieved 10 November 2011. For the more than 12 million players around the world [...] Note that the "twelve million" figure given here is used by Hasbro; while through their subsidiary Wizards of the Coast they would be in the best position to know through tournament registrations and card sales, they also have an interest in presenting an optimistic estimate to the public.  Walton, Jo (29 August 2008). "My love-hate relationship with fantasy". Tor.com.  Mendlesohn, Farah (2008). Rhetorics of Fantasy. Middletown, Conn.: Wesleyan University Press. ISBN 978-0819568687. Project MUSE book 21231.  Mendlesohn, "Introduction"  Mendlesohn, "Introduction: The Portal-Quest Fantasy"  Mendlesohn, "Chapter 1"  Senft, Michael (19 March 2020). "From Wonderland to Outlander, Your Guide to Portals to Other Worlds". Phoenix New Times. Retrieved 20 August 2022.  Mendlesohn, "Introduction: The Immersive Fantasy"  Mendlesohn, "Introduction: The Intrusion Fantasy"  Mendlesohn, "Chapter 3"  Mendlesohn, "Introduction: The Liminal Fantasy"  Crisp, Julie (10 July 2013). "SEXISM IN GENRE PUBLISHING: A PUBLISHER'S PERSPECTIVE". Tor Books. Archived from the original on 30 April 2015. Retrieved 29 April 2015. (See full statistics)  Jane Tolmie, "Medievalism and the Fantasy Heroine", Journal of Gender Studies, Vol. 15, No. 2 (July 2006), pp. 145–158. ISSN 0958-9236 External links Look up fantasy in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. Wikimedia Commons has media related to Fantasy Art. Wikiquote has quotations related to Fantasy. The Fantasy Genre Children's Literature Classics vte Narrative Character AntagonistAntiheroArchenemyCharacter arcCharacter flawCharacterizationConfidantDeuteragonistFalse protagonistFocal characterFoilGothic doubleHamartiaHeroNarratorProtagonistStock characterStraight manSupporting characterTitle characterTragic heroTritagonistVillain Plot ActionBackstory Origin storyChekhov's gunClichéCliffhangerConflictDeus ex machinaDialogueDramatic structureEucatastropheForeshadowingFlashback / FlashforwardFrame storyIn medias res/Ab ovoKishōtenketsuMacGuffinOccam's razorPacePlot devicePlot twistPoetic justiceRed herringRevealSelf-fulfilling prophecyShaggy dog storyStory arcSubplotSuspenseTrope Setting Alternate historyBackstoryCrossoverDreamworldDystopia / UtopiaFictional location citycountryuniverseWorldbuilding Theme IronyLeitmotifMetaphorMoralMotif Deal with the DevilConflict between good and evil Style AllegoryBathosComic reliefDictionFigure of speechImageryModeMoodNarrationNarrative techniquesShow, don't tellStylistic deviceSuspension of disbeliefSymbolismTone Structure Act Act structureThree-act structureFreytag's Pyramid Exposition/ProtasisRising action/EpitasisClimax/PeripeteiaFalling action/CatastasisDenouement/CatastropheLinear narrativeNonlinear narrative filmstelevision seriesPremiseTypes of fiction with multiple endings Form DramaFabliauFlash fictionFolklore FableFairy taleLegendMythTall taleGamebookNarrative poetry Epic poetryNovelNovellaParableShort storyVignette Genre (List) Fiction Action fictionAdventureComicCrimeDocufictionEpistolaryEroticHistoricalMysteryNauticalParanoidPhilosophicalPicaresquePoliticalPop culturePsychologicalReligiousRogueRomance ChivalricProseSagaSatireSpeculative FantasyGothicHorrorMagic realismScienceSuperheroTheologicalThrillerUrbanWesternNonfiction Novel Narration First-personMultiple narratorsStream of consciousnessStream of unconsciousnessUnreliableDiegesisSelf-insertion Tense PastPresentFuture Related Creative nonfictionDominant narrativeFiction writing Continuity CanonRebootRetconPrequel / SequelLiterary scienceLiterary theoryNarrative therapyNarratologyPolitical narrativeRhetoric GlossaryScreenwritingStorytellingTellability vte Fantasy fiction HistoryLiteratureMagicSources Subgenres Action-adventure HeroicLost worldSword-and-sandalSword and sorceryWuxia‎Alternate historyChildren's fantasyComedy BangsianContemporary Occult detective fiction‎Paranormal romanceUrban fantasyDark fantasy Dark romanticismFaustianGrimdarkSplatterpunkFairy tale Fairy tale parodies‎Fairytale fantasy‎FantastiqueFantasy of mannersGhost stories‎Gothic fiction AmericanSouthernSouthern OntarioSuburbanTasmanianTech noirUrbanGritty fantasyHard fantasyHigh fantasyHistorical fantasyIsekaiLitRPGLow fantasyMagical girlMagic realismMythic Mythopoeia‎Mythpunk"Retro" DieselpunkGaslamp fantasySteampunkRomanticScience fantasy‎ Dying EarthPlanetary romanceSuperheroSword and planetShenmoTokusatsu‎Weird fiction New weirdWeird menaceWeird WestWest‎ern fantasy Media Film and television AnimeFilms highest-grossingS&STelevision programs Literature AuthorsBallantine Adult Fantasy seriesComics listThe Encyclopedia of FantasyFantasy MasterworksInternet Speculative Fiction DatabaseList of novels A–HI–RS–ZList of story collectionsNewcastle Forgotten Fantasy LibraryPublishers Magazines FantasticFantastic AdventuresLocusThe Magazine of Fantasy & Science FictionScience FantasyUnknownWeird Tales FéeriesPodcasts Fandom ArtFanspeakFilk musicHarry Potter fandomThe InklingsMythopoeic SocietyReligionTolkien fandomWorks inspired by J. R. R. TolkienWorld Fantasy Convention Awards BalrogBritish FantasyCrawfordDragonGandalfGemmellHugoInternational FantasyJapan FantasyLocusMéliès d'OrMythopoeicNebulaSaturnTähtifantasiaWorld Fantasy Tropes Creatures AngelsDemons DevilsGhoulsElementalsFaeriesFamiliarsFire-breathing monsters ChimeraDragonsGargoyleImpsJinnKaijuMegafaunaNymphsSkin-walkersSpiritsTherianthropes WerecatsWerewolvesUndead DeathGhostsMummiesSkeletonsVampiresZombiesUnicornsYōkai Characters BarbarianCavemanDamsel in distressDark lordDonorDragonslayerFairy godmotherHeroesMagiciansOccult detective listWild manWitches Magic system Hard and soft ElementsDark / Neutral / LightCeremonialLoveMoonMagic item GrimoireMagic ringMagical weapons Magic swordRunesWand Schools AlchemyDemonologyDivinationEgregoreEvocationIncantationNecromancyRunecraftShamanismShapeshiftingThaumaturgyTheurgyTechnomancyWitchcraft Fantasy races CentaursDwarvesElvesTreantsGiantsGnomesGoblinsGremlinsHalflingsHobgoblinsKoboldsLeprechaunsMerfolk MermaidsMermenOgresOniOrcsTrolls Places and events QuestsWorlds listMapsLost cityHollow EarthAstral plane DreamworldCastleEnchanted forestThieves' guildMagic school Related AllegoryDungeons & DragonsEpic poetryFableFantasticHorror fictionHuman–animal hybridLGBT themes in speculative fictionMechaMythologyScience fictionSupernatural fictionUrban legend  Outline Category vte Speculative fiction Science fiction Media ComicsFilms listMagazines listTelevision Creators listAuthorsEditors Studies AwardsDefinitionsHistory Subgenres Alternate historyApocalyptic/post-apocalypticClimate fictionComic/comedyCyberpunk (derivatives)Dying EarthFeministFuture historyMilitarySpace operaSpace WesternTech-noir Themes AfricanfuturismAfrofuturismAliensAIFrankensteinParallel universesPlanetsTime travelUtopia/dystopiaSpace piratesTerraformingTerraforming in popular culture Subculture CommunityGathering list Nuvola apps konquest.svg Fantasy Media AnimeArt FantasticComicsFantasy filmLiteratureMagazinesTelevision Creators Authors Studies High fantasy (Tolkienology)HistorySources Subgenres BangsianComicContemporaryDarkDying EarthFairytaleFolklore mythology (based)GaslampHardHeroicHighHistoricalLost worldLowMedievalRomanticSword and sorceryUrban Tropes Fantasy racesFantasy worldsLegendary creaturesMagic (fantasy)Magician (fantasy)Norse mythology Magic itemQuestOccult detective Horror Media ComicsFilms listMagazinesTelevision programsVideo games Subgenres BodyGoosebumpsLovecraftianMass hysteriaPsychologicalSplatterpunkQueerUrban legend Tropes GargoyleVampires listWerewolves General Authors of colorFictional speciesGenderJapanese authorsSexuality HomosexualityReproduction and pregnancyWomen Related Science fantasyFantastiqueMagic realismSlipstreamTechno-thriller  Portal Category Authority control Edit this at Wikidata National libraries IsraelUnited StatesJapan Other Faceted Application of Subject Terminology THOUGHTS ON FANTASY a blog about the worlds, conventions, and curiosities of fantasy fiction SKIP TO CONTENT HOME ABOUT WRITING RESOURCES WHAT IS FANTASY FICTION? FANTASY SUB-GENRES WRITING TIPS PHOTO GALLERY 17 Common Fantasy Sub-Genres DECEMBER 7, 2015 / NICOLA @ THOUGHTS ON FANTASY Word Cloud: Fantasy Sub-genres The fantasy genre is rich with a myriad of sub-genres, and each has its own conventions and trends. With the different terms floating around out there it can be easy to confuse or overlook key sub-genres. Finding a succinct list of the most notable ones – particularly a list with definitions and examples – is not always straightforward. So I thought I’d put my reading and researching to use and assemble one. You can click on the links in the menu below if you’d like to skip down to a particular sub-genre: Fantasy Sub-Genres High Fantasy / Epic Fantasy Low Fantasy Portal Fantasy Urban Fantasy / Contemporary Fantasy Paranormal / Paranormal Romance Fantasy Romance / High Fantasy Romance Young Adult Fantasy (YA Fantasy) Children’s Fantasy Fairy Tale Retellings Sword and Sorcery / Heroic Fantasy Medieval Fantasy / Arthurian Fantasy Historical Fantasy Comic Fantasy Science Fantasy Grimdark Fantasy Gothic Fantasy / Dark Fantasy The New Weird Related Genres Speculative Fiction Horror / The Gothic Fairy Tales / Fairy Stories Dystopian Fiction Magical Realism Fantasy Sub-Genres Some of the below sub-genres overlap significantly, and the books given as examples may fit into multiple sub-genres, even if they are not listed in more than one. The “typical elements” I list are ones commonly found in books of that sub-genre, but they are not always present. If you would like a definition of the fantasy genre as a whole, see: What is Fantasy Fiction? High Fantasy / Epic Fantasy Book Cover: Lord of the RingsPerhaps the most traditional sub-genre, high fantasy or epic fantasy takes place in an entirely fictional fantasy world. The stories are often lengthy and epic, involving multiple characters and large-scale quests where the fate of the world rests on the shoulders of the heroes. Some people use the term epic fantasy to specifically refer to more lengthy or large-scale high fantasies, however many (myself included) use the terms epic and high interchangeably. Typical Elements: lengthy journeys, dragons, magicians, assassins, legendary swords, royalty, medieval societies, battles, a hero or heroine of humble origins, exotic names, a map on the inside cover. Examples: The Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit, A Wizard of Earthsea, The Final Empire, Assassin’s Apprentice, The Lies of Locke Lamora, The Ill-Made Mute, The Name of the Wind, A Game of Thrones, The Fifth Season, The Emperor’s Blades, Six of Crows, Tigana ^ BACK TO TOP ^ Low Fantasy Book Cover: Harry Potter and the Philosopher's StoneA fantasy that takes place in the real world, or something very like the real world, and includes magical or supernatural elements (“low” does not mean this is a lesser or poorer form of fantasy!). Characters often discover secret magical forces or supernatural creatures within their supposedly normal surrounds. Typical Elements: supernatural creatures, hidden magical spaces, real-world mythological influences, characters discovering the existence of supernatural forces. Examples: Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, Neverwhere, Shiver, Storm Front, Artemis Fowl, War for the Oaks, City of Bones, Twilight ^ BACK TO TOP ^ Portal Fantasy Book Cover: The Chronicles of NarniaA fantasy where characters travel from the real world into a fictional fantasy world, often through a portal or gateway. They are usually swept up in the problems and politics of the fantasy world and become important to the course of history there, then return to the real world greatly changed by their experience. Typical Elements: Magical portals, magical objects, evil kings or queens, problematic family relationships in the real world, time discrepancy between the two worlds. Examples: The Chronicles of Narnia, Stardust, Peter Pan, Alice in Wonderland, The Subtle Knife, The Neverending Story, Mythago Wood, Daughter of Smoke and Bone, The Autumn Castle, A Darker Shade of Magic ^ BACK TO TOP ^ Urban Fantasy / Contemporary Fantasy Book Cover: Storm FrontUrban fantasy can be tricky to define as it has been used in many different ways, often interchangeably with other fantasy sub-genre terms such as low fantasy and paranormal fantasy. While it generally describes a fantasy set in an urban environment or society, it has also become synonymous with contemporary fantasy – a fantasy set in the present day real world. Thus an urban fantasy is generally understood to be a low fantasy set in a real-world, modern, urban society (or something closely resembling one). Many urban fantasies are also paranormal fantasies or paranormal romances. Typical Elements: cities, secret supernatural underworld, hidden passageways, modern weaponry, interference from human institutions (e.g. police, lawyers), contemporary slang, colloquial language, pop culture references. Examples:  Storm Front, War for the Oaks, City of Bones, Angelfall, Neverwhere, Moon Called ^ BACK TO TOP ^ Paranormal / Paranormal Romance Book Cover: TwilightA paranormal novel or film is a low fantasy (i.e. set in the real world) in which supernatural creatures or talents exist and are a key focus of the story. This is often seen as a blend of the fantasy and Gothic/Horror genres. A paranormal romance is a paranormal novel or film where romance is a key focus of the plot. It is usually, but not always, a romance between a supernatural being and a human. Typical Elements: vampires, fairies, werewolves, angels, demons, witches, zombies, ghosts, psychics, love triangles, supernatural love interest, sex, female protagonist.  Examples: Twilight, The Scorpio Races, Vampire Academy, Shiver, Angelfall, Fallen, Warm Bodies, Halfway to the Grave ^ BACK TO TOP ^ Fantasy Romance / High Fantasy Romance Book Cover: GracelingA fantasy romance is a high fantasy (i.e. set in a fictional world) in which romance is a core element. Some people use the term to refer to any fantasy story with a romantic plot. However, because low fantasy with romance is usually dubbed paranormal romance, the term fantasy romance tends to be reserved for high fantasy romances. I often call it high or epic fantasy romance to make it clear what I’m referring to. Typical Elements: medieval societies, royalty, politics, warrior-like female characters, romance, sex, magic, betrayal, cruelty. Examples: Graceling, Kushiel’s Dart, Lord of the Fading Lands, Daughter of the Blood, Throne of Glass, Bound, Shadow and Bone, Daughter of the Forest, A Poison Study, Strange the Dreamer ^ BACK TO TOP ^ Young Adult Fantasy (YA Fantasy) Book Cover: Vampire AcademyA fantasy that is primarily aimed or marketed at a young adult (teenage) readership, usually with young adult protagonists. Typical Elements: orphans, young adult characters discovering hidden powers/skills, coming of age dilemmas, first romances, high school or school-like settings, adult mentors.  Examples: Vampire Academy, Daughter of Smoke and Bone, The Scorpio Races, Sabriel, Angelfall, Twilight, Graceling, Throne of Glass, Six of Crows ^ BACK TO TOP ^ Children’s Fantasy Book Cover: Neverending StoryA children’s fantasy (sometimes called a juvenile fantasy) is one primarily aimed at children, usually with child protagonists. Sometimes novels are considered to be both YA fantasies and children’s fantasies, particularly if they appeal to an age group that bridges late childhood and the early teenage years. Interestingly, portal fantasies are also often juvenile fantasies (something I learned through putting together this list!). Typical Elements: orphans, unhappy children, cruel or absent parents, princes, princesses, monsters (both friendly and unfriendly), fairy-tale influences, secret portals, tests.  Examples: The Neverending Story, Alice in Wonderland, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, The Chronicles of Narnia, Peter Pan, Howl’s Moving Castle, Matilda, Coraline, The Northern Lights, Artemis Fowl ^ BACK TO TOP ^ Fairy Tale Retellings Book Cover: Daughter of the ForestA fairy tale retelling, sometimes called a “modern fairy tale” is a fantasy that is based on or inspired by a fairy tale, or draws heavily on fairy tale tropes. Fairy tale retellings are distinct from actual fairy or folk tales in that they are contemporary, novel-length or series-length stories with complex plots and characters. For more on the difference between a fantasy and a fairy tale, see the discussion of fairy tales below. Typical Elements: curses that need to be broken, witches, wild forests, princes and princesses, evil queens or kings, monsters, wolves, romance. Examples: Daughter of the Forest, Uprooted, The Wrath and the Dawn, Cinder, Ella Enchanted, Beauty, Beastly, The Bear and the Nightingale, Ever After [Film], Maleficent [Film], Frozen [Film], Tangled [Film] ^ BACK TO TOP ^ Sword and Sorcery / Heroic Fantasy Book Cover: Conan the BarbarianHeroic Fantasy and Sword and Sorcery are terms used to refer to high fantasy stories that focus primarily on “swashbuckling heroes”, swordplay, exciting battles and violent conflicts. The term sword and sorcery was originally coined to describe (and often still refers to) the kinds of tales that appeared in the fantasy and science fiction magazines of the 30s and 40s, specifically those in the style of Robert E. Howard’s Conan stories. Typical Elements: mighty heroes, damsels in distress, battles, magic, swordplay, romance, moral ambiguity, action, conflict. Examples: Conan the Barbarian, Elric of Melniboné, Swords and Deviltry, Jirel of Joiry, Legend > for more see this BestFantasyBooks.com article ^ BACK TO TOP ^ Medieval Fantasy / Arthurian Fantasy Book Cover: The Mists of AvalonA medieval fantasy is one with a setting strongly inspired by medieval society, or set during the medieval period. These stories often draw heavily on myths and legends from this period of history. Arthurian fantasy is a subset of medieval fantasy that focusses on the legend of King Arthur or its elements, involving characters like Merlin, Arthur, Guinevere, Uther, Mordred etc. Typical Elements: Royalty, arranged marriages, patriarchal societies, battles, dragons, wizards, quests, knights, legendary swords. Examples: The Mists of Avalon, The Once and Future King, A Game of Thrones, Assassin’s Apprentice ^ BACK TO TOP ^ Historical Fantasy Book Cover: His Majesty's DragonA fantasy set in a historical period of the real world. These stories often offer an alternative version of history where magic and/or supernatural creatures exist and place a strong emphasis on historical accuracy (with regards to the elements that aren’t supernatural). They essentially blend the historical fiction and fantasy genres. Typical Elements: Dragons, magicians, mythological influences, key battles/events in history, time travel. Examples: His Majesty’s Dragon, Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, Daughter of the Forest, Outlander, The Mists of Avalon, The Golem and the Djinni ^ BACK TO TOP ^ Comic Fantasy Book Cover: The Colour of MagicComic fantasy, also sometimes referred to as comedic fantasy, is a blend of fantasy and comedy, where the prime purpose is to amuse the reader and the tone is humorous. Typical fantasy elements and conventions are often satirised or subverted. Typical Elements: Ridiculous or pathetic characters, quirky settings, absurd magical rules and creatures, subverted fantasy clichés, witty writing.  Examples: The Colour of Magic [and all the Discworld Novels], Dark Lord of Derkholm, Magic Kingdom For Sale/Sold, A Spell for Chameleon, Warm Bodies ^ BACK TO TOP ^ Science Fantasy Book Cover: The Knife of Never Letting GoA blend of science fiction and fantasy, where advanced technology and the supernatural both come into play, or tropes from both genres are used. Often fantastical and impossible things occur under a thin guise of scientific credibility. Steampunk sometimes falls into this category, though it is generally regarded as a sub-genre of science fiction. Typical Elements: fantastical planets and alien races, magical technology, grand divine or supernatural forces at work, victorian era influences. Examples: Dragonflight, Cinder, The Knife of Never Letting Go, Blightborn, Perdido Street Station, Shadows of the Self, Senlin Ascends, The Fifth Season ^ BACK TO TOP ^ Grimdark Fantasy Book Cover: The Lies of Locke LamoraA high fantasy with a gritty or grim setting, often focussing on characters with less-than-impeccable morals, anti-heroes, or on criminal underworlds within fantasy societies. This sub-genre provides a contrast to more traditional fantasy worlds and their moral heroes, quaint medieval villages and resplendent cities. Typical Elements: thieves, assassins, torturers, organised crime, filthy cities, torture, murder, rape, violence, corrupt rulers, anti-heroes. Examples: Prince of Thorns, The Lies of Locke Lamora, The Blade Itself, A Game of Thrones, Daughter of the Blood, Perdido Street Station, The Black Company ^ BACK TO TOP ^ Gothic Fantasy / Dark Fantasy Book Cover: SabrielGothic fantasy is a blend of fantasy and horror, where elements of the latter (such as ghosts, the undead, haunted castles and monsters) form a key focus of the story or set its tone. It often aims to unsettle, chill or horrify the reader as well as to entertain. Gothic fantasy is sometimes referred to as dark fantasy, however the term dark fantasy is a little ambiguous as it is also occasionally used to refer to grimdark fantasy. Typical Elements: Ghosts, graveyards, crypts, tombs, zombies, monsters, necromancers, ruins, haunted castles, abandoned buildings. Examples: Sabriel, Grimoire, The Graveyard Book, Coraline, Perdido Street Station, Something Wicked This Way Comes ^ BACK TO TOP ^ The New Weird Book Cover: Perdido Street StationThe new weird is a genre defined in Ann and Jeff Vandemeer’s anthology of the same name: “a type of urban, secondary-world fiction that subverts the romanticized ideas about place found in traditional fantasy, largely by choosing realistic, complex real-world models as the jumping off point for creation of settings that may combine elements of both science fiction and fantasy.” It has strong ties with the Gothic and horror genres and grimdark fantasy, as well as science fantasy, and is seen as a revival of classic weird fiction like that of H.P. Lovecraft. Typical Elements: gritty realistic fictional settings, squalid cities, science fiction and fantasy tropes, non-typical story structure, horror and Gothic elements, morally ambiguous characters, dystopias. Examples: Perdido Street Station, Annihilation ^ BACK TO TOP ^ Related Genres There are also some genres that are generally not considered part of the fantasy genre, but are closely related: Speculative Fiction This is a supra-genre, rather than a sub-genre. It’s a term generally used to encompass the genres of fantasy, science fiction, horror, superhero fiction and dystopian fiction. As the name suggests, these stories centre around speculative elements – characters, places or things that do not currently exist in our present-day world, but can be invented or imagined by humans. It’s a useful supra-genre as the genres it encompasses are very inter-related. ^ BACK TO TOP ^ Horror / The Gothic Book Cover: DraculaA Gothic novel is dark in tone, and aimed at giving the reader a sense of menace or “the uncanny” (unsettling them), and typically refers to novels written during the 18th and 19th Centuries when this style came into fashion. Southern Gothic is a more contemporary sub-genre, referring to Gothic novels that take place in the American South. Typical Elements: endangered heroines, haunted castles, sinister past events, ruins, tombs, graveyards, ghosts, monsters, wild and intimidating landscapes. Examples: Dracula, The Castle of Otranto, The Mysteries of Udolpho, Frankenstein Book Cover: CarrieHorror is generally seen as the contemporary descendant of the Gothic genre, and describes a story with a dark tone whose primary purpose is to scare, horrify or spook the reader. Typical Elements: haunted houses, ruins, tombs, graveyards, ghosts, monsters, gore, demons, murderers, psychopaths, witches, zombies. Examples: Carrie, The Shining, Dracula, World War Z, The Passage, Let the Right One In, The Exorcist, Interview with the Vampire Plenty of horror novels are also considered to be fantasy novels, and could technically be deemed so by most definitions of fantasy (due to the supernatural content). However, because the horror genre is so large, so rife with its own specific conventions, and so specifically aimed at scaring the audience, it is generally considered to be separate. Additionally, the horror genre, with its roots in the Gothic, developed somewhat separately from fantasy novels and traditions historically. ^ BACK TO TOP ^ Fairy Tales / Fairy Stories Book Cover: The Original Folk & Fairy Tales - Brothers GrimmFairy tales are generally considered to be precursors to or influences on the fantasy genre, rather than part of the genre, though some people would disagree with me on this point. As I see it, fairy tales are short folk tales, often with a long oral history, that can involve magical or supernatural elements. They focus more on plot, have limited character development, and often involve repetition and a simple narrative structure. By contrast, fantasies are novel-length or series-length stories with complex plots and multiple characters, and don’t usually follow traditional fairy tale structures. However, the term “fairy tale retelling” or “modern fairy tale” is often used when a novel-length or film-length fantasy work draws heavily on the conventions of fairy tales. Typical Elements: curses, princes, princesses, damsels in distress, repetition, children, witches, evil step-mothers, monsters, wolves, happy endings. Examples: Cinderella, Hansel and Gretel, Jack and the Bean Stalk, Little Red Riding Hood, Rapunzel, Snow White. Writers and Collectors: see 6 Famous Fairy Tale Writers and Collectors ^ BACK TO TOP ^ Dystopian Fiction Book Cover: 1984A story with a dystopian or post-apocalyptic setting. Dystopian fiction is generally regarded as a science fiction sub-genre, because the dystopias are usually presented as real possible futures without supernatural elements. However, some dystopian novels and films are also fantasies, if impossible happenings or magic are at play. Typical Elements: Oppressive societies, secret rebellions, ruined cities, ostracised minorities, tyrannical governments, propaganda. Examples of Dystopian Science Fiction: 1984, The Hunger Games, Divergent, The Handmaid’s Tale, Ready Player One, Red Rising Examples of Dystopian Fantasy / Dystopian Science Fantasy: Obernewtyn, Angelfall, Blightborn, Warm Bodies, The Knife of Never Letting Go ^ BACK TO TOP ^ Magical Realism Book Cover: Big FishA magical realist story is one where the impossible or supernatural happenings are likely the delusions, fantasies, or imaginings of the character/s (though whether or not they are is often kept deliberately unclear), or where they appear as non-central elements of an otherwise highly realistic setting. This definition differs to many others out there, however I have personally found it to be the most useful way to differentiate magical realism from low fantasy. Magical realist stories are generally not considered fantasies, as the fantasy elements are not presented as real, important or believable elements in the story. However, some would consider it a fantasy sub-genre, and in particular, a blend of literary fiction and fantasy. Typical Elements: mental asylums, cruel authority figures, quirky imaginative characters, characters trying to escape the harsh realities of the world. Examples: Big Fish, Chocolat, Pan’s Labyrinth [Film], Sucker Punch [Film] ^ BACK TO TOP ^ I’ve put together the above list from my own experience reading, researching and discussing fantasy novels, as well as from research into the genre terms themselves, and have done my best to cover all the important sub-genres. However, if you think I’ve misrepresented or left out an important sub-genre, feel free to mention it in the comments. NOTE: I updated this post in April 2019. Key changes included: editing and adding a few book examples to better reflect some sub-genres, as well as adding more information about heroic fantasy / sword and sorcery. Share this: TwitterFacebookRedditPinterest28More Loading... Related What is Fantasy Fiction? November 30, 2015 In "Books" Genre is Not a Dirty Word November 21, 2014 In "Books" What Fantasy Authors Can Learn from Marvel Studios October 26, 2017 In "Books"  Epic Fantasy, Fantasy Fiction, Fantasy Romance, Paranormal Romance, Young Adult Fantasy FANTASY SUB-GENRES, GENRE, HIGH FANTASY, LOW FANTASY, PORTAL FANTASY, SPECULATIVE FICTION, SUBGENRE DEFINITIONS, TYPES OF FANTASY, URBAN FANTASY Post navigation ← What is Fantasy Fiction?Why the World is Never Round in Fantasyland → 71 thoughts on “17 Common Fantasy Sub-Genres” Mike DECEMBER 8, 2015 AT 2:52 PM Excellent analysis. I’ve bookmarked this as a reference. Thanks! Liked by 1 person REPLY Nicola Alter DECEMBER 8, 2015 AT 3:29 PM Thanks, glad it was useful! Like REPLY theorangutanlibrarian DECEMBER 13, 2015 AT 1:05 AM Amazing post- loved how informative it was! Liked by 1 person REPLY Pingback: Reflective Journal Week 4: Defining fantasy as a genre – Elisha K Habermann jmwwriting MARCH 1, 2017 AT 1:46 AM Nice list. I never imagined considering Portal Fantasy as its own subgenre. By the way, I think you missed the most important example–the originator of the genre I believe– Twain’s “A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court.” I am reading that one now in preparation for someday writing my own portal story. It is…interesting. But I do like Twain. Liked by 1 person REPLY Thoughts on Fantasy MARCH 1, 2017 AT 8:49 AM Yes you don’t see Portal Fantasy used as much as High and Low Fantasy but it does get the occasional mention. I think it’s a good way to describe those stories that connect real/modern worlds with imagined/past ones, as the stories do have their own particular flavour. And that’s very true about Connecticut Yankee, I didn’t think of it but it’s a classic! I’ve never read the book but plan to some day, I also like Twain. Liked by 1 person REPLY Andrej SEPTEMBER 25, 2017 AT 12:57 PM Could be Harry Potter be considered as Portal Fantasy? He enters the new magical world through portal and becomes hero for this society Liked by 2 people REPLY Nicola @ Thoughts on Fantasy SEPTEMBER 26, 2017 AT 10:53 AM Yes I suppose it could… I guess it depends on how you interpret it. I personally think of Harry Potter as low fantasy because the magical world exists in the same space as real world, often just in deliberately hidden or protected pockets of it (such as Hogwarts, Diagon Alley, The Ministry of Magic, Platform 9 and 3/4 and the various houses of magical families) and the magical elements are simply kept secret. I tend to think of portal fantasy as that where characters travel into an entirely different world (more like Narnia). That said, Harry Potter has a lots of separation and portal-like connections between the magical and non-magical spaces, so I certainly wouldn’t say someone was wrong if they called it portal fantasy – just by my personal understanding of portal fantasy I wouldn’t think of it that way. Like Pingback: Les 10 raons definitives de per què llegir fantasia - Una història fantàstica genghisgalahad MARCH 21, 2017 AT 7:40 PM Fantastic list! Especially the further subgenres of dystopian fiction and dystopian fantasy. New books to discover and read. Although i do think dystopian fiction like 1984, Brave New World, and the literary works the genre has inspired into film, including Children of Men, that have a sophisticated and complex sociopolitical commentary on the world are actually of a different breed from a further subgenre of young adult fantasy novels, of which the latest are the Divergent, Hunger Games series of heroic young characters in a dystopian setting. Liked by 1 person REPLY Thoughts on Fantasy MARCH 21, 2017 AT 9:05 PM Thanks! That’s true, 1984 and Brave New World are very different books to The Hunger Games and Divergent, even though I’ve heard the term dystopia used for all of them. I suppose I’d probably differentiate by referring to ‘classic dystopias’ and ‘YA dystopias’. Though I do think YA dystopias can provide sociopolitical commentary very reminiscent of classic dystopias, if not always with the same level of realism or in the same style (for example, The Knife of Never Letting Go is quite bleak and explores complex sociopolitical ideas, albeit through the eyes of young adult characters). But yes, generally it feels a bit strange to put a book like Divergent in the same ‘basket’ as 1984! Liked by 1 person REPLY Sharon Reamer JULY 13, 2017 AT 2:47 PM Thanks for the wonderful list. It’s a really good piece of work and interesting and insightful to read. You left out mythological fiction. I consider it to be an important subgenre (at least it’s important to me as a reader and a writer – it’s the kind of fantasy I love the most). Amazon lists mythology as a major subgenre of fantasy (and fairy tales as a sub-sub genre of mythology), and I feel that’s an accurate way to look at it. It’s separate from fairy tales and fairy stories (which I prefer to call folk tales unless, of course, they really are tales with fairies in them) because a lot of mythological fantasy fiction is a retelling or a re-imagining of popular myths and/or characters in myths. Or completely made-up mythologies. There may be (and usually are) fantastic creatures (not necessarily fairies), but there are often (or almost always) deities involved who mess with the protagonist’s lives or who are the protagonists. Examples include Morgan Llewelyn’s books that mix historical with Irish mythological elements. And American Gods and Anansai Boys. The whole Rick Riordan series of YA novels – there’s just a bunch of them. They’re not fairy stories, they’re mythological fiction. Also – made-up mythologies as in Michael Sullivan’s Age of Myth and a bunch of others that I can’t name right off (Kushiel’s Dart works as mythological fantasy, definitely). Lord of the Rings is high fantasy with some incredibly strong Norse/Germanic underpinnings. Thanks again for doing this work. Liked by 1 person REPLY Nicola @ Thoughts on Fantasy JULY 13, 2017 AT 4:12 PM I’m glad you liked the list! And that’s interesting – I didn’t realise that was such a big sub genre on Amazon, but now you mention it I can think of a lot of books with a strong focus on mythology. I was actually considering updating this list and adding a ‘fairy tale retellings’ category because that sub-genre has become so big and frequently mentioned recently, but I hadn’t thought of fairy tales/folk tales as being a subset of mythological fiction – that does make sense. I guess my one problem is that so much fantasy is based in myth or has mythological elements that I would have trouble distinguishing mythological fantasy from any other kind of fantasy… but that said, there are definitely fantasy books with a stronger mythological basis/inspiration than others, like the ones you have mentioned. Anyway, thanks for commenting, I will be keeping my eye open for mentions of mythological fiction now! Liked by 1 person REPLY Sharon Reamer JULY 16, 2017 AT 10:50 AM It’s all just a question of perspective. Since it’s what I love, I notice it more. 🙂 Maybe thanks to Neil Gaiman and the Vikings series and the Marvel version of Thor (which isn’t really a bad take on the Norse myths at all), there’s been a renewed interest in mythology-based fiction – it might be trending. I have no idea since I don’t tend to follow trends in my reading. But, hey, it’s your blog and however you see things that’s how you see it. Keep up the good work! And thanks for continuing the conversation. Liked by 2 people REPLY Pingback: ¿Son necesarios tantos géneros de fantasía? | Nada Empieza Nunca Pingback: A Century of Fantasy: How the Genre's Changed Since the 1920s • Pingback: The many sub-genres of Fantasy – Richie Billing OwlBeSatReading JANUARY 6, 2018 AT 4:34 PM Fascinating article, thank you, I’ve often wondered what the difference was between all the sub-genres, and now I know! 😀👍 Liked by 1 person REPLY Nicola @ Thoughts on Fantasy JANUARY 6, 2018 AT 4:37 PM Thanks, I’m glad I could help! Liked by 1 person REPLY feeroberts64 JANUARY 17, 2018 AT 11:52 PM I came across NA Fantasy. What is that? Liked by 1 person REPLY Nicola @ Thoughts on Fantasy JANUARY 18, 2018 AT 12:04 AM Ah interesting, I imagine it would stand for “New Adult Fantasy”. New Adult books are aimed at people in their 20s or have main characters of that age (online I’ve seen the age bracket defined as to 18-30 year-olds). It’s a bit of a weird sub-genre, since I’d often just call that adult fantasy, but if people want to be more specific I suppose it’s useful! Liked by 2 people REPLY feeroberts64 JANUARY 18, 2018 AT 12:12 AM Thank you so much! I was totally lost! lol Liked by 1 person REPLY Nicola @ Thoughts on Fantasy JANUARY 18, 2018 AT 12:18 AM No problem! I remember the very first time I saw ‘YA fantasy’ I spent ages racking my brain trying to figure out what it meant 🙂 Liked by 1 person Pingback: The myriad sub-genres of fantasy fiction – Rebecca Alasdair Pingback: Sites to Spark Your Interest – Poison Apples Pingback: The Venn of Sci-Fi and Fantasy - SFF Book Bonanza - Discover Science Fiction and Fantasy Books Melissa Elliott FEBRUARY 28, 2018 AT 7:56 PM This is an interesting and quite inclusive list. I wonder, though, if some classifications (for instance, sword & sorcery, comic fantasy) could be considered rather as sub-genres, depending on their contents. For instance, I would consider The Blue Sword, by Robin McKinley, as High Fantasy, but under your classification it would be sword & sorcery; and the humorous fantasy authors (Pratchett, Fforde) would also fall under larger classifications, depending on what they’re writing. For instance, Fforde’s The Last Dragonslayer would fall under Low Fantasy, since it’s magic within the real world, while Terry Pratchett’s Wee Free Men books seem more about world-building and a separate universe. One point with which I take exception (being a young adult literature teacher and a teen librarian) is clumping all YA together and making it a genre. YA is not a genre. WIthin YA there is realistic fiction, fantasy fiction, paranormal fiction, romance, dystopian…YA is simply an age group. All those books deserve to be reclassified within their particular genre, with the tag YA added. Considering YA as a genre is an undeserved generalization that I feel disrespects its authors. Other than that, I read your definitions and justifications with interest and learned some new terms. Thank you. Liked by 2 people REPLY Nicola @ Thoughts on Fantasy MARCH 1, 2018 AT 4:07 PM Thanks, I’m glad you found the list interesting! Many books could definitely be labelled with several of the fantasy sub-genres above. I actually wrote this thinking of these as non-exclusive genre terms – so a comic fantasy can also be a high fantasy (or a low fantasy, as you mentioned in your example). You could certainly think of some as sub-genres of others, I just tried to keep it simple by avoiding nesting them. On a related note, I’ve actually long been of the opinion that we run into problems with genre classification when we try to exclusively categorise (i.e. to say a book is either one genre or another genre, but can’t be both). I’m very aware that this is often necessary for shelving books (especially, I imagine, if you are a librarian!), but so many books blend genres, and genres are so ever-changing, that in trying to see them as exclusive categories with hard edges I feel we are always fighting a losing battle. So I guess when I think of genres I like to picture online ‘checkboxes’ or ‘tags’ (like you mentioned for YA), similar to the way ‘shelves’ work on Goodreads, where one book can tick several at once. That’s not always practical in a physical scenario I know, but it helps me to think about it that way. I understand where you’re coming from with YA too – I often find it silly in bookstores when I have to walk between the YA section and the fantasy section to find the fantasy books I want, especially because sometimes the choice of which ones go where seems arbitrary (and disrespectful to the authors – as if a YA fantasy is somehow not pure fantasy so it has to go somewhere else). It’s certainly a target age group, but I guess it’s also a way people describe the kind of books they want to read – i.e. with YA protagonists or aimed at YA readers – so it’s become widely used as a genre term. Again I guess that’s why I like imagining the online tags instead of rigid here-or-there shelves. Books can have a YA tag, but they also get the other genre tags and aren’t lumped into one big ‘YA’ section. Certainly when it comes to my own personal bookshelf I don’t have a YA section – I shelve by sub-genres like high and low fantasy (though I still have lots of trouble deciding where things go!). Liked by 1 person REPLY Chelsea Germain MARCH 6, 2018 AT 6:22 PM Question: How do I cite this? I’m doing a critical essay involving fantasy sub-genres and wanted to use your description. Liked by 1 person REPLY Nicola @ Thoughts on Fantasy MARCH 7, 2018 AT 2:17 PM That depends on what citation system you’re using but if you want to know the author, that’s me – Nicola Alter (and in your sources list you would usually include the article title, the URL, the website name and the date you accessed it as well). Good luck with your essay! Like REPLY Pingback: {Shared Fantasy} – Thresholds of Transformation Pingback: Patricia Briggs, Expanded (possible spoilers, sorry) | The Forgetful Book Lover Pingback: ¿Necesitamos tantos géneros de fantasía? - Nada Empieza Nunca Pingback: Fantasy Sub-Genres | Nicholas C. Rossis Jessica Bakkers JANUARY 17, 2019 AT 10:32 AM Good read. Doesn’t help me categorise my own WIP… I think I span a few genres. There’s definitely low fantasy elements, but also pretty grimdark too. Anyway, fantasy, whatever it’s category, is just wonderful isn’t it? Liked by 1 person REPLY Nicola @ Thoughts on Fantasy JANUARY 17, 2019 AT 1:49 PM It is! I love fantasy of pretty much all kinds, no matter how it’s labelled. Categorisation can be tough if you span many genres. I guess you can always compound descriptors… e.g. I’ve noticed people sometimes say “gritty urban fantasy” or “dark urban fantasy” when they’re talking about low or contemporary fantasy with a grimdark feel… in case that’s helpful. Liked by 2 people REPLY Jessica Bakkers JANUARY 17, 2019 AT 10:30 PM Good idea – I’d have to be a compound category for sure! 🤗 Like REPLY BJ Sikes, author JANUARY 17, 2019 AT 8:45 PM Reblogged this on BJ Sikes, author and commented: The fantasy genre has expanded and diversified into a lot of subgenres. I’m a big fan of historical fantasy and fairy tale retellings. What’s your favorite? Like REPLY Pingback: 17 Common Fantasy Sub-Genres – Ava Holland Marina Costa JANUARY 18, 2019 AT 7:57 AM Reblogged this on Marina Costa and commented: Very interesting for those who are writing fantasy. Like REPLY Matthew Hughes JANUARY 22, 2019 AT 10:43 PM A glaring omission: Dying Earth fantasy, invented by Jack Vance, and carried on by Michael Shea. And me. Also, what I might call Jungian archetypal fantasy, best represented by Robert Holdstock in his Mythago sequence. Like REPLY Christy J. Breedlove APRIL 13, 2019 AT 10:06 PM I’m totally awestruck by this detailed sub-genre list. You perfectly described a portal fantasy exactly like the one I have coming out in two weeks. People asked me what I meant by a portal fantasy, and they tried to correct me by saying that I meant urban fantasy. Not so. They are different entirely, in my opinion. Your examples were dead-on, and I’ve used them myself to explain this sub-genre. I’m shocked to think that Amazon does not define this genre in their definitions. Liked by 2 people REPLY Nicola @ Thoughts on Fantasy APRIL 14, 2019 AT 1:11 AM Yes I’m a big advocate of the portal fantasy category! I’ve seen quite a few people just slot portal fantasies in with low fantasy and urban fantasy, but I find that problematic, especially if a lot of the action is happening in the fictional “high fantasy” world/s rather than the real one. In my mind the easiest thing is to have three main categories – high, low and portal fantasy. Much less room for confusion! That’s a shame Amazon doesn’t agree though. Like REPLY Christy J. Breedlove APRIL 14, 2019 AT 1:16 AM Oh, I hear ya. The Bridge to Terabithia, Alice Through the Looking Glass, Stardust, the list goes on and on…. Liked by 1 person REPLY Christy J. Breedlove APRIL 15, 2019 AT 12:14 AM Oh, I forgot–If platform 9 3/4 is not a portal, I’m a gibbon monkey! But Harry Potter was never referred to as a portal fantasy, to my knowledge, at least. Liked by 1 person REPLY Nicola @ Thoughts on Fantasy APRIL 15, 2019 AT 10:44 AM Yes it’s a bit of a grey area with HP – I think of it as low fantasy, since they’re not really travelling into another world, just hidden magical spaces/corners within the real world… but some would disagree with me! Like REPLY Christy J. Breedlove APRIL 16, 2019 AT 2:31 AM Gotcha. I though about low fantasy too. I guess we can have a lot of mongrel sub-genres. Liked by 1 person REPLY Tim Hansen JUNE 3, 2019 AT 5:47 PM Not sure if it belongs on the lest, but perhaps worth mentioning anyway: Planetary romance, like the Barsoom novels by Burroughs. Often a mix of science fiction and sword and sorcery. “Post non-magical world”. Very clumsy description, but for the lack of a proper name, I’ll use it here. In science fiction there is a subgenre called “first contact”, and how the contact with aliens will affect society. Also invasion literature, where aliens invade earth. The story can focus on the actual invasion, shortly after it has happened, or a post-invaded earth when there is a resistance fighting against the invaders. The point is that the world went from a copy of our own to an unrecognizable world because of a single and specific incident. What if the same happened in fantasy? Magic is suddenly discovered or rediscovered, or some other fantasy elements suddenly turns out to be real in a world where it used to be just imagination, and it changes society. There is True Blood, but honestly I felt the sudden revelation of vampires and other creatures as something real had a minimal impact on society. Most people continued to live exactly as they used to before they learned about the supernatural beings (at least the first seasons. Later someone decided to go to war against them, but I hope there are other ways society can react than declare war, as there is a risk that it becomes repetitive in the long run.) As for fairytales, I feel that everything is possible there. Winds, trees and rocks can be sentient and talk, and nobody cares. There are zero explanations for how magic works (if it is referred to as magic at all), and the locations are not restricted to a specific time or place, only a country far away a long time ago. It usually, it happens in a small bubble and within a limited amount of time. The most important thing is the moral of the story, and all the impossible elements are accepted as real and natural by all the characters. There are not much of backgrounds or character development, which is not surprising considering the stories are pretty short. Also supernatural horror often happens in a bubble. The rest of the world, which could have been our own, is not aware of the malevolent forces (and or a secret society of demon worshippers) the main characters encounters. It usually have no impact on society, mostly because people are not aware of it. My impression of sword and sorcery comes from the essay The Hyborian Age by Robert E. Howard. It is generally not a secondary world, unless it is pointed out as in the stories about Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser, but happens in our own past in a fictional and long gone era. Liked by 1 person REPLY Pingback: Which Genre, Anyway? | Mad Genius Club Pingback: 30+ Books for D&D Players to Read for Better 5e Gameplay Pingback: Librarians in Quarantine: Molly Shelves Books (Part 5) | The James Sowell Family Collection In Literature, Community and the Natural World Pingback: La Alta Fantasía y sus principales subgéneros - El blog de Álvaro Paris Pingback: La Baja Fantasía y sus principales subgéneros - El blog de Álvaro Paris David Thompson JUNE 18, 2020 AT 1:22 PM Many thanks to you for putting this together. I found it very informative. Liked by 1 person REPLY Pingback: Tips on How to Create a Believable Fantasy World for Your Next Novel | bibliomavens Pingback: Discussion Time: Fantasy Subgenres – Scifantasor Pingback: Genre and Tropes #amwriting | Life in the Realm of Fantasy Pingback: Get to Know the Fantasy Reader Tag – Lost in Neverland Pingback: 5 Reasons Why Fantasy Books Are the Best - The Fantasy Review Pingback: LIBRARIANS IN QUARANTINE Pingback: Fantasy Series – A Closer Look at the Genre – Part 2 – Kildare County Library Service Pingback: Fantasy Series – A Closer Look at the Genre – Part 3 – Kildare County Library Service Pingback: Fantasy Series – A Closer Look at the Genre – Part 4 – Kildare County Library Service Pingback: Fantasy Series – A Closer Look at the Genre – Part 5 – Kildare County Library Service Pingback: Fantasy Series – A Closer Look at the Genre – Part 6 – Kildare Library Service Pingback: Fantasy Series – A Closer Look at the Genre – Part 7 – Kildare Library Service Pingback: Fantasy Series – A Closer Look at the Genre – Part 11 – Kildare Library Service Pingback: Fantasy Series – A Closer Look at the Genre – Part 12 – Kildare Library Service Scott Whitney MAY 23, 2022 AT 9:24 PM Thank you! I’m putting together a semester long Fantasy Literature course and this is a huge help. I do have one question, a lot of my students are also interested in what I would call “Eastern Fantasy.” Have you done any research into that subgenera? I know there are some major differences to ours since they deal a lot in cultivation and systems, but I am having to do this research myself. Like REPLY Nicola @ Thoughts on Fantasy MAY 30, 2022 AT 3:11 PM Hi Scott, sorry for the slow reply! No I’m afraid I haven’t researched that sub-genre. I have recently seen the term SWANA used on Twitter instead of Eastern (in a book pitching contest) but I haven’t researched enough to say more about it. There are certainly a lot of fantasy books where I see culture/country/continent-specific terms used to describe them such as African fantasy, India-inspired fantasy and Asian fantasy, but I haven’t done enough research to get a full picture. I imagine it would be quite a large list of sub-genres if you were were looking at cultures/settings, and one that is perhaps changing a lot as people use a variety of terms. Like REPLY stephaniecolbert JUNE 10, 2022 AT 5:39 PM Reblogged this on Mystic Books. Like REPLY Leave a Reply Enter your comment here... This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed. Search for: Search … FIND ME ON Nicola Alter on TwitterNicola Alter's book recommendations, liked quotes, book clubs, book trivia, book listsNicola Alter's pins and boards on Pinterest  Nicola Alter on Facebook  Nicola Alter's questions and answers on Quora Image: Thoughts on Fantasy Crow IconThoughts on Fantasy celebrates fantasy fiction in all its forms: epic, dark, romantic, paranormal, young adult or otherwise. I post articles about the genre and its curiosities, conventions and magical worlds. 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