In total, the films combined equaled 6 million feet. That's a whole lot of film! But what do you expect from an epic?

Frodo's sword glows blue because it was made by the high elves. However, in the film, Gandalf's sword does not glow blue! Apparently, this was because of budgetary reasons.

The trees in Lothlorien were made of rubber. But they sure did look like real trees. :(

Arwen and Aragorn were cousins. Okay, so they were in love. Sometimes this happens with cousins. Don't judge.

Arwen chooses to become mortal in order to say in Middle Earth. She does this to remain with her love, Aragorn.

Although Orlando Bloom rocked the blonde locks, Legolas' hair is never described in the books. Was that a creative choice?

Sean Connery turned down the role of Gandalf, because he said he didn't understand it. He even watched the movies later and still didn't understand it!

Aragorn was by far the most difficult role to cast in the movie. Nicholas Cage turned it down, and then Peter Townsend was falsely cast.

Ian Holm played Frodo in a radio play for the BBC in 1981. That's what convinced Jackson to cast him as Bilbo.

There was no break in filming, and sometimes different parts of different films were shot at the same time. There's one famous scene that was shot over the course of a year.

Cage turned down the role because of family obligations. Daniel Day-Lewis also turned down the role.

Shelob is a spider. Apparently, the creature of Shelob was so scary, that Peter Jackson would avoid her on the set. He didn't like spiders.

These are all elven rings! They were forged by an elf-lord named Celebrimbor. Duh.

Apparently, the two epic writers had a tumultuous friendship. It was an argument between them that sparked "The Lord of the Rings" and "The Chronicles of Narnia."

Apparently, Tolkien wrote all the books using two fingers. (The present writer is very impressed by that)

"The Lord of the Rings" trilogy is 1,200 pages long. Just a bit of weekend reading, eh?

Peter Jackson's daughter appears several times in the movie. In one cameo, she plays a young Hobbit.

The name Beren is on his gravestone. His wife's is Luthien. This is in reference to the love between a mortal man and an immortal elf.

Titan, Saturn's moon, has several mountains. These mountains are all named after Tolkien's work. His influence has stretched far!

The Beatles tried to make a movie of "Lord of the Rings." They wanted Stanley Kubrick to direct, but Tolkien said no.

There are five wizards in Middle Earth, and each has their own color. Not all these wizards appear in the movies.

Liv Tyler spoke Elvish. This meant that she had to have an Elvish coach with her at all times.

This was something that Peter Jackson added, which wasn't in the book. He says he did it to create a "darkest hour."

The Silmarillion is Tolkien's posthumous work published by his son. It's VERY complicated.

The wizards that are taking part in the race are called Maiar. They can change form whenever they like!

Viggo was apparently an expert swordsman. He used a steel sword instead of an aluminum one.

Apparently, women in beards were used as extras. Many of the Riders of Rohan were actually ladies with beards on. Time to watch the movie again​.

Originally, the series was only going to be two films. When they were getting way over budget, it was even suggested that it be one film. The Weinstein brothers were trying to cut costs.

Russell Crowe was the backup if Viggo turned it down. He had just finished filming "Gladiator."

Apparently, Viggo got beat up a lot. He broke a number of toes and even tried to glue a tooth back together.

Apparently, the helicopter that others used to get to the set was a no-go for Sean Bean. He chose to take a ski lift instead.

There's a freshman dorm on the UC Irvine campus that is dedicated to Middle Earth. The halls are named after various towns and regions.

The Queen of Denmark actually did the illustrations! She did it under the pseudonym Ingahild Grathmer.

Ian and Elijah actually never filmed a scene together. They probably hung at craft services, though.

Tolkien actually sold the film rights in 1969.