Could The Hobbit Films See Saruman's Return?

By Rafe Telsch: 2008-06-05 18:34:43

Considering how successful the Lord of the Rings movies were, it should come as no surprise that just about everyone associated with them wants a piece of the new Hobbit movie. Even people behind the scenes are probably declaring how much they’d love to be a piece of the new films in trade magazines and secret guild handshakes. While getting as much of the old band back together definitely interests me, none of the names who have said “I’m in” have intrigued me as much as Christopher Lee.

Lee played the wizard Saruman in the trilogy – or two movies of the trilogy depending on which version of the films you watch. His scene from Return of the King, which gave closure to the character’s story arc, was excised from the film for a shorter running time – a move Lee was incredibly critical about.

What I appreciated about Lee’s very public comments at the time was that the complaints weren’t coming from an actor whining about a loss of screen time. Lee is incredibly knowledgeable about all things Tolkien, and he felt cutting that scene was a mistake from the story side of things. This is an actor who didn’t complain about the loss of Tom Bombadil or changes to the Ents. Instead he took most of Jackson’s changes in stride, offering constructive criticism when he thought something was detrimental (and who didn’t think the sudden disappearance of such a major antagonist was a little weird).

So, how does Lee feel about the plans to make a Hobbit movie, plus another picture filling in some of the Tolkien gaps? Apparently he’s not complaining, since he told Empire Online he’d be happy to play Saruman again. Warning for the weak however – his answer gets pretty geeky, but it’s worth including in its entirety:

“I’ve read the books time and again. Originally Saruman The White and the rest of the wizards, or the Istari as they call them, were immortal. There were five of them, two of them never appear, I know their names but they never appear, and the only three that are mentioned are Saruman The White, Gandalf The Grey and Radagast The Brown who you never see – so basically it’s two wizards.

“They lived for thousands of years and they were sent to the earth and they are virtually immortal. When it all started, Saruman was the noblest, the finest, the bravest, the most dependable and reliable of them all, he was number one. But somewhere, somehow, and it was never actually explained, he turns and it’s probably the Palantír (the wizard’s crystal ball thingy) that makes Saruman realise that if Sauron can do this, why can’t I do it and Saruman wants to become The Lord Of The Rings himself.”

“I’d be interested in seeing how that transition from good to evil occurred and, yes, of course I would return to the role if I was asked.”

I don’t know if a return of the wizard is what Guillermo del Toro or Peter Jackson had in mind, but I’d definitely be interested in seeing Lee return to the role and show us a little bit of the character’s descent into darkness. They better act soon, however. At 86 years old, Lee can’t exactly sit around and wait forever.

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