Gandalf the Grey’s final moments from The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
get recreated in a stunningly-realized new cosplay. Serving as an adaptation of source material from J.R.R. Tolkien, Peter Jackson’s debut installment in his Lord of the Rings trilogy chronicles the first leg of the journey in Frodo Baggins’ (Elijah Wood) epic quest to destroy the One Ring. Ian McKellen’s Gandalf plays a crucial role in the first half of the film, but memorably appears to meet his end while fighting the Balrog in Khazad-dûm, falling into the depths of the mountain.
This iconic Gandalf moment from The Fellowship of the Ring now gets recreates with some impressive camera effects in a new Lord of the Rings cosplay from @gandalfcosplay on Instagram. The post seemingly features the cosplay artist using some creative perspective shifting while lying on a rocky ground to make it look as if he were holding on for dear life above a mᴀssive hole in the Earth.
The post even includes the caption “Fly you fools!” which marks Gandalf the Grey’s final words to the Frodo and the Fellowship before he lets go of the rocks and tumbles into the darkness with the Balrog. Check out the cosplay below:
\n”‘};
window.arrayOfEmbedScripts[“instagram”] = “null”;
What The Gandalf Cosplay Means For Lord Of The Rings
The Franchise’s Next Steps Explained
It’s now been more than 20 years since Gandalf fell into the caverns below Moria in Fellowship of the Ring, but the moment remains one of the most iconic from the trilogy. The cosplay above speaks to the enduring love that exists for the franchise and helps to explain its current direction. After Jackson seemingly concluded his time in Middle-earth with the end of The Return of the King (2003), he eventually returned to make his more divisive Hobbit trilogy. Now, his vision of Middle-earth is set to return once more.
As Prime Video’s The Rings of Power TV show continues to exist on its own, the braintrust of Jackson, Philippa Boyens, and Fran Walsh are plotting a return to Middle-earth with The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum. Jackson is set to produce the project, which will hail from Gollum actor Andy Serkis, with a story set during the events of Fellowship of the Ring. The door is now open for a return from original Lord of the Rings cast members, including McKellen, who told The Times of reprising his role: “If I’m alive.”
As can be understood from Tolkien’s source material, the story of The Hunt for Gollum will follow Gandalf and Aragorn as they attempt to find Gollum before he can tell Sauron of Frodo.
Our Take On The Gandalf Cosplay
Love For The Original Trilogy Persists
Even two decades later, Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy is rightfully hailed as a masterpiece of fantasy filmmaking, and something works in the genre continue to be compared against. The Rings of Power has been divisive and the recently-released The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim (2024) was a major box office flop. The pressure is on, then, for Serkis’ The Hunt for Gollum to succeed and recapture the magic of the original trilogy, delivering moments that will eventually be cosplayed decades down the line.
It also raises questions, however, about whether The Hunt for Gollum will end up being more than just a play on viewers’ nostalgia due to its planned story and setting.
On its own, the cosplay above is an impressive work of creativity, both in terms of the makeup and costuming, but also the pH๏τography and effects. It also raises questions, however, about whether The Hunt for Gollum will end up being more than just a play on viewers’ nostalgia due to its planned story and setting. Regardless of what comes next, it’s clear that love for the original Lord of the Rings trilogy and its characters remains as strong as ever.
Source: @gandalfcosplay
