How ‘Lord of the Rings’ Gave Us the Marvel Cinematic Universe

Today marks the 40th anniversary of Ralph Bakshi’s animated Lord of the Rings film, an absolutely enchanting film that gave us one seriously catchy song about Frodo of the Nine Fingers. Bakshi’s film also helped inspire arguably a much more influential series, Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy. When The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring came out it sparked a fantasy revolution. At long last, stories about magic, swords, and fiery fates were not only cool, but also lucrative. The trilogy’s success inspired many copycats, from Eragon to The Golden Compass to HBO’s hit series Game of Thrones. But Jackson’s inventive all-encompassing approach to epic storytelling also inspired another cinematic juggernaut: the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Yeah, I know. It seems like a stretch. The Lord of the Rings is an elegiac masterwork that makes myths seem human and the moral battle between good and evil torturous. By contrast, the MCU can come across as a whizzbang circus show full of crowd-pleasing goofs and all-too-perfect superbeings. But it’s impossible to imagine any of the Marvel films existing without The Lord of the Rings.

In order to see the connection between Frodo and Iron Man, you’ve got to think about how The Lord of the Rings changed how movies could be made. Though it was far from the first successful trilogy to come out of Hollywood, Jackson’s films were some of the first major big-budget projects to be filmed back-to-back in one continuous shoot. Furthermore, the decision to make three movies was strictly business. Jackson was initially hoping to adapt Tolkein’s three books into two movies, but New Line Cinema suggested they make three movies instead. (Sequel money! Video sales! Dollar signs, people!) In the end, this strategic business call means that The Lord of the Rings trilogy has to work as a complete multi-film story. Each film serves a larger whole, and every tiny detail ties into something larger in the grand universe.

Marvel’s films take this idea a step further. True, the original Iron Man was designed to stand alone, but the numerous Easter Eggs and inventive stinger (i.e. that final scene where Samuel L. Jackson’s Nick Fury explains that Iron Man is taking his first steps into a larger world) introduce audiences to the idea that there is a bigger story being told. Today, the reason why the MCU is considered such a mind-boggling success is that Marvel Studios has managed to make 20 successful films over 10 years that weave together to tell one epic story. These films also feature heroic figures, complex battle sequences, dazzling special effects, and a dense fictional universe. In short, they’re just blasted out versions of The Lord of the Rings trilogy.

Marvel Studios chief Kevin Feige has said that one of his dreams for the company was to “build something that was as expansive and as experiential as what people who’ve read comics over the years could get.” That’s a pretty good description of what Jackson’s films did for Tolkien fanatics. It was the first time it seemed like they could touch the actual ring, feel as though they were really in Rivendale, or even cower before the Eye of Sauron’s glare. Marvel pulled it off, but Lord of the Rings did it first.

In a way, the MCU actually does owe as much to Ralph Bakshi’s quirky animated version of the tale as it does to Peter Jackson’s mega-successful live action films. That’s because Peter Jackson didn’t first learn about Gandalf and Gollum from the pages of Tolkein’s classic books, but from the Bakshi movie. The teenaged Jackson was curious to know more about these elves and hobbits, and then read Tolkein’s original text, thus sending him off on a life-long mission to adapt the films. So next time you’re settled in to see a major Marvel movie on opening night or watching Black Panther on Netflix, remember that those films not only owe a lot to the work of comic book creators, but also to a sweet animated film from 1978.

Where to Stream The Lord of the Rings (1978)