Here’s how to watch The Lord of the Rings movies in both chronological order and by release date

Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings movies make up one of the most popular fantasy series ever put to screen, but there are multiple different viewing orders that make sense for this story. The movies are based on the works of British author J.R.R. Tolkien, whose original fantasy books take place in Middle-earth and follow a wide selection of Humans, Elves, Dwarves, and Hobbits as they battle against the dark forces of evil that threaten their universe.

Since Peter Jackson’s two trilogies take place at completely different points in time, audiences are now given a choice regarding how they want to experience this story. There are pros and cons to both Lord of the Rings viewing orders (release order and chronological order), with each option revealing information at different times and changing the way certain plot twists and surprises work. Plus, with the release of The Rings of Power on Amazon Prime Video, the cinematic timeline has become even more complex and non-linear.

How Many Lord Of The Rings Movies Are There?

There Are Currently Eight Lord Of The Rings Movies

There are a total of eight movies adapted from J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth books, six in Peter Jackson’s modern series and two animated movies released in 1978 and 1980 respectively. That breaks down into three The Lord of the Rings movies and three The Hobbit movies, set before them in the Tolkien cinematic timeline. The first movie adapted from Tolkien’s books was the 1978 animated The Lord Of The Rings, directed by Ralph Bakshi. That was followed in 1980 by a Rankin-Bass animated adaptation of The Return of the King. Jackson’s LOTR trilogy then kicked off in the early 2000s.

Movie
Release Year

Ralph Bakshi’s The Lord Of The Rings
1978

Bass & Rankin’s The Return of the King
1980

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
2001

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
2002

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
2003

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
2012

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
2013

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies
2014

Warner Bros. now has plans for multiple new LotR movies adapted from the books, with a new live-action series, the upcoming The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim movie and Amazon’s Rings of Power season 2 incoming.

The LOTR Movies & Hobbit Movies In Order (By Release)

The Best Way To Watch The Lord Of The Rings Movies

Elijah Wood as Frodo in The Lord of the Rings

Watching The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit in the order these movies were released is the most authentic way of experiencing the story, with everything happening in the order the writers intended. The characters are introduced when they should be, their arcs happen naturally, and Jackson’s direction guides the audience gently through the story without much confusion. For new audiences, watching The Lord of the Rings in release order undoubtedly makes the most sense.

The Lord Of The Rings Movies In Order By Release Date

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
December 19, 2001

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
December 18, 2002

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
December 17, 2003

The Hobbit Movies In Order By Release Date

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
December 14, 2012

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
December 13, 2013

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies
December 17, 2014

While The Hobbit trilogy is a prequel to The Lord of the Rings, the two series are actually best enjoyed in reverse order. The importance of this viewing order becomes clear once audiences reach Jackson’s The Hobbit movies. These sequels assume that audiences are already familiar with characters from the original trilogy, including Gandalf, Galadriel, and Saruman, inserting them into this story without much explanation.

This is just one of many differences between The Hobbit movies and the book. A good background knowledge of The Lord of the Rings will really help audiences make the most of this trilogy, enabling them to recognize characters and locations as soon as they appear.

The Lord Of The Rings Franchise In Order Of Events

The Saga In Chronological Order (Including The Rings Of Power)

Watching The Lord of the Rings movies and TV shows in chronological order is simpler than many other franchises, as the stories neatly follow on from one-another outside an incredibly limited number of scenes (such as the opening of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, which has a brief moment with Frodo and the older Bilbo).

While Amazon’s The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power is technically part of the Peter Jackson Lord of the Rings canon, it does spiritually pay homage to the acclaimed cinematic trilogy in a number of ways — enough so that, when viewing the story in chronological order, it fits in nicely as a precursor to The Hobbit trilogy. It’s not essential viewing though, especially since The Rings of Power takes place millennia prior to the events of The Hobbit.

Movie/Show
Release Year

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power
2022-Present