The Lord of the Rings movies bring most of the character arcs to satisfying conclusions; however, their stories’ endings are more detailed in the books. After Sauron’s defeat, most of the main characters lived out (presumably) peaceful lives. Several of them left Middle Earth from the Grey Havens, while others rebuilt and ruled their kingdoms, and a few even had children. The Return of the King novel and its movie adaptation emphasize how the Hobbits, at least, aren’t sure how to return to life in the Shire. The best any of them can hope for is no more war.

The Lord of the Rings novels are extensively detailed, which is one of the reasons the Lord of the Rings extended editions have become so popular. The most important scenes in the Lord of the Rings extended editions completely change the story; this includes some clarifications on how certain characters’ stories end. However, other arcs are still left somewhat unfinished in the Lord of the Rings movies, leaving fans who only watched the adaptations curious about what happens next to these beloved characters.

Frodo Baggins

Frodo leaves Middle Earth for the Undying Lands.

The Scouring of the Shire is cut from the Return of the King movie, which would have been a major event in all the Hobbits’ lives when they returned home. After the Scouring, Frodo briefly serves as the deputy mayor of the Shire. Still pained by the physical and psychological wounds of the war, Frodo eventually resigns. As a former Ring-bearer, Frodo is permitted by the Valar to come to the Undying Lands to escape some of this pain. He has a tearful goodbye with the other Hobbits; Frodo lives and passes away on the island of Tol Eressëa.

Sam Gamgee

Sam has a family with Rosie, but also eventually leaves the Shire.

As he was briefly a Ring-bearer, Sam is allowed into the Undying Lands and may have reunited with Frodo.

Upon returning to the Shire, Sam marries Rosie Cotton. Frodo leaves the couple Bag End; he also remains in the Shire for the birth of Sam’s daughter, whom Frodo himself names Elanor. Sam and Rosie have 13 children, three of whom are named after Frodo, Merry, and Pippin. Sam also becomes the mayor of the Shire. After his wife passes away, Sam gives the Red Book of Westmarch (containing Bilbo and Frodo’s memoirs) to Elanor and also leaves the Shire for the Grey Havens. As he was briefly a Ring-bearer, Sam is allowed into the Undying Lands and may have reunited with Frodo.

Merry Brandybuck

Merry and Pippin both marry when they return to the Shire.

Merry and Pippin return to the Shire and are noticed as now being the tallest of the Hobbits (Merry is slightly taller than Pippin) due to having drunk Ent-draught. Merry marries Estella Bolger and has at least one son, although his family line after this is not detailed. He also becomes the Master of Buckland and writes the book Old Words and Names in the Shire. Merry and Pippin remain best friends and undertake some of their final adventures together, before being laid to rest together, alongside their old friend Aragorn.

Pippin Took

Pippin and Merry also both return to Gondor at the end of their lives.

Pippin marries Diamond of Long Cleeve and has a son named Faramir, who marries Sam’s daughter Goldilocks Gardner. Pippin also becomes the Shire-thain, or the Thain of the Shire, its military leader; he holds this position for 50 years. He then resigns from this position and leaves the Shire with Merry to see Rohan and Gondor again. Both of them spend the rest of their lives in Gondor. When they pass away, Merry and Pippin are entombed with Aragorn, who is then known as King Elessar. Therefore, Pippin and Merry’s stories end with them renewing the bonds they formed during the war.

Bilbo Baggins

After a long tenure as the Ring-bearer, Bilbo voyages to the Undying Lands.

After leaving the Shire, Bilbo resides at Rivendell, hosted by Elrond. Bilbo is also recognized as a former Ring-bearer, as he (somewhat unintentionally) kept the One Ring hidden from Sauron for much of his life. Before departing Middle Earth, Bilbo turns 131, becoming the oldest Hobbit who ever lived. He then accompanies Frodo and Gandalf when they leave Middle Earth from the Grey Havens. However, this journey would not have made Bilbo immortal. As he was already very old and his life was no longer being sustained by the One Ring, Bilbo would likely have soon died naturally.

Gandalf

Gandalf ties up some loose threads before leaving Middle Earth.

Gandalf was sent to Middle Earth to help its inhabitants combat Sauron. When this task was accomplished more than 2000 years later, Gandalf had no reason to remain. Gandalf personally crowns Aragorn at his coronation and goes on a journey to bid farewell to all the remaining members of the Fellowship. Gandalf parts with the Hobbits at the border of the Shire and goes to speak with Tom Bombadill; it is speculated that he spends the next two years engaged in this conversation. Gandalf then reunites with Frodo to leave Middle Earth and becomes Olórin (his original name) again.

Aragorn

Aragorn rules Gondor as the great King Elessar.

Aragorn rules the Reunited Kingdom of Arnor and Gondor for more than a century, heralding a new era of prosperity and increased cooperation between humans, Elves, and Dwarves. He becomes widely known as King Elessar. His family comes to be known as the House of Telcontar, with Telcontar being Quenya for “Strider.” Shortly after his coronation, Aragorn marries Arwen; they have a son named Eldarion and several unnamed daughters. Arwen stays by Aragorn’s side until he dies, and he is succeeded by Eldarion as the King of the Reunited Kingdom.

Arwen

Arwen marries Aragorn and is with him for the rest of his life.

Arwen and Aragorn reunite after the war in Minis Tirith and are married, making her the new queen. Arwen chooses a mortal life and parts ways with her family, including her father Elrond and her grandmother Galadriel, who both leave Middle Earth for the Undying Lands. Arwen gives her place on the ships to the Undying Lands to Frodo. Arwen is married to Aragorn for 122 years and serves as the queen of his prosperous kingdom. A year after Aragorn’s death, Arwen dies of a broken heart in Lothlórien, her other primary residence besides Rivendell before she married.

Legolas

Legolas and Gimli explore more of Middle Earth together after the war.

After the conclusion of the main Lord of the Rings saga, Legolas’ storyline continues to be characterized by his friendship with Gimli. Legolas attends Aragorn’s coronation and his wedding to Arwen. After this, he and Gimli return to Helm’s Deep to explore the Glittering Caves, the cave system behind the Deeping Wall. They also travel through Fangorn Forest and Ithilien. In the latter region, Legolas comes across some of his own people again and receives his father’s permission to remain in Middle Earth and help rebuild. However, Legolas also departs for the Undying Lands after Aragorn’s death.

Gimli

Gimli leaves Middle Earth for the Undying Lands with Legolas.

Gimli leads a number of Dwarves to establish a new settlement in the Glittering Caves and becomes the first Lord of the Glittering Caves. Gimli and these Dwarves help rebuild Minis Tirith’s gate with Mithril, as well as improve upon the city’s infrastructure. When Legolas builds his own ship to travel to the Undying Lands, he invites Gimli to accompany him. Gimli accepts because of their enduring friendship and his wish to see Galadriel again, making him the only Dwarf to go to the Undying Lands. Neither Gimli nor Legolas are seen in Middle Earth again.

Faramir

Faramir marries Éowyn and becomes the Prince of Ithilien.

Faramir meets and falls in love with Éowyn while they are both recovering from their wounds from the final battle. Faramir briefly rules as the Steward of Gondor, primarily to prepare it for Aragorn’s return. However, upon being crowned king, Aragorn says that Faramir and his descendants will still be the Stewards of Gondor. Aragorn also makes Faramir the Prince of Ithilien, one of Gondor’s territories. Faramir and Éowyn marry, settle in Emyn Arnen, and have at least one son called Elboron. Faramir serves as one of Aragorn’s chief commanders and counselors until his death at 120 years old.

Éowyn

Éowyn falls in love with Faramir in return and lives a peaceful life.

Somewhat controversially, Éowyn leaves behind life as a warrior after killing the Witch-King and has a quiet life with Faramir and their son. Faramir discusses with her the desire she had for glory, something he perhaps shared, living in the shadow of his favored older brother. They are married after Théoden’s funeral and Éomer’s coronation as the King of Rohan. Éowyn has Merry named a Knight of the Riddermark and gifts him the Horn of Rohan when they part ways. Éowyn’s descendants include her grandson Barahir, who writes The Tale of Aragorn and Arwen. The date of her death is unknown.

Saruman

Saruman is killed during the Scouring of the Shire.

Like Gandalf, Saruman was sent to Middle Earth to fight Sauron but was corrupted by him. When Isengard is overrun by the Ents, Saruman is imprisoned there for some time before convincing the Ents to let him leave. As he no longer has the power to fight Gandalf, Saruman decides to hurt the Hobbits instead as revenge. Saruman goes to the Shire and takes control with help from Lotho Sackville-Baggins, accompanied by Grima Wormtongue. After the Battle of the Bywater to retake the Shire, Frodo exiles Saruman, but Grima turns on him and slits his throat.

Elrond

Elrond parts ways with his daughter and is possibly reunited with his wife.

One of the oldest characters in Lord of the Rings, Elrond, as well as the rest of his family, served Middle Earth for thousands of years. Elrond’s wife Celebrían was captured by Orcs and rescued; however, due to the trauma from this experience, she chose to leave for the Undying Lands. Elrond sent his twin sons Elladan and Elrohir to Rohan during the war. The twins returned to Rivendell after the war; it is not known if they stayed in Middle Earth. After his daughter’s wedding, Elrond departed from Middle Earth and may have been reunited with his wife.

Galadriel

Galadriel leaves Middle Earth with Gandalf, Elrond, and Celeborn.

Galadriel and her husband Celeborn are among the characters who leave Middle Earth in one of the final scenes of the Lord of the Rings trilogy. They may have been reunited with their daughter Celebrían. Galadriel attends Aragorn and Arwen’s wedding before departing and may be responsible for Gimli being admitted to the Undying Lands. If the events of The Rings of Power are accurate, Galadriel would be fulfilling this destiny after choosing to remain in Middle Earth thousands of years earlier. Like many other characters, Galadriel is free after the defeat of Sauron.