The four Hobbit actors from the original The Lord of the Rings trilogy get photobombed in a recent image taken at a reunion dinner. Based on the iconic J. R. R. Tolkien fantasy novels, Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings trilogy first hit theaters in 2001, introducing audiences to the vast world of Middle-earth. The first film in the franchise, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, tells the story of Frodo Baggins (Elijah Wood) and the first steps on his journey to take the One Ring to Mordor in order to destroy it.
Although Frodo is the one who carries the Ring, he is accompanied by three Hobbit friends: Sam (Sean Astin), his best friend, Merry (Dominic Monaghan), and Pippin (Billy Boyd). The four friends become separated at the end of the first film, seeing Frodo and Sam undertake the journey to Mordor alone after Merry and Pippin get captured by Uruk-hai. Although Frodo and Sam would remain separated from Merry and Pippin for most of the second and third Lord of the Rings movies, the group eventually enjoys an emotional reunion at the end of the final film.
Although the third Lord of the Rings film was released almost 20 years ago, it's clear that all four Hobbit actors are still good friends, as shown by a recent picture posted on Monaghan's Instagram. His caption to the photo teases that the friends shared "stories that will have to die with the Shire folk," but also shouts out an "epic" photobomb from the gentleman sitting at the table behind them. Check out the sweet picture (and the photobomb) below:
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Despite the fact that it's now been nearly two decades since the group last worked together as Hobbits on The Lord of the Rings, the experience they had clearly resulted in a powerful bond. The three films were shot simultaneously, with principal photography lasting from October 1999 to December 2000, with months' worth of pick-up shots filmed after that. Considering most movies, even massive blockbusters, are shot in the span of several months, the New Zealand-based The Lord of the Rings production was evidently a massive undertaking that required all four Hobbit actors to work closely and get along for long periods of time.
For many, Jackson's The Lord of the Rings trilogy remains the pinnacle of fantasy entertainment. Characters like Frodo, Sam, Merry, and Pippin remain popular cultural touchstones even today, and despite the love for characters like Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen) and Gandalf (Ian McKellen), the four Hobbit characters are the heart of the whole trilogy. Even though it's been a while since the actors last worked together, fans of The Lord of the Rings will surely be happy to see that the group still makes time to grab dinner together - the man who photobombed them clearly was!
Source: Dominic Monaghan/ Instagram