Weta Lord of the Rings - Bag End Environment

[JeffSaylor]

There and Back Again...

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Founded in 1987, Weta Workshop continues to be one of the premiere effects and props in the world, having worked on such films as Lord of the Rings, King Kong, District 9 and most recently The Adventures of Tin Tin. The Miramar, New Zealand based company has wowed fans over the years, not only with their amazing film work, but also the fantastic collectibles the artisans have produced from statues and busts, to prop replicas and dioramas.

The latest environment in their ongoing Lord of the Rings collection is one of the most iconic locations in the books and films. In the Shire, home to little people known as Hobbits, is a particular town called Hobbiton. It is here in Hobbiton, at the end of Bagshot Row, that the dwelling known as Bag End was built. This particular residence was the home to Bilbo Baggins, the famous Hobbit who adventured alongside dwarves and the wizard Gandalf in the book The Hobbit and came to possess the One Ring. The dwelling (and the ring) was left to his nephew Frodo Baggins during the events of The Lord of The Rings trilogy when Bilbo decided to move on from his small town and go on one last adventure, giving up his worldly possessions and going to live with the elves.

The piece comes packaged in a full-color box featuring an all-black color scheme with stunning photography of the sculpture, as well as photos of the location from the film. The right hand side of the box features photos of other collectibles available from WETA in their Lord of the Rings collection while the back of the box has a short bio talking about Bag End. Inside the environment is protected by a form-fitting Styrofoam shell with the tree coming as a separate piece and both parts being wrapped in tissue paper.

The Bag End environment is incredibly detailed, with a ton of small details and textures that capture the look and feel of the film perfectly. Most of the sculpture revolves around the lush greenery and plant life growing around and on the Hobbit hole including the large tree that grows out from the roof of the building. Despite being small, the various little touches are all visible such as the work tables and tools, stone path, windows, chimneys, and the iconic green door. Everything is painted extremely well too in spite of the size, with a wide range of colors including an impressive amount of blending and color variation in the greenery. The house sits on a classy black base that is smooth in comparison with the textured sculpture. The bottom of the base features the credits for the creative team behind the sculpture including creative director Richard Taylor.

Weta Workshop continues to produce amazing sculptures and film work and this latest sculpture is no exception. With the elven city of Rivendell and Saruman’s Black Tower of Isengard, Orthanc, on the way, fans won’t want to miss this iconic piece for their collection. The Bag End environment, both in an Open Edition, and a limited Collector’s Edition featuring an additional sculpted interior on the reverse side, is available now from the Weta Shop.


Review and Photos by Michael Klein

Review Sample Courtesy of Weta

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