Icon from a picrew by grgikau. Call me Tir or Julian. 37. He/They. Queer. Twitter: @tirlaeyn. ao3: tirlaeyn. 18+ Only. Star Trek. Sandman. IwtV. OMFD. Definitionless in this Strict Atmosphere.
Okay I know we always go on about Marvel’s uncanny casting ability.
But if you thought they were the only ones, let me draw your attention to this man:
Viggo Mortensen, aka Aragorn son of Arathorn, aka Sexiest Ranger in Middle Earth
would hike, often for more than a day, to remote filming locations, in costume, for the sake of authenticity
was the best swordsman Bob Anderson (swordsmaster/instructor for LotR, Pirates of the Caribbean, etc) says he has ever trained
occasionally writes poetry (more book!canon than film!canon but um hello)
does all his own stunts
lived all over and speaks about 23940209384 languages
you know that scene at the end of Fellowship when he’s fighting the Uruk-hai? And one throws a dagger at him and he hits it away with his sword? Yeah, the guy who threw it was supposed to miss, but accidentally threw it directly at Viggo. Who just casually Aragorned and hit it away.
They actually cast Aragorn to play Aragorn
Can I just add a few things?
Would randomly give chocolates to the hobbits
According to John Rhys-Davis (aka Gimli), whenever you have a large cast, one or two actors will naturally become the leaders. Guess who ended up in that role.
Single-handedly convinced cast and crew to camp out to shoot a scene in the sunrise
Once hit a wild rabbit with his car by accident. Promptly stopped his car and went to see if the rabbit was dead, needed a vet or if the only merciful thing to do was to finish killing him. The rabbit was dead. Viggo realized he was hungry. So he took the rabbit, made a fire by the roadside and ate it.
According to cast and crew, sometimes you’d just see him disappear in the middle of the night and suddenly he’d come back with fish he’d caught
Had his sword with him at all times. Slept with once.
The best horse rider of the cast, hands down. Rides better than lots of pros, according to a horse trainer. Couldn’t bear to part with his horse at the end of the shooting, so he bough him. The next movie of his also involved horses, and he bought his horse in that one, too.
Knows how to survive in the wild. I’m not kidding.
Hand-stitched a few things in his costume for an authentic “I live away from civilization” Ranger feel. Also told the weapons department to make him a small bow because “Aragorn lives in the wild, he needs a hunting bow, or he’ll starve to death” - literally nobody else had thought about that. Also requested a small stone to sharpen his sword. Suggested that Aragorn would take Boromir’s arm guards after his death.
Speaking of hand-stitching, once he was touring Japan with a reporter for an article. Walked into a store, took a tshirt, bought it, cut off the print and hand-stitched it into the hat he was wearing. The reporter was going “?????????” the entire time.
Peter Jackson literally sometimes called him Aragorn by accident
• Came up with the tune for the Song of Lúthien that he sings in the Extended Edition.
• Not only was he the best swordsman Bob Anderson trained, prior to filming, he had absolutely no training WHATSOEVER.
• The fight on Weathertop was the first thing he filmed as Aragorn, with like a couple weeks of training, and he did in wonderfully.
• He and Sean Bean basically became brothers on the set, very much like how their characters came to consider each other brothers.
• He made friends with the stunt crew—who were almost entirely native Maori—by head butting them. It became so popular that it spawned the head-butting greeting between Balin and Dwalin in The Hobbit.
Don’t forget that he almost WASN’T cast as Aragorn, they cast a different guy first and then were like “wait no, he’s too young” and asked Viggo. He wasn’t sure about it, but his son Henry, who was 11 or so at the time he got the call, was a big Lord of the Rings fan and convinced him to do it. We stan Henry Mortensen for helping us get the best Aragorn as Aragorn
“Dear Christopher,
It has been an honour to have spent time with you in this world. Not just acting together in New Zealand, but especially during those unforgettable sessions in your London home with your lovely wife Gitte. No matter what time of the day I came by, a nice glass of Danish aquavit was served, along with a good cigar or two. These were not needed to stimulate the illuminating conversations and humorous anecdotes you so generously shared, but they certainly were welcome treats. I’m so glad I got to know you a little, and will sorely miss your voice and your glittering gaze. I’ll seek out recordings to accompany my memory of your singular, imposing presence and of that deeply melodious baritone known to millions the world over. Travel well and continue to rumble and shine, my friend.
With love and admiration,
Lille Viggo”
— Viggo Mortensen, in memoriam of Christopher Lee (via nightgerbil)
Okay I know we always go on about Marvel’s uncanny casting ability.
But if you thought they were the only ones, let me draw your attention to this man:
Viggo Mortensen, aka Aragorn son of Arathorn, aka Sexiest Ranger in Middle Earth
would hike, often for more than a day, to remote filming locations, in costume, for the sake of authenticity
was the best swordsman Bob Anderson (swordsmaster/instructor for LotR, Pirates of the Caribbean, etc) says he has ever trained
occasionally writes poetry (more book!canon than film!canon but um hello)
does all his own stunts
lived all over and speaks about 23940209384 languages
you know that scene at the end of Fellowship when he’s fighting the Uruk-hai? And one throws a dagger at him and he hits it away with his sword? Yeah, the guy who threw it was supposed to miss, but accidentally threw it directly at Viggo. Who just casually Aragorned and hit it away.
