Gil-galad – Missing From Peter Jackson’s Trilogy But Not Forgotten.

Peter Jackson’s adaptations of Tolkien’s trilogy, despite there merit, do suffer as a result of the characters and storylines that were eliminated. There are a wealth of stills and articles available on the internet, from former cast and crew that show scenes that were filmed and either deleted or abandoned. I do not wish to debate the rights or wrongs of these decisions but do certainly hope that as much of this material is featured as extras in the forthcoming Blu-ray release of the extended editions of the trilogy.

The character of Gil-galad the last High King of the Noldor, was initially included in the opening scenes of FOTR. Played by Australian actor Mark Ferguson, scenes were shot including his death at the hands of Sauron but ultimately deleted from the theatrical and extended version of the film. It has been suggested that the removal of both Gil-galad and Elendil (played by Peter McKenzie) was purely to avoid confusion for viewers unfamiliar with Tolkien’s work.

Mark Ferguson has recounted the details of the missing scenes at several festivals and conventions he has attended.The video below show him recreating the specific material live on stage with fellow actor Craig Parker who played Haldir. There is also a range of T-Shirts available confirming and celebrating his brief appearance in the film.

 
Film making is a curious business as obviously at one point during the production, there was a role developed, dialogue written, costume and weapons designed and created. Yet a single meeting or screening of daily rushes removed all that work with the stroke of a pen or an email. It’s a shame as one of the strongest aspects of Jacksons film was the production design. It is clear from the footage of Gil-galad that remains in the film and the stills in circulation, that a lot of effort had gone into the characters visualisation.

As a character Gil-galad is of great interest due to him being somewhat enigmatic, as the following biography shows:

Gil-galad was the last of the High Kings of the Noldor-in-Exile in Middle-earth. After the War of Wrath and the end of the First Age, Gil-galad founded a realm in the coastal region of Lindon along the shores of Belegaer, the Great Sea. At its height, his realm extended eastward as far as the Misty Mountains, though most of the Eldar remained in Lindon and in Elrond’s refuge of Rivendell.

According to The Fellowship of the Ring, Gil-galad was the first of the Eldar to mistrust a stranger calling himself Annatar, and forbade him from entering Lindon. His mistrust was well founded, for it was soon learned that Annatar was in fact Sauron. After Sauron forged the One Ring, Gil-galad was given one of the Three Elven Rings: Vilya, the Ring of Air (and most probably also Narya, the Ring of Fire). Just before Gil-galad’s death, Elrond was given Vilya for safekeeping (and Narya was given to Círdan).

After the Downfall of Númenor and the establishment by the Elendili of the Dúnadan kingdoms in exile, there was peace in Middle-earth. In the Age’s closing years, however, Sauron reappeared with a newly formed army and a war against the kingdom of Gondor, closest to his old home of Mordor. Gil-galad then formed the Last Alliance of Elves and Men with Elendil, High King of the Dúnedain-in-Exile, The armies of Elves and Men, victorious after the Battle of Dagorlad, laid siege to Sauron in Mordor.

At the end of the siege, both Gil-galad and Elendil aided in the overthrow of Sauron’s physical body yet perished themselves in the assault. At the Council of Elrond, Elrond says that only three people survived the final battle with Sauron: Isildur, Círdan, and himself. A record left by Isildur in Minas Tirith implies that Sauron himself slew Gil-Galad, with the heat of his bare hands.

Gil-galad’s spear was named Aiglos or Aeglos, meaning “snow-point” or “snow-thorn” or more commonly “icicle” (aeg: sharp, pointed; los: snow) because when orcs saw his spear, they would recognize it by its reputation to bring a cold death to them. Elrond said that at the battle of Dagorlad, “we had the mastery: for the Spear of Gil-galad and the Sword of Elendil, Aiglos and Narsil, none could withstand.”

Finally, here is a vocal version of “The Fall of Gil-galad.”, from the soundtrack album of the 1981 BBC Radio adaptation of LOTR. The music is by composer Stephen Oliver although I could not find a credit for the voice artist. This is not the version used in the final broadcast which was sung by actor Bill Nighy. It is a very good interpretation of Tolkien’s poem.