What is the iRankMovies score for The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King?

Name: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Director: Peter Jackson
Genre: action, adventure, fantasy
Released: 2003
Duration: 3 h 21 min
Rating: 9

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King has an iRankMovies score of 91.2/100, based on a weighted combination of IMDb (×3.0), Rotten Tomatoes (×2.0), Metacritic (×1.5), and TMDb (×1.0).

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)

The eye of the enemy is moving.

Release:2003

Runtime:3h 21m

Country:New Zealand

Director:Peter Jackson

Language:English

Genre

ActionAdventureFantasy

See the best action movies →

Keywords

ArmyBased On Novel Or BookElvesDwarfmagicKingdomObsessionAllegory

iRank91

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King rating: IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic

IMDb9/10· 2.2M votes

Rotten Tomatoes94%

Metacritic94%

TMDb8.498/10· 27K votes

With 94% on Rotten Tomatoes, backed by 9/10 on IMDb and 94/100 on Metacritic, critical reception of this film has been very positive.

About The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

As armies mass for a final battle that will decide the fate of the world--and powerful, ancient forces of Light and Dark compete to determine the outcome--one member of the Fellowship of the Ring is revealed as the noble heir to the throne of the Kings of Men. Yet, the sole hope for triumph over evil lies with a brave hobbit, Frodo, who, accompanied by his loyal friend Sam and the hideous, wretched Gollum, ventures deep into the very dark heart of Mordor on his seemingly impossible quest to destroy the Ring of Power.

Cast of The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

Elijah Wood
as Frodo
Ian McKellen
as Gandalf
Viggo Mortensen
as Aragorn
Sean Astin
as Sam
Andy Serkis
as Gollum / Smeagol
Dominic Monaghan
as Merry
Billy Boyd
as Pippin
John Noble
as Denethor
David Wenham
as Faramir
Miranda Otto
as Éowyn
Bernard Hill
as Théoden
John Rhys-Davies
as Gimli

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King facts

Budget: $94M
Box office: $1.1B
Collection: The Lord of the Rings Collection

Our take on The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

Peter Jackson's trilogy finale brings Frodo's quest and the war for Middle-earth to a monumental close, balancing vast battlefield spectacle with the small, exhausted heroism of two hobbits crossing Mordor. It's epic fantasy at its most emotionally complete. If its blend of grand scale and intimate stakes stayed with you, Jackson's own Hobbit films offer the nearest return to that world, while sweeping fantasy adventures chase the same sense of journey, sacrifice and wonder.

Ranked by the iRankMovies editorial teamUpdated August 2026Methodology Data sources

Audience opinions

What the audience liked

•Epic scale and visual spectacle achieve unprecedented grandeur in fantasy cinema
•Emotional climax earns its weight through patient character development arcs
•Battle sequences demonstrate innovative choreography balancing spectacle with clarity

What the audience disliked

•Extended runtime with multiple endings tests patience of contemporary audiences significantly
•Heavy reliance on CGI occasionally undermines practical effects credibility of moments

Saga: The Lord of the Rings Collection