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Iolanthe's Quotable Viggo
17 October 2020 09:08:29 Found By: Iolanthe
It’s wonderful that Viggo has paid homage to Peter Jackson a few times now in interviews about Falling. The Lord of the Rings Trilogy was probably one of the greatest cinematic tests any Director could face and the fact they made it through is because Jackson always believed they could do it. He had a great production team and a great cast of actors, of course, but holding it all together with such energy and grace was a herculean task. Time for some Peter and Viggo moments!
Mortensen made special mention of Peter Jackson, who gave him his break with the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy. "With his intelligence, his energy and problem-solving abilities, he taught his team how to adapt and overcome problems. You can do it if you really want to, there's always a way."
Up Close and Personal With Viggo Mortensen, the Director
Variety
12 October 2020
Describe Peter Jackson in three words.
A decent man.
Viggo Mortensen - Aragorn
Empire magazine
October 2003
"Knowing Viggo now, his conversation was incredibly Viggo-like, but at the time it was incredibly off-putting," Mr. Jackson said. "He was asking about the character: how long has he lived with the elves? Where are his parents? If I didn't know the answer, I'd make it up. There would be this terrible long silence, and I didn't know if the phone had disconnected or not, and then he'd ask another question and there would be 30 more seconds of silence."
"At the very end of the call, I thought it had gone very badly, that he wasn't going to do the role," Mr. Jackson continued. "I was thinking, `What are we going to do now?' as I was waiting for the call to end, and then there was another long silence and Viggo said, `I guess I'll see you on Tuesday.' "
Peter Jackson on offering him the part of Aragorn
The Man Who Would Just As Soon Not Be King
By Sarah Lyall
New York Times, 2003
"While Peter obviously cares a great deal for Tolkien's writing-otherwise he wouldn't have given so much of his life to it - what seems to have drawn him most as a filmmaker was the pure adventure aspect of the tale. The heroic sacrifice of individuals for the common good. All the breathtaking sequences - he really poured himself into those. The more I explored Tolkien, the more I felt I had two bosses: Tolkien and Peter Jackson. I tried my best to be loyal to both of them."
Viggo Mortensen
We Were All On an Epic Journey
by Jeff Giles, Newsweek magazine
2001
“I was looking at snapshots I have of the crew, Peter, the cast, and obviously people change, but there was more. There's something also in people's eyes, even in Peter's, who knew what he was getting into more than any of us. The way his eyes look, it's the eyes of a person before a major test."
Ringleaders
By Serena French
Flare magazine
January 2004
'Some of the photos are bit blurry though, Viggo, so perhaps you should buy yourself a tripod...
Peter Jackson at the "For Wellington' opening, Massey University
Stars Come Out For Exhibition Launch
Massey University
1st Dec 2003
"Viggo commits himself to a project with the same intensity as the filmmakers - which is rare for an actor," the director says. "After the end of a long day's shooting, when all the other cast would be either in bed or in the bar, [partner and co-screenwriter Fran Walsh] and I would be home grappling with the script for the next week's shooting. At midnight, a nine-page handwritten memo would come rattling through the fax from Viggo, outlining his thoughts about that day's work and the next few days to come. He would suggest passages from the book we should look at. This wasn't an exception - over 15 months it became the rule. In the small hours, it was actually comforting to know there was somebody else out there grappling with the same nightmare that we were."
Peter Jackson
The Hero Returns
By Tom Roston,
Premiere 2003
'Peter has kind of dusted the book off and breathed new life into it, combined it with other stories, and given it a bit of his own imagination. He's revived the book for people in the 21st century.'
Viggo Mortensen
The Lord of the Rings: The Untold Story
By Ian Nathan
Empire
December 2004
"Viggo commits himself to a project with the same intensity as the filmmakers - which is rare for an actor," the director says. "After the end of a long day's shooting, when all the other cast would be either in bed or in the bar, [partner and co-screenwriter Fran Walsh] and I would be home grappling with the script for the next week's shooting. At midnight, a nine-page handwritten memo would come rattling through the fax from Viggo, outlining his thoughts about that day's work and the next few days to come. He would suggest passages from the book we should look at. This wasn't an exception - over 15 months it became the rule. In the small hours, it was actually comforting to know there was somebody else out there grappling with the same nightmare that we were."
Peter Jackson
The Hero Returns
By Tom Roston
Premiere 2003
Viggo has that dark, mysterious, quiet-man quality. He's also very intelligent and private. A lot of people have said these movies are going to make Viggo a big star. I nod and smile, knowing that being a big star is the last thing in the world that Viggo wants. He's completely unimpressed and disinterested in that world. I think he'd prefer to stay home and paint, write his poetry, and enjoy himself rather than play the Hollywood game. That's an aspect of him that I respect a lot.
Peter Jackson
Movieline Magazine
…Jackson [gave] his 8-year-old son's class a tour. He asks the kids questions and videotapes them as he walks backwards through a field of fake dead horses. The children worship the Aragorn character, and they had hoped to meet Mortensen. Later, when asked if they had got their wish, he nods giddily. 'Oh, yep-yep-yep,' he says. 'Viggo's great with kids. He showed them his sword, and then one of the boys very excitedly pointed to his dagger and said, "That's the dagger he stabbed Lurtz with in 'Fellowship of the Ring'!' So then Viggo whipped out his dagger.' Jackson is giggling now. 'Afterwards, one of the kids said to his friends, "Do you think Aragorn would baby-sit children?''
Peter Jackson
Newsweek
1 December 2003
On the very last day of shooting Aragorn fighting the orcs, Peter quietly gave Viggo an Uzi, loaded with blanks, for the last take.
Dan Hennah
Unsung Moments & Unseen Heroes of
The Lord of the Rings
Premiere, November 2004
When I was leaving, Peter Jackson gave me my sword and a tape with my best scenes and also.... the worst!."
Viggo Mortensen on the last day of filming LOTR
Year in the Life of Viggo Mortensen,
by Sophie Benamon
Studio Magazine
2003
You will find all previous Quotables here.
© Viggo-Works/Iolanthe. Images © New Line Productions Inc.
Iolanthe's Quotable Viggo
14 June 2020 14:08:52 Found By: Iolanthe
As this is Aragorn Week, we are staying with Strider and the huge impact Viggo had on the production and everyone around him. Can anyone imagine the films without him? Certainly not the cast, production team and crew. Viggo became the glue that held the team together through tough times. The carer that cheered everyone up and encouraged them, a support to Peter and Fran through his dedication to Tolkien, and an inspiration to young actors with his incredible commitment to the film and his work ethic. If Aragorn is the hero who got the Fellowship of the Ring to the Black Gate, then Viggo is the hero who got the Fellowship of the Film to the end of filming.
We knew we were blessed in having Viggo - who is part-Danish descent - step into the role of Aragorn when he arrived carrying a copy of the Volsunga Saga that he had taken from his bookshelf! Viggo not only has an actor's sense of bringing his character to life, but also an innate understanding of 'the warrior code' and Tolkien's philosophy of heroism.
Philippa Boyens
The Making of the Movie Trilogy
'Viggo came late to the project, but he brought a dedication and an understanding of the role that became an example, particularly to the younger cast members. You have to remember that this was Orlando Bloom's first movie. Not only was Viggo valuable in his performance, but he was valuable as a leader of the cast.'
Barrie Osborne
The Lord of the Rings: The Untold Story
By Ian Nathan
Empire
December 2004
"He got this reputation as an eccentric because he would carry his sword around, but I found it quite inspiring. There was a glimmer in his eye - he was aware of how other people were perceiving him - but he really reawakened in me a sense of the possibilities of what it can be as an actor enjoying a role."
Sean Astin
A Fantastic Leap of Faith
by Brent Simon
Entertainment Today, 2001
"At the end of shooting one day, we went out and had a drink and Viggo was just so encouraging of everybody he'd worked with, including the extras. He always had a kind word to say to everyone. And I don't know anyone who has a bad word to say about him. He bought flowers for all the extras on one incredibly rainy day. He was just really generous with his time but he never talked himself up. He's quite shy about talking about his own achievements. They were really lucky they got him for this. He kind of makes the film for me."
Jed Brophy
Viggo Mortensen
by Desmond Sampson
Pavement #62, 2003
Mortensen's humility and generosity turned his Rings co-stars into some of his biggest fans. They tell you of the time when a snowstorm shut down production. The cast was being transported to safety when Mortensen seized a four-wheel drive vehicle and drove back to the set in order to save the hobbits' four-feet-tall scale doubles from getting snowbound.
The Hero Returns
By Tom Roston
Premiere
January 2003
“There is quiet leadership to him, and it's not intentional, and I think it's simply because he takes care of the people around him."
Wood praises Viggo for quite some time, in these and other ways. Then he interrupts himself, concerned that he is not doing justice to the full complexities of his colleague's character. "We're talking about how much integrity he has and how brilliant he is," says Wood. "He's also completely insane."
Elijah Wood
The Rebel King
By Chris Heath
GQ magazine, 2004
"Viggo commits himself to a project with the same intensity as the filmmakers - which is rare for an actor," the director says. "After the end of a long day's shooting, when all the other cast would be either in bed or in the bar, [partner and co-screenwriter Fran Walsh] and I would be home grappling with the script for the next week's shooting. At midnight, a nine-page handwritten memo would come rattling through the fax from Viggo, outlining his thoughts about that day's work and the next few days to come. He would suggest passages from the book we should look at. This wasn't an exception - over 15 months it became the rule. In the small hours, it was actually comforting to know there was somebody else out there grappling with the same nightmare that we were."
Peter Jackson
The Hero Returns
By Tom Roston
Premiere 2003
"For our love scenes, he would come to me the night before and say he wanted to change all the lines to the Elvish language. He was trying to make that connection stronger, and I thought it was beautiful that they'd speak Elvish to each other because it adds a layer to their history that you wouldn't otherwise see."
Liv Tyler
Mellow Warrior
By Anthony Breznican
South Coast Today
15 December 2003
“…as an actor you can't wish to work with anyone more truthful and more honest than him. He brings an incredible pathos to the role, and I was so pleased to be doing scenes with him."
Sean Bean
A Fantastic Leap of Faith
by Brent Simon
Entertainment Today, 2001
“I’ve been thinking about how much of an influence [Viggo] was on me. He’s so dedicated, disciplined and talented. He taught me a lot. And it was only afterwards that I realised it. It’s funny: you look back on these things 10 years later and ask yourself, ‘Who had a major impact on me?’ As an actor, it was Viggo. I was unpacking a load of boxes recently, recounting old memories, and I remembered how lucky I was that he was around me at that time.”
Orlando Bloom
April 2011
Shortlist.com
"I read an article that said, 'Finally, someone's found the niche for Viggo Mortensen: the rugged hero who has a deep intellect and a great humanity’. That's what Aragorn is, because Viggo has brought that to it. He's very like that as a human being."
Bernard Hill
It's Good to be "King"
by Susan Wloszczyna
USA Today, 2003
“I really don't know what happened myself, but I lost myself completely in the role. I am a man who likes to withdraw into solitude and take long hikes in the woods and mountains. So was Aragorn. We fitted perfectly together.”
Viggo Mortensen
The Lord of the Rings: The Untold Story
By Ian Nathan, Empire
December 2004
"One of the things that appeals to Viggo about Aragorn is that he's not just an action hero," Mr. Jackson continued. "In his own way, Aragorn is just as thoughtful as Viggo. There's a reluctance on his part to become the king he was meant to be. In a sense, that mirrors Viggo's reluctance to become a movie star."
Peter Jackson
The Man Who Would Just As Soon Not Be King
By Sarah Lyall
New York Times, 2003
"In a story like Lord of the Rings, whether the Ring and Sauron are evil is incidental to me. Even if we were not to get the Ring anywhere near Mount Doom. Even if we all died. It doesn't really matter," Mortensen says. "It's the fact that everybody got together and decided to go on this trip. That's the thing. That's the miracle."
Viggo Mortensen
The Hero Returns
By Tom Roston
Premiere 2003
You will find all previous Quotables here.
© Viggo-Works/Iolanthe. Images © New Line Productions, Inc.
Iolanthe's Quotable Viggo
6 June 2020 10:24:48 Found By: Iolanthe
Hasn't it been wonderful to see the LOTR cast back together again for Josh Gad’s ‘One Zoom to Rule Them All’? But of course, Viggo nearly wasn’t amongst them. And I’m not talking about the Zoom reunion but the actual films. Trilogy fans could just have easily been watching them all joshing and reminiscing with Stuart Townsend. Luckily for Tolkien and us, Peter and Fran had the guts to admit a mistake and Fate was kind. After all, there is only One Aragorn to Rule Them All!
Shortly after filming began it was decided that actor Stuart Townsend had been miscast in the role of Aragorn. While mutually agreed, the timing of the decision to recast could scarcely have been worse: Stuart had been preparing with the rest of the Fellowship actors and filming was due to begin on the scenes in which the Hobbits first encounter Aragorn (as Strider) at the Prancing Pony in Bree.
Executive Producer Mark Ordesky takes up the story: "I was in London when I got the call from Peter... We had five days in which to find and cast the right person, make the deal and get him on a plane for New Zealand-for fifteen months! That is an inherently dramatic situation."
For Mark, there was only one contender for the role of Aragorn-Viggo Mortensen: "My wife had seen Viggo in Crimson Tide and pushed me and harangued me to track him down and meet with him. Viggo doesn't 'do lunch' with Hollywood 'suits,' but eventually I got to meet with him and afterward told Peter that I was passionate about finding an opportunity to work with Viggo."
A year later that opportunity arose, but it took brinkmanship to win the day: "We got a script to Viggo and his reaction was to say no! It took three more days to convince him. At the eleventh hour, Viggo Mortensen arrived in Wellington, joined the already bonded cast and stepped into filming almost as unexpectedly as his character, the mysterious and unknown Strider, appears in the story.
The Making of the Movie Trilogy
By Brian Sibley
Harper Collins
2002
"I guess in the end I did it because I would feel that I had been chicken shit really. I had to leave the next day, so I'm on the plane reading, looking at this gigantic book and thinking, 'What the hell have I done?"
Viggo Mortensen
The Man Who Would Be King
by Nick Dent
Black & White magazine 2001
We knew we were blessed in having Viggo - who is part-Danish descent - step into the role of Aragorn when he arrived carrying a copy of the Volsunga Saga that he had taken from his bookshelf! Viggo not only has an actor's sense of bringing his character to life, but also an innate understanding of 'the warrior code' and Tolkien's philosophy of heroism.
Philippa Boyens
The Making of the Movie Trilogy
"I started reading the Tolkien book on the plane the next day, and about an hour into it or so, I started to see the first signs of things that I recognized: archetypes and storylines, particularly from Nordic sagas. . . . That put me somewhat at ease, and realizing that I was going to get to be part of this saga and be some sort of Viking warrior - a heroic character with all the flaws and self-doubt that the best of those saga heroes had."
Viggo Mortensen
Playing the Hero Suits Mortensen Fine
Philadelphia Enquirer, 2002
And Viggo came on quite late. I'm sure you were designing for Stuart Townsend then?
It was terrifying. I didn't know Viggo. It had been a pretty difficult time working with Stewart and the original design for the costume of Aragorn - the costume when working with Stewart went through a number of radical changes. At the very end of that process, it became again the original costume. And that's only something you discover when you find those old drawings again.
It was something that I really loved. And suddenly, they were like, "Well, Stewart's gone - now we have this guy." So the week before shooting, Viggo walked into my covered wardrobe dressing room and neither of us was saying very much. He's a very quiet person and sometimes I'm a very quiet person - particularly over issues like that. We were like, "I'll get you to put this on and we'll see what happens."
I was standing there and my heart was in my mouth - I was willing to start the process again because I know how much it matters. You cannot act a role like that without feeling like you were in your second skin as that character. And I was certainly prepared to do it, but there was a part of me that was knew we were knee-deep in trouble.
Viggo paced up and down and said, "Do you think we could just put a few more ties on these boots?" And in that moment - I had known the first time he put that costume on that it was ten times better on him and that was actually to do with the amount of - just Viggo's experience and age and life. He imbued that costume with its own life. The terrifying thing for me was that I might have an actor who simply wanted to get rid of it, but he did not do that.
He just wanted to add to it. I was in love with Viggo from the beginning. (laughs)
Ngila Dickson
DVDFILE.com Interview
Who knows, perhaps it was because [Viggo] washed and repaired Aragorn's clothes himself that he so perfectly came to inhabit them-to a point, indeed, where the costume seemed almost to blend with his body. [pause] You know, I really do think that particular costume is incredibly beautiful. It seems funny, perhaps, to talk about something that is so worn and broken down, so darned and patched, as being beautiful-but it is to me.
Ngila Dickson
The Making of the Movie Trilogy
'When Viggo came in, he fitted the bill perfectly as Aragorn, and he also had great ideas. When he picks up the Hobbits in the first film, he has this small hunting bow and arrows, like someone who lived in the wild would have. But that's not something we had ever thought about designing for Strider. That was Viggo's idea. He came in and started talking about the character, and said, 'If I live out in the wild, I'd have a small hunting bow for catching food. It would never be a big deal, maybe you'd just see it while I'm making a campfire.' We said, 'Yes that makes complete sense, we didn't think of that, so let's make you a bow'. It was always great to have those kinds of discussions with the actors.'
Christian Rivers
Hail To The King
By Lawrence French
Starburst #305, 2003
I didn't envy [Mortensen] when he arrived. Viggo walked into a very tense situation, threw himself into his role amazingly and quickly won the respect of everyone on the crew.
Recalling Viggo's first day on set: The filming was going on at the far end of the [Prancing Pony] set when I noticed this figure in a dark hood, smoking a pipe, sitting in another corner of the set altogether. Then I realized: it was Viggo. He wasn't required in the scene, he was just sitting there, observing the vibe, he was actually being Strider, being the outsider, the lonely man in the corner that no one spoke to.
Costa Botes, Video Documentarian
Official Movie Guide
How do you 'dive' into fight scenes?
Well the first day I met the fight choreographer, Bob Anderson, who's been around a long time - he taught Errol Flynn to fence and represented the UK at the Olympics. I went into this room and there were all these stunt people standing there and screaming and yelling. He had them all pumped-up and he stood me in front of them and said "Okay, go!" And they all started running at me, and I was like, "Holy shit!" He said "stop" and they all stopped. Then he told me: "This is what you're going to be dealing with so let's get to work..." He gave me a sword and it was just, like, crazy for two days. The first thing I did on camera was swordplay and I liked it. It was fun.
The Ranger - Viggo Mortensen as Aragorn
by Martyn Palmer
Total Film
2002
The first thing I had to do was a swordfight [the confrontation with the Ringwraiths on Weathertop]. Even before I spoke a single word of dialogue, I was forced to confront the physicality of my character. It was probably helpful to do something physical before speaking. More than for any other character, Aragorn's actions speak for him. His choices, the decisions he makes, his physicality, his body, tell you a lot about him. He's a man who throws himself into situations. Which is why it was good to begin my work with a swordfight.
Viggo Mortensen
Official Movie Guide
"I'm still shocked that that was the first thing he did," says Wood, who had an early dinner with Mortensen during which he found him hard to talk with. "But when he started working, there was no question. This was Aragorn, this was the man who was meant to play this role. We had an immense amount of respect for him being able to jump in so quickly."
Elijah Wood on Viggo shooting the Weathertop battle as his first scene
The Hero Returns
By Tom Roston
Premiere 2003
…at least I didn't have much time to get nervous, which was probably good!
Viggo Mortensen
Official Movie Guide
'Ultimately, you create your own luck. Fate does step in. When we ended up with Viggo, fate was dealing us a very kind hand. Viggo, in hindsight, was the one person who was perfect for this film. He came out of nowhere, and suddenly there was Aragorn.'
Peter Jackson
The Lord of the Rings: The Untold Story
By Ian Nathan
Empire
December 2004
You will find all previous Quotables here.
© Viggo-Works/Iolanthe. Images © New Line Productions, Inc.
Last edited: 29 May 2023 10:36:46