Saruman than in their equivalent books, and he appears in several scenes that are not depicted in Tolkien's work. In the films, Saruman is depicted presenting himself outright as a servant of Sauron. Smith and Matthews suggest that Saruman's role is built up as a substitute for Sauron—the story's main antagonist—who never appears directly in the book. Jackson confirms this view in the commentary to the DVD. They also suggest that having secured veteran British horror actor Christopher Lee to play Saruman, it made sense to make greater use of his star status. Despite this increased role in the first two
The Lord of the Rings Amazon will be the producer in conjunction with the Tolkien Estate and The Tolkien Trust, HarperCollins and New Line Television. According to a 2018 report, it will be the most expensive TV show ever produced. In 1990, Recorded Books published an audio version of "The Lord of the Rings", with British actor Rob Inglis – who had previously starred in his own one-man stage productions of "The Hobbit" and "The Lord of the Rings" – reading. A large-scale musical theatre adaptation, "The Lord of the Rings" was first staged in Toronto, Ontario, Canada in 2006 and opened in London in