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: The Battle for Middle-earth II: The Rise of the Witch-king The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II: The Rise of the Witch-king The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II: The Rise of the Witch-king is a real-time strategy video game published by Electronic Arts, based on the "Lord of the Rings" film series based on the book, directed by Peter Jackson. "The Rise of the Witch-king" is the official expansion to "", which was published by the same company and released in 2006, for Microsoft Windows. "The Rise of the Witch-king" was shipped to stores in the United States on November 28, 2006 and