Special effects of The Lord of the Rings film series Later on, the scenes were merged using digital effects. Besides Weathertop, many of the other scenes in the Lord of the Rings trilogy were shot in this way, first by filming the scenery or set miniatures, then the actors on a studio set, and merging the two together. An example of this is in the Mines of Moria, when the Fellowship was fighting the Cave-troll in Balin's Tomb, and again when the Fellowship is on the Khazad-Dum stairs and bridge. Gandalf has his own particular scene with computer graphics as he grapples with the Balrog as they fall to their
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King the trilogy would be in the region of $6 billion following an investment of $300 million ($426 million including marketing costs). "The Return of the King" holds an approval rating of 93% on the aggregate review site Rotten Tomatoes, based on 269 reviews, with an average rating of 8.7/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Visually breathtaking and emotionally powerful, "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" is a moving and satisfying conclusion to a great trilogy". The film holds a weighted average score of 94 out of 100 on Metacritic, based on 41 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".