Fly you fools!

6 Lord of the Rings theories that totally change the story

You'll never watch the movies the same way after this.

by Robin Bea

The Lord of the Rings books and movies have been endlessly picked apart by fans, but that hasn't stopped the constant flow of new theories.

Here are our favorite explanations for dangling plot threads and surprising bits of backstory.

6. Boromir was corrupted by Sauron's blood

At the end of Fellowship of the Ring, Boromir turns on his traveling companions and tries to take the ring for himself.

One Redditor thinks Boromir was poisoned by Sauron's blood after cutting himself on the shards of Narsil.

If blood from the sword that defeated Sauron did poison Boromir, it would make him even more tragic and less villainous of a character.

5. Frodo's parents were killed by Gollum

When Gollum went searching for Bilbo after The Hobbit, all he had to go on were the words "Baggins" and "Shire."

If Gollum made it to the Shire, he could have mistaken Frodo's parents for Bilbo and his wife, and killed them in his search for the ring.

It would mean that Gandalf was wrong or lying when he said Gollum didn't make it to the Shire, and would throw out the accepted timeline of when Frodo's parents died.

4. The Hobbit films were too long on purpose

One fan on Reddit says that The Hobbit films' oft-criticized length and overstuffed feeling were meant to reflect Bilbo's exaggerated storytelling.

This one is a little hard to swallow, given The Hobbit's well-documented production problems and studio meddling.

3. Gollum is a being sealed inside the One Ring
Everyone knows Gollum is the hobbit Smeagol corrupted by the One Ring, but what this theory presupposes is... maybe he's not.

When Bilbo takes hold of the One Ring, he takes on a manner very similar to who we know as Gollum, even calling the ring "precious."

A fan on Reddit takes that to mean that there's a being trapped within the ring that's possessing its owners, rather than merely Sauron's influence.

2. Gandalf meant to use the Eagles all along

One of the biggest criticisms of The Lord of the Rings' plot boils down to, "why didn't they just fly to Mordor on the Eagles in the first place?"

One Redditor thinks that was Gandalf's plan all along, and the reason that he took the Fellowship to the Misty Mountains to begin with.

That could by why Saruman was so desperate to waylay them in the mountains, and why Gandalf literally told his friends to "fly" with his dying words.

1. Galadriel's gift to Gimli is more significant than you think

In The Fellowship of the Ring, Gimli asks Galadriel for a strand of hair as a parting gift.

Galadriel obliges and gives him three, an act which Gimli seems strangely touched by.

As fans have pointed out, Galadriel refused to gift an Elf named Fëanor a strand of her hair three times during the First Age, saying he was unworthy.

Galadriel's gift could be her way of acknowledging Gimli as a true friend of the Elves, which he clearly takes to heart.

Thanks for reading,
head home for more!