“The Lord of the Rings” trilogy filmmaker Peter Jackson has lamented the loss of DVD and Blu-ray extras along with the decline of director’s cuts and special/extended editions.
Recently, Jackson sat down with Indiewirein which he discussed the decline of physical media, saying discs in general are a “niche product” at this point.
Jackson is also one of the most prolific believers in special features for home physical media – the ‘Rings’ trilogy home releases famously included not just the often preferred ‘Extended Editions’ of the films, but countless hours of supplemental material.
He says it’s a shame that even when films get a release on disc, they don’t have the kinds of extras that you used to get while Director’s Cuts and extended editions of films have also notably declined alongside physical media:
“You can get Blu-rays and DVDs, but they’re almost a niche product for aficionados now. Since they only sell small numbers, no studio wants to put extended features on them or to extend the cuts.
We did hours and hours of behind-the-scenes material for The Lord of the Rings DVDs, and so many people have thanked me for doing them. People would watch that stuff over and over again because it inspired them to make films. That’s all gone now, and I think it’s a real shame.
But the industry has always changed. When sound came in, people were writing all these articles about how sound is ruining films. It was the same when color came along. People were writing very intelligent articles about why color was an abomination and how it ruined the film industry. So, it just happens all the time.”
During a recent on-stage appearance at Cannes, Jackson also commented about an experience he had with a delivery driver who recognised him as the director of “The Lord of the Rings” films as he delivered the parcel.
As the man turned to leave, he said “Oh they should have got you to make those Hobbit movies, because they were crap” – unaware Jackson directed those as well. Jackson waited and responded with “Yeah, tell me about it, mate”.
