A decade later, Jackson returned to Middle-earth with The Hobbit prequel trilogy, stretching the slim ... but which one reigned supreme at the box office? Note: Box office numbers are based ...

The Hobbit movies' box office put an end to The Lord of the Rings' $1 billion trend, reversing the franchise's performance and highlighting how much went wrong with Peter Jackson's second trilogy.

The Hobbit Trilogy suffered due to unnecessary length and padding. Future Lord of the Rings projects should consider shorter runtimes. Quicker adventure movies can be just as impactful as longer ones.