FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 16, 2001
RING IN THE EXCITEMENT AS TOY BIZ INTRODUCES AN ACTION-PACKED LINE OF PRODUCTS INSPIRED BY ONE OF THE BIGGEST MOVIE EVENTS OF ALL-TIME
THE LORD OF THE RINGS
Based On J.R.R. Tolkien’s Best-Selling Book Series, The Highly-Anticipated Movie Event Features An All-Star Cast Including Cate Blanchett, Sir Ian McKellen, Liv Tyler & Elijah Wood
Action Figures Utilize Innovative Laser Scan Technology To Recreate The Remarkable Likeness Of Their Film Counterparts
NEW YORK, NY — Feel the sword lunging, arrow attacking excitement as Toy Biz, a division of Marvel Enterprises (NYSE: MVL), introduces an action-packed line-up of products inspired by one of the most momentous movie events of all time — New Line Cinema’s The Lord of the Rings. Widely heralded as the book series of the century, the cinematic version of J.R.R. Tolkien’s world-renowned literary phenomenon is destined to be one of the hottest movies of 2001 as it boasts a colossal fan base and story line of immeasurable depth. On December 19, 2001, New Line will release the eagerly awaited The Fellowship of the Ring — the first of the grand trilogy. Films two and three — The Two Towers and Return of the King — are scheduled to hit theatres Holiday 2002 and 2003. Featuring an all-star cast including Sean Astin, Sean Bean, Cate Blanchett, Orlando Bloom, Billy Boyd, Brad Dourif, Sir Ian Holm, Christopher Lee, Sir Ian McKellen, Dominic Monaghan, Viggo Mortensen, John Rhys-Davies, Liv Tyler, and Elijah Wood, audiences worldwide will finally encounter the magical creatures and characters that have made these books best-sellers for more than over 40 years.
Toy Biz will add to the film’s frenzy with an incredibly diversified line of toy products that brings home the magic of the movie. The initial wave of action figures and accessories, role-play items, and collectible marbles will be in stores this fall. To view Toy Biz’s, The Lord of the Rings toys go to www.marvel.com/toybiz/lotr.
Intricately sculpted in the likenesses of the actors, each item employs a combination of laser scanned technology and top talent sculptors, resulting in incredibly detailed figures that flawlessly captures the authenticity of the characters and accessories from the live-action film. Toy Biz will bring The Lord of the Rings line of action-packed toys to life by combining a number of dynamic action features — including sound, movement, and light-up features — allowing kids to re-enact the battles between elves, dwarves and wizards and the forces of evil.
The following is a listing of the sculpted, action-oriented line-up:
The Lord of the Rings Action Figures Assortment I & II
Bring home the excitement of the blockbuster movie from New Line Cinema with 10 new intricate action figures. These 6″ fully poseable action figures depict each character of the movie with authentic sculptured costumes and accessories along with specific battle actions to recreate pivotal scenes from the film. The characters in Assortment I include: Frodo, Witch King Ring Wraith, Strider, Legolas and Newborn Lurtz Uruk-Hai. The characters in Assortment II include: Gandalf, Gimli, Sam Wise Gamgee, Saruman and Orc Overseer.
Now Available Suggested Retail Price: $7.99
Action Figure Twin Pack Assortment I
These pairings will match central characters against one another, recreating climactic encounters seen in the film. Each set contains two intricately sculpted figures with detailed accessories and unique innovative action features. The Twin Packs include: Boromir vs. Lurtz/Uruk-Hai, Galadriel & Frodo, and Merry & Pippin with Moria Orc (Goblin).
Now Available Suggested Retail Price: $12.99
Deluxe Horse Assortment These fully articulated and elaborately decorated figures come with both horse and rider:
The Ring Wraith (Black Riders) and Horse – The beautifully articulated assortments each come with intricately detailed horses and riders. The dark riders are equipped with swords and utilize an exclusive sword slashing action feature. The traits of the horses are masterfully depicted in their facial expressions, armor, and saddles. Children can enjoy the horse’s action features by pulling on the reigns to “light up” the eyes and produce an impressive snarling action or by squeezing the triggers located at their hind sections to activate a front leg galloping action.
Arwen With Asfaloth – Arwen, the young elven woman known as the She-Elf who rides the white horse named Asfaloth, is elegantly dressed and comes equipped with the Evenstar Pendant that lights-up when pressed. The figure is accompanied by a small and frail Frodo figure that is detailed to illustrate the dramatic poisoning scene from the movie. Joining the pair is Arwen’s trusted steed Asfaloth whose intricate detail is highlighted in its saddle and mane. The horse also features a galloping action when its trigger is squeezed.
Now Available Suggested Retail Price: $19.99
Electronic Cave Troll
The creature of the evil Goblins, the gigantic Cave Troll is one of the most fearsome creatures in Middle Earth. This 10″, fully poseable, incredibly detailed deluxe action figure perfectly captures the character’s menacing look. It features club swinging, spear jabbing and snarling mouth actions along with electronic sound effects that mimic some of the heart-pounding scenes from the motion picture. (Includes 2 “AAA” batteries)
In Stores December 2001 Suggested Retail Price: $19.99
The Lord of the Rings Collector Series These assortments of 9″ to 12″ action figures will focus on the most important cast members featured in the film. Assortment 1 features — Gandalf, Frodo and Arwen. Each fully poseable, intricately detailed figure comes dressed in an authentic fabric costume that flawlessly captures the character’s distinctive outfit from the live-action feature film.
Now Available Suggested Retail Price: $19.99
Bow N’ Arrow
Kids can pretend to portray their favorite characters and battle each other with this Lord of the Rings Bow ‘n Arrow set. It’s stylized to look like the weapons used by the Uruk-Hai and comes complete with three foam arrows which shoot over 30 feet and a belt clip to store arrows.
Now Available Suggested Retail Price: $16.99
Electronic Middle Earth Sword
The warriors and mythical creatures seen in The Lord of the Rings battle with swords and other magical weapons. With the Electronic Middle Earth Sword, children will be able to re-enact their favorite duels from the film. This 30″ long saber features realistic clashing and clanging sound effects that are activated with just the press of a button. (Includes 3 “AA” batteries)
Now Available Suggested Retail Price: $14.99
Electronic Light ‘N Sound “Sting” Sword
Children can use the Electronic Light ‘N Sound “Sting” Sword to pretend that they are Frodo Baggins, the young hero of The Lord of the Rings motion picture. This 20″ magical sword given to Frodo by Bilbo glows blue when evil Orcs are near and has sword slashing sound activated by a motion switch. (Includes 2 “AAA” batteries)
Now Available Suggested Retail Price: $12.99
The Lord of the Rings Phenomenon
Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy has sold more than 100 million copies to date and has been translated into 40 different languages since it first appeared 45 years ago. The legend has inspired an entire genre of movie and fiction, and has influenced some of the greatest artists of our time but has never been told in its entirety on the big screen. Set in a mythic pre-history world called Middle-Earth, The Lord of the Rings saga tells the story of an epic battle between good and evil, involving wizards, hobbits and elves, and a ring with mysterious powers. All three films are being shot back-to-back and directed by Peter Jackson (The Frighteners, Heavenly Creatures). The frenzy surrounding April 2000’s Internet preview on the film’s official site at www.lordoftherings.net, proved the excitement for the film was at a feverish pitch. A new, more elaborate version of the site, launched January 2001, generated an astounding level of traffic on the net with more than 41 million hits in its first three days. Additionally, at least 400 fan sites are exclusively devoted to the production, many already featuring countdowns, to the very second, of the first film’s opening.
Through the ownership of over 4,700 proprietary characters, Marvel Enterprises, Inc. (NYSE: MVL) is one of the world’s most prominent character-based entertainment companies with operations in five divisions: licensing, toys — via its Toy Biz division, comic book and trade publishing, entertainment and the Internet. Marvel licenses its characters in a wide range of consumer products, services and media such as feature films, television, the Internet, apparel, video games, collectibles, snack foods and promotions. Marvel’s characters and plot lines are created and developed through the comic book publishing division, which maintains a leadership position in the U.S. and abroad. For additional company information visit the Company’s corporate Web site at http://www.marvel.com.
Founded in 1967, New Line Cinema is the entertainment industry’s leading independent producer and distributor of theatrical motion pictures. New Line licenses its films to ancillary markets including cable and broadcast television as well as to international venues. The company, which is a subsidiary of AOL Time Warner Inc., operates several divisions including in-house theatrical distribution, marketing, home video, television acquisitions, production, licensing and merchandising units.
