Orlando Bloom posts some great Lord of the Rings set pics for its 15th anniversary

Well, I feel old. Late last night (or early this morning if you're on the UK side of the Atlantic), Orlando Bloom uploaded 11 pictures taken on the set of Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring to his Facebook page to celebrate the film's 15th anniversary. Yup, a decade and a half has gone by since Peter Jackson's epic saga debuted in theaters, though it feels like only yesterday. Here's a small sample:

Things you won't see in these actual, physical photos - you remember photos, right? - include: green screens, actors wearing silly costumes meant to track their bodies so CG can be layered over them in post, actors pretend-fighting an invisible monster, or Ian McKellen breaking down into despair while a cutout of Martin Freeman's face looks on in unfeeling apathy.

Not that the original LotR trilogy didn't use any CG of course; but looking at these photos, it's hard to deny the comparative real-ness of it all, whether it's Bloom wrapped in a blanket next to a chilly river, or the body doubles hiking over rocky hills. The only thing that looks fake? Bloom's face. Either that guy has aged marvelously well, or he really is an immortal elf.

Man, now I really feel old.

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Sam Prell

Sam is a former News Editor here at GamesRadar. His expert words have appeared on many of the web's well-known gaming sites, including Joystiq, Penny Arcade, Destructoid, and G4 Media, among others. Sam has a serious soft spot for MOBAs, MMOs, and emo music. Forever a farm boy, forever a '90s kid.