Vin Diesel reportedly said he was determined to be involved in Peter Jackson’s 2001 fantasy film The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, regardless of whether that meant acting, producing or directing. The claim reflects the scale of the project’s appeal before its release and the film’s subsequent status as a landmark of modern blockbuster cinema.

Diesel was considered for the role of Aragorn during casting, before Viggo Mortensen ultimately took the part after Stuart Townsend left the production. The Fellowship of the Ring became the first instalment of Jackson’s acclaimed trilogy, earning major critical and commercial success and helping establish the franchise as one of cinema’s defining fantasy series.