Chris lee and his role as Saruman.
 

Chris Lee was the only LOTR actor to meet Tolkien in person. Chris Lee told Tolkien if they ever made a movie based on the books he wanted to play Gandalf. So, I was wondering two things, how did Chris Lee end up playing Saruman? And what if Chris Lee got his desire and was cast as Gandalf?

How did Chris Lee end up playing Saruman? The only thing I can come up with is, Chris Lee had such a great voice in these movies, very powerful and intimidating. The fact that Saruman was known for "power" and having a persuasive voice, making him fit for the role of Saruman. If there are any other reasons people can come up with, please post them.

What if Chris Lee was Cast as Gandalf? This could just be me but I can not imagine anyone being Gandalf except Ian Mckellan. Even such a great actor as Lee, I just don't see him fit for the Gandalf role.

I think your answer to the second question answers the first as well. Obviously, Christopher Lee wanted to be in the movies, and who would turn down such a talented actor with such devotion to the material? It became apparent to Peter Jackson at some point during casting, if indeed it wasn't apparent from the start, that Lee's credentials, appearance and acting style made him far better suited to play Saruman than Gandalf. McKellen has a warmer demeanour and a seemingly humbler disposition than Lee, who is the master of playing the Cold, Well-Spoken & Cunning Villain. (Well, actually, he shares the honour with Jeremy Irons.) Although it is interesting to note that another actor originally chosen to play Gandalf was done away with a few days into shooting, McKellen was the obvious best choice (in the opinion of the majority, if I may speak on their behalf).

Actually the true reason that Christopher played Saruman and not Gandalf (and I have heard him talk about this many times) was because they both agreed that he was too old, and that they needed a younger actor to play a character who is so incredibly active. Christopher Lee is actually 82 years old, and Ian is in his sixties. Mr. Lee would have most definitely have played Gandalf if the film would have been made years earlier. Though I don't think that Tolkien would have had a problem with the amazing performance that Sir Ian gave (In my opinion he didn't just play Gandalf, he became Gandalf :D )

Well, I know I can't imagine anyone else playing Gandalf than Sir Ian, but if Christopher Lee had played him, then it be the exact opposite, as it usually is with just about everyone :D.
Still, I think McKellan was the best actor for the role, Son of Numenor said it well when discribing Lee's ideal role:

Lee was in his element when he was playing Saruman, the character played well to his strongest traits, much more so than Gandalf would have. I have no doubt that, given his talent, Lee could've still made a decent Gandalf, but McKellan was simply the best choice for the role. As Gorwingel brought up, Ian was much more suited for the wizard because of his age, but his voice was also so well-suited for it. Lee's voice just isn't quite Gandalf, if you know what I mean, I think he would still be off even with his best effort.

True
 

Yes, Chris Lee does have that Saruman type voice, really not fit for Gandalf. Son of Numenor pointed out Chris Lee's talents as a villain, many of the movies Lee was in he was the villain. I mean Dracula, The Gremlins (2nd movie), and Star Wars Episode 2, are the movies that come to mind where Lee has played sort of that bad guy character. I can't really describe Lee's voice, it is slow and powerful, just really the perfect voice for Saruman, as Saruman was known for his ability to persuade. Gandalf, had more leadership qualities to him, it stated in ROTK, during the "Siege of Gondor" whenever Gandalf was around the hearts of men rose. Where Saruman, was more of a persuader, he had power and emphasis in his words to "poison" people's minds. Lee really brought out Saruman's character, as well as Sir Ian did with Gandalf's.

Another point on Lee's voice:

I think Ian had much more of a voice for Gandalf in the sense that he sounded inspiring, whereas Mr. Lee's voice is much more monotone. Of course he could change it somewhat if he was cast for Gandalf, but I'm guessing it'd still sound a little to monotone to really sound inspirational.

Christopher Lee may be a great villain, but he is quite capable of doing warm, endearing roles as well. I've seen him play a wonderful, twinkle-eyed wizard in an otherwise awful TV series about Robin Hood and, in the Tolkien Ensemble's CD At Dawn In Rivendell, he is a superb Treebeard, far better, dare I say, than John Rhys-Davies, delightful as he was in the films.

And vice-versa, Sir Ian can definately play a baddy role. eg Magneto in XMen(s) and, of course, Richard III, the biggest 'baddy' in ALL literature.

:) Gorwingel is right as to why Christopher Lee did not play Gandalf. If you watch the Cast Interviews on the DVD Extended Edition of The Fellowship of the Ring it is explained there.
The role of Gandalf was physically demanding. Riding horses, walking, running etc. It also had a greater time commitment. Christopher was realistic enough to realize it would have been too much for him.
I believe he would have made a fine Gandalf had he been younger. He looks (and sounds) great for his age!

Ooh, yes, absolutely! I saw the Richard III film first and thought him wonderfully villainous, though I had some sympathy for Magneto. Just goes to show both of them are wonderful actors who can act rings around many younger stars. :)

I think that it would have been interesting to see what Christopher Lee would have made of Gandalf, since he's a tremendously versatile and experienced actor; but then we would have been deprived of his excellent characterisation of Saruman. Although I don't think that the script gave him as much to work with as is present in the book, I think that he really captured the fallen wisdom and flawed majesty of Tolkien's character. It probably helped that he reads The Lord of the Rings each year and has done since the first edition came out. I don't think that he'd be happy to hear his voice described as 'monotonous', though: he's been trained as an operatic singer and enjoys singing arias. To some, his voice is his best feature.

An interesting aside is that in his autobiography, Christopher Lee mentions some research that an acquaintance of his had done into on-screen swordplay:

[B]I think Lee was excellent as Saurman and Sir Ian as Gandalf. And frankly playing what if with differnent actors in LOTR roles is silly. OK nice but a bit silly because the actors who made these roles all took the role and became the charecter. ;)

[QUOTE=The Squatter of Amon Rûdh]I don't think that he'd be happy to hear his voice described as 'monotonous', though: he's been trained as an operatic singer and enjoys singing arias. To some, his voice is his best feature.

Very true. He has a wonderful basso profundo singing voice and is the best Treebeard I've ever heard, full of warmth and humour and - where appropriate - sadness. He could have made his living as a singer.

But yes - he *is* Saruman and Ian M *is* Gandalf and they both do just fine with the roles they have been given. :D

Chris Lee was almost like a living presence of Tolkien on screen. Especially for the fact that he had met Sir Tolkien earlier in his life. Mr. Lee has made a tradition of reading LOTR once a year and it seems as if he was doing a round about Tolkien study. He is normally an educated, well-rounded man and an intense fan of all of Sir Tolkiens literature. He is truly a splendid actor and I don't believe they could have found anyone better. It is sad to think what the movie would be like without any of those actors. It would not be the same.

Acting
 

I give kudos to all the actor's of LOTR, this was such an ensemble cast. Ian, Mr. Lee, Elijah Wood, Sean Astin, Bernard Hill (one of my favorites of the movies), Sean Bean, John Rhys-Davies...etc, the list just goes on. I will say the only weak parts might have been the women parts (despite how beautiful they were) I thought Liv and Miss Otto were two of the weaker parts. Mr. Weaving brought in too much of his Agent Smith voice, there were parts where I just wanted to say "Mr. Anderson," and I've seen Cate Blanchett do better. Other then that, this was a great cast, and even the weaker parts didn't do that bad of a job.

I'd have to say that you have the right answer, Boromir88. Lee's voice is so strong & deep that I can't see him playing anyone but Saruman. He took that character & made it his own. His voice, to me, has this sort of haunting sound in it. Not evil or anything like that, it just fits the part of Saruman perfectly. He nailed that role. Nobody could've played it any better.

Yeah it is hard to see Mr. Lee playing anyone else. I saw him in Star Wars attack of the clones and I couldn't help but hear and see Saruman the whole time. The only difference was his costume.

I remember that part in Star Wars. Another good role for him. Does anyone remember the animated movie "The Last Unicorn" from, I think it was 1982? Christopher Lee was the voice for the evil lord who had the Red Bull run all the unicorns in the sea. It's weird I guess, but his voice is perfect for those mean, tough roles in movies.

That was my favourite movie as a kid and I never knew that!! You mean the one where Alan Arkin does the voice of Schmendrik? He must have been King Haggard! I never even noticed!

Yep, that's it. I found the DVD of this movie at Wal-Mart last week & had to buy it. I believe that's the movie that got me started on all this fantasy stuff that I love :D But yeah, he does the voice of King Haggard ... I didn't know it either until I was reading the credits at the beginning of the movie.

Thanks for the info. A nice little bit of trivia you're provided for me. :D

Well good, glad I could provide you with some interesting info. And, that would make a great trivia question ... I bet many people wouldn't know it :)