Here's How You Can Watch Every Movie In The Hobbit Trilogy

There are several entertaining epics that can help you escape for an hour or two, but if you're looking for a fantastic adventure that lasts a bit longer, then The Hobbit trilogy, directed by Peter Jackson, is a great choice.

The Hobbit movies, based on the classic 1937 novel written by J.R.R. Tolkien, serve as a three-part prequel to the best fantasy films of all time, The Lord of the Rings trilogy, which are also inspired by novels written by Tolkien and brought to life on the big screen by Jackson. The first movie, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012), sees a perfectly content Hobbit, Bilbo Baggins (Martin Freeman), drawn into an effort by a band of dwarves to reclaim their homeland and treasure from a terrifying dragon named Smaug. Aided by the wizard Gandalf the Grey (the recently vaccinated Sir Ian McKellen), Bilbo and his 13 dwarf companions have run-ins with elves, orcs, and more, including a memorable encounter with the creature Gollum (Andy Serkis).

The second adventure in the trilogy, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013), sees Bilbo and his friends arrive at the Lonely Mountain, ultimately meeting their intimidating foe, and the final film, The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (2014), shows Bilbo's efforts to unite competing forces of men, elves, and dwarves against a common enemy that would enslave them all. So, if you're ready to start The Hobbit trilogy, the best way to watch it uninterrupted is with an HBO Max subscription.

According to the Hollywood Reporter, it cost about $745 million to make The Hobbit trilogy, which was three times as much as it cost to make The Lord Of The Rings movies. However, The Hobbit trilogy was not as well-received by audiences as The Lord of the Rings movies were, even though they serve as a fun opportunity to expand on the stories of some characters from Jackson's first adventure in Middle-earth.

The films were still successful at the box office, as the first movie in The Hobbit trilogy grossed $1.011 billion worldwide, per the Hollywood Reporter, and the second earned $958 million globally. All three movies were nominated for a slew of awards, including several Oscars, and they appeared at international film festivals. According to IMDb, the first film won 11 awards, including two 2014 Annie Awards, the second film won 19 awards, and the third movie won eight awards.

Given the trilogy's critical and financial success, plus the massive fan base that swarms anything related to Tolkien's work, it makes sense that all three films have found a home at HBO Max. Plus, all three The Lord of the Rings films are on the streaming platform, as well, so you can really make a weekend of it. However, if you don't have an HBO Max subscription, The Hobbit movie trilogy is available to rent (or in some cases purchase digitally) through other online streaming services like Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV.