title: Iron Maiden

text: On 20 January 2009, the band announced that they were to release a full-length documentary film in select cinemas on 21 April 2009. Entitled "", it was filmed during the first part of the Somewhere Back in Time World Tour between February and March 2008. "Flight 666" was co-produced by Banger Productions and was distributed in cinemas by Arts Alliance Media and EMI, with D&E Entertainment sub-distributing in the US. The film went on to have a Blu-ray, DVD, and CD release in May and June, topping the music DVD charts in 25 countries. In most of them the release went Gold, Platinum or Multi-Platinum.


title: Iron Maiden

text: Following announcements that the band had begun composition of new material and booked studio time in early 2010 with Kevin Shirley producing, "The Final Frontier" was announced on 4 March and featured three singles "The Final Frontier", "El Dorado" and "Coming Home", as well as epic, progressive opuses such as "Isle of Avalon", "The Talisman" and "When The Wild Wind Blows". The album, the band's fifteenth, was released on 16 August, garnering critical acclaim and the band's greatest commercial success in their current history, reaching No. 1 in twenty-eight countries worldwide. "The Final Frontier" debuted at No. 4 on "Billboard 200" reaching the highest American album charts position to date. Although Steve Harris had been quoted in the past as claiming that the band would only produce fifteen studio releases, band members have since confirmed that there will be at least one further record. The album was band's next commercial success, achieving Gold or Platinum status in 24 countries around the world. Iron Maiden were awarded with the special sales recognition plaque for selling over 750,000 of their albums in Finland.


title: Iron Maiden

text: The album's supporting tour saw the band perform 101 shows across the globe to an estimated audience of well over two and a half million, including their first visits to Singapore, Indonesia, and South Korea, before concluding in London on 6 August 2011. As the tour's 2010 leg preceded "The Final Frontier"s release, the band made "El Dorado" available as a free download on 8 June, which would go on to win the award for Best Metal Performance at the 2011 Grammy Awards on 13 February 2011. It was the band's first win following two previous Grammy nominations ("Fear of the Dark" in 1994 and "The Wicker Man" in 2001). During both years of the tour band headlined the biggest festivals in the world, including Rock Werchter, Roskilde, Nova Rock, Pukkelpop, Soundwave (five dates), Wacken, Sziget, Ottawa Bluesfest, Festival d'été de Québec also Sonisphere Festival dates in the UK, Sweden, Finland, Poland, Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Italy, Spain, Greece, Turkey and Switzerland. Iron Maiden played in the big indoor arenas, stadiums and festivals around the world, sometimes for 100,000 people.


title: Iron Maiden

text: On 15 March, a new compilation to accompany 2009's "Somewhere Back in Time" was announced. Entitled "From Fear to Eternity", the original release date was set at 23 May, but was later delayed to 6 June. The double disc set covers the period 1990–2010 (the band's most recent eight studio albums), and, as on "Somewhere Back in Time", live versions with Bruce Dickinson were included in place of original recordings which featured other vocalists, in this case Blaze Bayley.


title: Iron Maiden

text: In a press release regarding "From Fear to Eternity", band manager Rod Smallwood revealed that Iron Maiden would release a new concert video to DVD in 2011, filmed in Santiago, Chile and Buenos Aires, Argentina during The Final Frontier World Tour. On 17 January 2012, the band announced that the new release, entitled "En Vivo!", based on footage from the Chile concert, would be made available worldwide on CD, LP, DVD, and Blu-ray on 26 March, except for the United States and Canada (where it was released on 27 March). DVD topped the music video charts around the world to achieve similar success as previous ones. In addition to the concert footage, the video release includes an 88-minute tour documentary, entitled Behind The Beast, containing interviews with the band and their crew. In December 2012, one song from the release ("Blood Brothers") was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance at the 2013 Grammy Awards.


title: Iron Maiden

text: The Final Frontier World Tour set design referred to the visual conventions known from the cover of "The Final Frontier" album. It resembled a modified space station (Satellite–15), crowned with 10-meter radar towers with spotlights. The lighting system was developed the most since 2000 and it consisted of two semicircular ramps and triangular modules with sets of various light points. Two versions of Eddie the Alien were also prepared, the movable one and in the form of a huge monster's bust and paws emerging from behind the stage. Panoramic backdrops referred to the illustrations contained in the booklet of the promoted album.


title: Iron Maiden

text: On 15 February 2012, the band announced their third retrospective Maiden England World Tour 2012–14, which was based around the video of the same name. The tour commenced in North America in the summer of 2012 and was followed by further dates in 2013 and 2014, which included the band's record-breaking fifth headline performance at Donington Park with 100,000 fans in attendance, their first show at the newly built national stadium in Stockholm, a return to the Rock in Rio festival in Brazil, and their debut appearance in Paraguay. In August 2012, Steve Harris stated that the "Maiden England" video would be re-issued in 2013, with a release date later set for 25 March 2013 in DVD, CD, and LP formats under the title "Maiden England '88".


title: Iron Maiden

text: Maiden England World Tour stage set was built in an Arctic-style in many aspects reminding Seventh Tour of a Seventh Tour. The band presented wraparound stage including some special platforms and podiums. Stage set and backdrops portrayed a dozen of the frozen pictures of Eddie monster. Fans could see the three incarnations of band's mascot and movable, custom-made elements of stage props as organs with silver pipes, frozen sculptures of Eddie, the crystal ball and movable lighting rig imitating construction from an era of 1988. Iron Maiden decided to extend the pyrotechnics using even more than on previous tours, as Bruce Dickinson said "we like to alternate it every other year, because if you get the reputation that you've got to go and see a band because of the pyro and then you don't do the pyro, people think, 'Oh, I won't bother then." The tour was even bigger logistical challenge than a few previous ones. Michele Stokley, organiser of Sarnia Bayfest stated, Iron Maiden "brought 22 tractor trailers and the [six] buses full of equipment for the show".


title: Iron Maiden

text: Iron Maiden closed their Maiden England World Tour in July 2014 headlining at Sonisphere Festival, Knebworth. Musicians have impressed the crowds by having The Great War Display Team featuring Bruce Dickinson among its pilots, stage a sensational aerial dogfight in the skies above the Festival with band's frontman flying his very own WW1 German Fokker Dr1, just hours before taking to the stage. Iron Maiden headlining show marked the final chapter in the band's trilogy of tours performing their 80's repertoire. The historical tour was another big commercial success in band's career. Over three years, 100 shows were undertaken in 32 countries before an estimated audience of not less than two million and a seven hundred thousand people. Throughout the tour, consistent praise was received from music critics, with the band's performances and the stage show receiving very particular acclaim. Third retrospective tour established Iron Maiden's status as a stadium–filling band.


title: Iron Maiden

text: In 2013 Iron Maiden in collaboration with "Robinsons Brewery" released their own beer called Trooper Ale. Since its launch, the 4.7% Premium British Beer that was Trooper original has become a leading player amongst British ales, exported to over 60 countries around the world. The band and "Robinsons Brewery" have been celebrating over 30 million Trooper pints sold around the globe, during the week they marked the 8th Birthday of their hugely successful collaboration. Trooper has also won multiple gold medals at the prestigious British Bottlers' Institute Awards, as well as picking up awards at the World Beer Awards, Global Beer Masters, International Beer Challenge and International Brewing and Cider Awards (aka "Oscars of the brewing and cider world") among many others.


title: Iron Maiden

text: Following confirmation from the group that 2010's "The Final Frontier" would not be their last album, Bruce Dickinson revealed plans for a sixteenth studio record in July 2013, with a potential release date in 2015. In February 2015, drummer Nicko McBrain revealed that a new album had been completed, although the release was put on hold as Dickinson was recovering from treatment for a cancerous tumour found on his tongue. On 15 May, after Dickinson was cleared for activities, manager Rod Smallwood confirmed that the album would be released in 2015, although the band would not tour until 2016 to allow Dickinson to continue recuperating. On 18 June 2015, the band's website announced its title, "The Book of Souls", and confirmed a release date of 4 September 2015. It is the band's first original studio album not to be issued by EMI outside North America, following Parlophone's acquisition by Warner Music Group in 2013. It was a critical and commercial success, becoming the band's fifth UK No. 1 album and second No. 4 on "Billboard 200" in the US. The new release reached number one positions in the album charts of 43 countries. Iron Maiden received many accolades and prestigious awards including The Rocks Awards, Silver Clef Award in recognition of outstanding contribution to UK music, Bandit Rock Awards, Classic Rock Roll of Honour Awards, ECHO Award, Kerrang! Awards, Loudwire Awards, Burrn! Awards, Metal Hammer Germany Awards, Golden Gods Awards among many others. "The Book of Souls" went Gold and Platinum in twenty countries.


title: Iron Maiden

text: The new record was recorded at Guillaume Tell Studios, Paris, which they had previously used for 2000's "Brave New World", with regular producer Kevin Shirley in late summer 2014. With a total run time of 92 minutes, it is the group's first double studio album. In addition, the release's closing song, "Empire of the Clouds", penned by Dickinson, surpassed "Rime of the Ancient Mariner" (from 1984's "Powerslave") as Iron Maiden's longest song, at 18 minutes in length. A music video for the song "Speed of Light" was issued on 14 August. Apart from an aforementioned songs double album features epic tracks as the title one and Dickinson's "If Eternity Should Fail" referring to Mayan mythology, heavy rock hits such as "Death or Glory" and "Tears of a Clown" dedicated to late actor Robin Williams, progressive opuses as "The Great Unknown" and "The Man of Sorrows" or the more complex, "The Red and the Black".


title: Iron Maiden

text: The touring setting was (once again) one of the best in the career of the six-person line-up to date. Referring to the title and the leading topic of the album, the stage set reflected the architectural solutions characteristic of the ancient Maya religious buildings. The group's mascot, Eddie the Head, appeared in a movable version, as the Mayan shaman, during the concert presentation of the title track from the album and as its big version during the presentation of "Iron Maiden" composition. This one was presenting by a huge (ten meters), inflatable and exploding bust known from the album's cover painted by Mark Wilkinson. The band used an extensive pyrotechnics, lasers, movable lighting rig based on a dozen of pillars. The construction was built on a pyramid plan, with a circular, movable target placed in the central point, around which multicolored LED floodlights were mounted, giving the effect of light reflecting on the audience.


title: Iron Maiden

text: The individual segments of the stage design, were placed on the stage's podium, as well as the two stepped towers placed in the back of the stage on its extreme sides. Initially they were turned in the opposite direction to the original, during the presentation of selected inscriptions which were properly illuminated, creating the effect of the real buildings. Panoramic backdrops have been changed with each song referred to the graphic convention and paintings from the Mayan era, originally included in the booklet of the promoted album. Bruce Dickinson changed his costumes several times and used a variety of props. Another attraction was an eight-meter long inflatable devil goat doll, emerging from behind the stage during the presentation of "The Number of the Beast" song.


title: Iron Maiden

text: In February 2016, the band embarked on The Book of Souls World Tour, which saw them play concerts in 35 countries in North and South America, Asia, Australasia, Africa, and Europe, including their first ever performances in China, El Salvador, and Lithuania. It was Iron Maiden's biggest album tour since The X Factour 1995–1996. As with 2008–09's Somewhere Back in Time World Tour and 2010–11's The Final Frontier World Tour, the group travelled in a customised aeroplane, flown by Dickinson and nicknamed "Ed Force One", although they used a Boeing 747-400 jumbo jet. The band completed the tour in 2017 with further European and North American shows. Iron Maiden played 117 shows on six continents for well over two and a half million people. On 20 September 2017, "" was announced. Recorded throughout The Book of Souls World Tour, it was released on 17 November 2017. On 11 November 2017 band released for free the entire concert video via YouTube as an official stream for loyal fans around the world. The event was called "Stream For Me, YouTube".


title: Iron Maiden

text: In the summer of 2016, the group launched a mobile game, "Iron Maiden: Legacy of the Beast" and a pinball game with the same name in 2018. The game has been No. 1 mobile RPG in multiple markets, with over four million players worldwide having downloaded the game. Inspired by the game's title, the band would undertake the Legacy of the Beast World Tour, commencing in Europe in 2018, with North and South American shows following in 2019. 82 shows of the tour attracted over two million fans filling sold-out arenas, stadiums and some of the biggest festivals in the world as Rock in Rio 2019 with well over 100,000 fans in attendance.


title: Iron Maiden

text: The band achieved the another impressive success in Latin America, where over half a million viewers saw concerts in six cities of Mexico, Brazil, Argentina and Chile. The 33 shows played in North America were the band's greatest success since their heyday in the mid-1980s. Iron Maiden set record attendance in many European cities.


title: Iron Maiden

text: On 23 September 2019, the band announced they would play the 2020 Belsonic Festival in Belfast and a headline show at Donington Park, England, as part of 2020 Download Festival. On 7 November 2019, they announced Australian shows throughout May 2020 joined by Killswitch Engage. Legacy of The Beast World Tour has been critically acclaimed by fans and media as the most extravagant and visually stunningly live show of the band's career to date. Both the production and the decades-spanning set-list of fan favourites and hits were inspired by their so same named mobile phone game. The multi-themed shows opened with a replica Spitfire flying above the stage and progresses through a two-hour theatrical journey of ever-evolving interlocking stage sets with multiple incarnations of Eddie, pyrotechnics and special effects including muskets, claymores, flame throwers, a giant electrified crucifix, a noose, gallows and an enormous Icarus among many other attractions.


title: Iron Maiden

text: In May 2020, the band announced that all concerts for the year had been cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with tour dates rescheduled for 2021. Nearly one million people bought tickets for all 35 shows originally booked for 2020. In April 2021 it was announced that the 2021 tour was cancelled once again and most of the European shows were rescheduled for 2022. In October 2020, the band announced that they would release a live album from the Legacy of the Beast World Tour called "Nights of the Dead, Legacy of the Beast: Live in Mexico City". The double concert album was recorded during three sold-out concerts in Mexico City's Palacio de los Deportes for a combined audience of over 70,000 people. It was released worldwide on 20 November 2020. That same month, Dickinson announced that Iron Maiden had been "working together a little bit in the studio" for the follow-up to "The Book of Souls". On 15 July 2021, Iron Maiden released a video for their first song in six years "The Writing on the Wall", which was directed by Nicos Livesey. Four days later, the band announced that their seventeenth studio album, "Senjutsu", would be released on 3 September 2021. On 19 August 2021, the band released another single from the album, "Stratego".


title: Iron Maiden

text: "Senjutsu" eventually reached the top of the best-seller lists in 27 countries, however it was the band's first album in fifteen years (since "A Matter of Life and Death" in 2006) not to reach number one on the UK charts, although it did top the UK Rock & Metal Singles and Albums Charts. In the list of sales of physical albums in the UK and the US, the double-disc release took the first position, also noted on the European Album Chart Top 200. "Senjutsu" was also in the Top 5 physical and digital best-selling albums combined around the world. In South America, the album went on sale only a week after the official date. At the same time as the Iron Maiden album, the latest releases of the most popular representatives of the pop scene and rap such as Drake, Kanye West, Imagine Dragons and Billie Eilish were on the best-seller lists. In total, "Senjutsu" reached the top three best-sellers in 55 countries around the world and the Top 5 best-sellers in 63 countries. The animated video for "The Writing on the Wall" single was nominated for UK Music Video Awards 2021 in category "Best Animation in a Video". "Senjutsu" was awarded the title of "Best Metal Album of 2021" by Rolling Stone magazine and took top positions in many summaries of the year around the world. Pollstar has published the ranking of "Top 50 the Most Successful Touring Artists of the Past 40 Years", including the figures of ticket sales in North America monitored by the publisher. Iron Maiden were ranked 34 with 9,2 mln ticket sold in period of 1981 – 2021.


title: Iron Maiden

text: As many previous releases band's seventeenth studio effort was critically acclaimed and commercially successful album, especially appreciated for its ambitious epic scope. The band decided to continue the postponed Legacy of the Beast Tour in 2022 adding next 30+ dates in North America and some new territories in Europe. Tour production was planned as even more spectacular with using a brand new scenery dedicated to "Senjutsu" album and including the setlist changes to perform songs from the seventeenth studio effort. Iron Maiden manager Rod Smallwood commented: "Next summer we will finally get to play the huge European stadium and festival tour for Legacy of the Beast originally set for 2020. The new show will be even more spectacular so after our visit to Rock in Rio early September 2022 we have decided to take it back to our fans in North America and Mexico too, playing in cities or venues we did not get to last time we toured in 2019. We are also adding some of the great cities of eastern Europe we were not initially visiting! We'll be making a couple of additions and changes to the production and setlist to include some songs from our new album "Senjutsu" and are making the 2022 version of Legacy of the Beast even more spectacular than the acclaimed original show. You can be sure that we will still be featuring all the "hits" and the key elements of the original tour like the Spitfire, Icarus, Hell, flamethrowers and pyro and the rest - but we will shake it up a bit and Trooper Eddie will have serious competition in the new "Senjutsu world" we are adding". During an appearance on the "Talk Is Jericho" podcast, Bruce Dickinson confirmed that Iron Maiden is planning to stage a tour where it will perform "Senjutsu" double album, in its entirety. With 140 shows, Legacy of the Beast World Tour became the longest tour with Bruce Dickinson on vocals since the "Somewhere on Tour" in 1986–1987. The tour started in Tallin, Estonia in May 2018 as the very first of 140 shows in 35 countries. Finally the band have played to well over three and a half million people on their biggest world tour so far. The tour was honored with CAA & K2 Award. Iron Maiden played series of stadium dates in Europe and both Americas and headlined Rock in Rio for the fifth time and Donington's rock festival for seventh, attracting circa 100,000 fans for the fourth time in their career.


title: Iron Maiden

text: On 6 October 2022, the band announced that their next tour will be called The Future Past Tour, along with some tour dates in Europe with more dates to follow. The theme of the tour will be a combination of "Senjutsu" and the underperformed 1986 album "Somewhere in Time". According to Steve Harris, the band plans to perform songs which have not been played live for 35 years or even at all before, in addition to tracks from "Senjutsu" and other albums. On 28 October 2022, the band's manager Rod Smallwood confirmed that the Future Past Tour will continue into 2024.


title: Iron Maiden

text: Iron Maiden and particular musicians of the band have received multiple nominations, honours and awards including Grammy Awards and equivalents awards in many countries, Brit Awards, Silver Clef Award, Nordoff-Robbins Award, Ivor Novello Awards, Juno Awards, Guinness Book of World Records, Public Choice International, Online Music Awards Germany, The Rocks Awards, Burrn! Awards, Classic Rock Roll of Honour Awards, ECHO Awards, Top.HR Music Awards, Žebřík Music Awards, honorary Doctorates, State Prizes,sales recognition, charity and sport awards among many others. Musicians have also received ten awards from fifteen nominations at the "Metal Hammer" Golden Gods Awards. The band was ranked No. 24 in VH1's "100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock", No. 4 in MTV's "Top 10 Greatest Heavy Metal Bands of All Time", No. 3 in VH1 Classic's "Top 20 Metal Bands"., and was ranked as the most successful British metal group on Channel 4. In 2012 "The Number of the Beast" was voted as Best British Album Ever in the public poll related to Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II. Iron Maiden were inducted into Hollywood RockWalk, BPI Hall of Fame and Kerrang! Hall of Fame. The band's movie Flight 666 was a part of prestigious British Music Experience exposition held in London, 2011 and Eddie the Head iconic mascot – monster was presented for the very first time at British Music Experience's doorway in Liverpool in 2017 and became a part of permanent exhibition. Iron Maiden are also a part of permanent exhibition of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Rock in Rio Wall of Fame and Wacken Open Air Hall of Fame. Band's mascot is a part of Rock Legends Wax Museum placed in Ontario. In February 2021, Iron Maiden were nominated for Rock and Roll Hall of Fame class. In April 2021, ex-members of the band (Paul Di'Anno, Blaze Bayley and famous illustrator Derek Riggs) were inducted into the Metal Hall of Fame. As of 2022, Iron Maiden have sold over 130 million copies of their albums worldwide, despite little radio or television support. According to many sources by 2021 all audio-visual catalogue of the band has sold in over 200 million copies worldwide, including regular albums, singles, compilations, and videos. By 2022 their releases have been certified silver, gold and platinum around 600 times worldwide.


title: Iron Maiden

text: Iron Maiden frequently use the slogan "Up the Irons" in their disc liner notes, and the phrase can also be seen on several T-shirts officially licensed by the band. It is a paraphrase of "Up the Hammers", the phrase which refers to the London football club, West Ham United, of which founder Steve Harris is a fan. Collection called "Die With Your Boots On" was published in 2020 as the result of a unique collaboration between Iron Maiden and West Ham United. Band's mascot is the official symbol of Força Jovem youth soccer club Vasco.


title: Iron Maiden

text: Iron Maiden's mascot, Eddie, is a perennial fixture in the band's science fiction and horror-influenced album cover art, as well as in live shows. Originally a papier-mâché mask incorporated in their backdrop which would squirt fake blood during their live shows, the name would be transferred to the character featured in the band's debut album cover, created by Derek Riggs. Eddie was painted exclusively by Riggs until 1992, at which point the band began using artwork from numerous other artists as well, including Melvyn Grant. Eddie is also featured in the band's first-person shooter video game, "Ed Hunter", as well as their mobile role-playing game, "Iron Maiden: Legacy of the Beast", in addition to numerous T-shirts, posters and other band-related merchandise. In 2008, he was awarded the "Icon Award" at the "Metal Hammer" Golden Gods, while Gibson.com describes him as "the most recognisable metal icon in the world and one of the most versatile too". In November 2021, the group's management teamed up with Marvel Entertainment. The result of the collaboration was, among others, a series of gadgets containing the image of the most famous characters of Marvel and Eddie. According to the manager of Rod Smallwood, the collaboration was a dream come true, joining the band's mascot to the group of pop culture superheroes such as X-Men, Avengers, Spider-Man, Iron Man, Captain America, Venom, Thanos, Thor or Deadpool.


title: Iron Maiden

text: Iron Maiden became famous from its huge and constantly growing merchandising offer, which is also one of the most characteristic on the market. The beginnings of the group's activity in this field can be traced back to mid-1979, when Keith Wilford, a declared fan of the band, became the president of FC Iron Maiden and was the first to decide to create T-shirts with a characteristic logo. The avalanche of ideas began at the turn of 1979/1980, when the visual artist Derek Riggs, at the request of the manager Rod Smallwood, created the character of a macabre mascot named Eddie The Head, in the long term stimulating the possibility of a multi-threaded continuation of the band's multimedia promotion, using this very characteristic character. Since then, Eddie has been an integral part of the stage and media image of the group, being the hero of the graphics decorating almost every release and accompanying the projects that the musicians of the formation endorse. Both the managerial activities and the influence of the team's management on the creation of the merchandising offer are considered pioneering and groundbreaking in the context of the entire genre. To a large extent, thanks to skillfully created merchandising, Iron Maiden became regarded as the greatest metal band in the world in the mid-1980s.


title: Iron Maiden

text: Regardless of the numerous controversies that the image of Iron Maiden aroused over the next decades, the merchandising offer created on its basis is one of the most impressive in history. As a whole, it includes several thousand versions of all possible gadgets, releases and other products, along with their reissues, on which the logo of the British formation has appeared over the past several decades. Its diversity and versatility can be compared with the no less impressive offer of the American group KISS. According to Enrique Campos, stylist, creative manager and fashion expert: "Eddie T-shirts can be seen everywhere and on all people, even those who have never heard the band's music. Rock is associated with being 'bad', with life on the sidelines. Concepts that part of the public likes to join from time to time, which is why you see chic girls from the Salamanca District wearing their T-shirts".


title: Iron Maiden

text: With the launch of alcoholic products with the group's logo on the market, a wide range of gadgets related to the culture of consumption, bar decor, product storage appeared, including proposals for glassware, dishes and brewing accessories dedicated to the group. The group's official store contains only a small part of the offer, but it is usually divided into several thematic panels, allowing for selective search for product proposals depending on the selected category from the global offer. On the global market, the group's products are available from the best distributors of music gadgets. The group's gadgets were created in cooperation with such market tycoons as Bravado, NECA, Stern Pinball, Incendium, Super7, Nodding Frog, Global Merchandising Services, Funko Pop, EMP, Rock Merch, Backstreet Merch, CMON and many others. In cooperation with the American tycoon CMON, board game sets compatible with the offers of Zombicide, Ankh, Kthulhu, Massive Darkness, Rising Sun were created, which are a tribute to the group's mascot - Eddie, described by the publisher as "The Greatest Heavy Metal Icon of All Time". The sets contained miniatures referring to individual incarnations of the mascot known from the group's publications, which could be used in dedicated board games, also in limited editions. It was the first such a wide offer related to a heavy metal artist.


title: Iron Maiden

text: In 2016, the group launched a mobile game, "Iron Maiden: Legacy of the Beast" and a pinball game with the same name in 2018. The game has been No. 1 mobile RPG in multiple markets, with over four million players worldwide having downloaded the game. Inspired by the game's title, the band would undertake the Legacy of the Beast World Tour, commencing in Europe in 2018 with North and South American shows following in 2019. Finnish computer game developers Rovio Entertainment have teamed up with the management of Iron Maiden to include Eddie's group mascot as one of the characters creating a special instalment of the game "Angry Birds Evolution", related to the Halloween celebration in 2017. Cooperation with the creators of the game Angry Birds, which has a multi-million audience of users around the world, meant that potentially many of them got a chance to initiate into the world of heavy metal. In May 2019, the band filed a $2 million lawsuit against video game company 3D Realms for infringing on their trademark via the planned release of a game called Ion Maiden, which the band claims "is nearly identical to the Iron Maiden trademark in appearance, sound and overall commercial impression." The suit further accuses 3D Realms of causing "confusion among consumers" by depicting a skull icon similar to the band's Eddie mascot and that "Ion Maiden" is similar to the band's own "Legacy of the Beast" video game.


title: Iron Maiden

text: Since 2021, Iron Maiden have welcomed in-game collaborations with the other rock and metal artists. As the first came Amon Amarth with a playable viking Berserker character, followed by the ethereal Shadow Sorceress, which represented Lacuna Coil's frontwoman Cristina Scabbia and next step was Papa Emeritus of Ghost entering the arena. In 2022, Disturbed's mascot The Guy was brought into battle with mysterious dark powers in the Legacy of the Beast mobile game. Iron Maiden teamed up with German power metal band, Powerwolf, to bring the Battle with Vârcolac (the werewolf) in games character showcase event: Macht Der Wölfe (Power of the Wolf) Queen Beast is the next character appearing in the game, created with collaboration with Swedish melodic death metal band Arch Enemy. On 18 October 2022 Iron Maiden teamed up with Avenged Sevenfold’s Deathbats Club for another in-game collaboration.


title: Iron Maiden

text: The huge puppet with the image of Eddie has appeared many times during the carnival celebrations in Rio De Janeiro and other South American cities, among other installations resembling the most famous stars of the stage, film, sports and influential personalities of world politics. During the Cavalcade of Magi 2021 in the Spanish city of Cadiz, next to dolls representing characters known from the world of pop culture, there was a huge, inflatable mummy inspired by the characteristic image of the Iron Maiden mascot from 1985. In addition to a wide range of widely available gadgets, the protagonist of which were the subsequent incarnations of the band's mascot, the image of Eddie turned out to be a popular theme for tattoos adorning various parts of the body of thousands of fans of SF / Fantasy aesthetics and heavy varieties of rock music.


title: Iron Maiden

text: Over the course of several decades, the band's cover illustrations and iconography have appeared in various TV productions, music videos by artists representing popular music in the broad sense, and in press publications. The distinctive cover illustrations, especially the group's mascot and logo, have become part of celebrity clothing (especially t-shirts) worn privately, as well as at prestigious industry events, including fashion shows. Among hundreds of others can be found: Lady Gaga, Paris Hilton, Rihanna, Madonna, Rowan Atkinson, Taylor Swift, Taylor Hill, Selena Gomez, David Beckham, David Hasselhoff, Diego Maradona, Kelly Rowland, Taryn Manning, Olivia Munn, Travis Scott, Cameron Diaz, Dolph Ziggler, Justin Bieber, Hilary Duff, Kirsten Dunst, Nicole Kidman, Drew Barrymore, Charlize Theron, Lindsay Lohan, Miley Cyrus, Holly Madison, David Banks, Jaden Smith, Michael Fassbender, Sam Worthington, Taylor Momsen, Kat Von D, Keith Urban, Amy Poehler, Paul Gascoigne, Marc Overmars, Faustino Asprilla, Juicy J, Kourtney Kardashian, DJ Mustard, Odell Beckham Jr, Ann Sydney, Kylie Jenner, Benicio del Toro, Pilar Rubio, Slaven Bilić, Pablo Zabaleta, Anushka Sharma, Terry Butcher, Ian Wright, Patrick Vieira, Paul Mariner, Stuart Pearce, Iggy Azalea, Bjorn Einar Romoren.


title: Iron Maiden

text: Iron Maiden's distinct logo has adorned all of the band's releases since their debut, 1979's "The Soundhouse Tapes" EP. The typeface originates with Vic Fair's poster design for the 1976 science fiction film, "The Man Who Fell to Earth", also used by Gordon Giltrap, although Steve Harris claims that he designed it himself, using his abilities as an architectural draughtsman. Metal Lord / Iron Maiden, a characteristic font known from the group's classic logo, disseminated around the world by graphic works related to the band's activities, has found its way into pop culture for good, becoming a motif commonly used to create various logos and inscriptions. The band's characteristic graphic motifs have appeared on huge stadium banners many times during football games in many countries around the world. The song "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life" (from Monty Python's "Life of Brian") is a staple at their concerts, where the recording is played after the final encore.


title: Iron Maiden

text: At the beginning of January 2021, at general audience in Aula Paolo VI, Pope Francis was honoured with a circus show presented by 25 artists of Ronny Roller Circus, accompanied, among others, by presentation of the classic piece "The Trooper", one of the greatest standards of the British formation. It was the first time in history when a composition by a heavy metal artist was sounded in the Vatican. BMW in collaboration with Motorrad Bögel GmbH has created a customized model of the IRON R18 motorcycle inspired by Iron Maiden's unique musical and visual style.


title: Iron Maiden

text: Kiss co-founder Paul Stanley noted that Iron Maiden "have helped spawn an entire genre of music" and influenced literally thousands of other artists. According to "Guitar World", Iron Maiden's music has "influenced generations of newer metal acts, from legends like Metallica to current stars like Avenged Sevenfold," with Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich commenting that he has "always had an incredible amount of respect and admiration for them." Ulrich has frequently cited Iron Maiden as probably the biggest influence on Metallica's career. Metallica's guitarist Kirk Hammett described the cover of Iron Maiden's debut LP as his favourite album cover and stated that the song "Phantom of the Opera" from that album played an important role in his development as a guitarist. Hammett explained how "(...) a lot of guitar elements from that song can still be heard in his work with Metallica today". Kerry King of Slayer stated that "they meant so much to [him] in their early days". Two of the founding members of Anthrax, guitarist Scott Ian and bassist Danny Lilker, have also cited Iron Maiden as one of the band's main influences and inspirations (especially early on in their career), the former going on to say that "they had a major impact on [his] life." Megadeth have cited Iron Maiden as one of their biggest inspiration on many different levels. Members of Testament have stated that Iron Maiden were one of their blueprint bands and have covered their songs many times. Exodus guitarist Gary Holt and late singer Paul Baloff have also acknowledged Iron Maiden as one of the band's influences, with the former citing both them and Judas Priest as "basically the calibre of the stuff [he] listened to" in Exodus' early years. Kurt Cobain, late founder, composer, vocalist and guitarist of Nirvana, was a big fan of Iron Maiden. Both former and current members of Suicidal Tendencies have also mentioned Iron Maiden as one of the sources of inspiration behind their music. Alice in Chains musicians mentioned about Iron Maiden's influences on them.


title: Iron Maiden

text: Tobias Forge, frontman and leader of Swedish rock band Ghost stated that "for me personally, they have been very influential musically, I've always listened to them a lot growing up as a metal fan. Their live album, "Live After Death", had — and still has — a great impact on me when it comes to work ethic. Going through that book that came with the record, watching all those dates. When I was a kid, I would sit there with a map book and pin out all the cities they played on that tour. It was like a hundred shows all over America. The show was so over the top, so it set a standard. "[Iron] Maiden was one of the big movers when it came to '80s heavy metal merchandise. All of our merchandise has always been inspired by bands like Maiden. That's the sort of idea I had about rock and roll merchandise."


title: Iron Maiden

text: M. Shadows of Avenged Sevenfold stated that Iron Maiden "are by far the best live band in the world and their music is timeless", while Trivium singer Matt Heafy comments that "without Iron Maiden, Trivium surely wouldn't exist". Slipknot and Stone Sour frontman Corey Taylor said that "Steve Harris does more with four fingers than I've ever seen anybody do. And Bruce Dickinson? Dude! To me, he was the quintessential old-school heavy metal singer. He could hit notes that were just sick, and he was a great showman. Everything made me a fan. And there wasn't a dude that I hung out with that wasn't trying to draw Eddie on their schoolbooks", while their music also helped Jesper Strömblad of In Flames to pioneer the melodic death metal genre, stating that he had wanted to combine death metal with Iron Maiden's melodic guitar sounds. Viking metallers of Swedish band Amon Amarth stated Iron Maiden is one of their biggest influence also participated in Iron Maiden's "Legacy of the Beast" RPG game project. Chris Impellitteri stated Iron Maiden have influenced "virtually every heavy metal band in existence with their music, brand, and of course talent!"


title: Iron Maiden

text: Matt Bellamy, frontman of the English rock band Muse, revealed his love and great respect for Steve Harris’ band: "(…) Iron Maiden were the British band and also felt a bit more punk rock in ways. The song "Phantom Of The Opera" [from Iron Maiden’s self-titled debut album] doesn’t feel as bloated or overtly classical as other metal songs. There’s still something quite angry and scary about it. That’s why Maiden are a band we’ve always looked up to. That usage of the harmonic minor scale and the progressive approach to arrangements is something that we share, even if we never sounded like them and live in a different genre. We have a lot of respect for them as musicians, especially Steve Harris, who is one of the best bass players around."


title: Iron Maiden

text: Anthrax drummer Charlie Benante stated Iron Maiden "made every band that were influenced by them aspire to be like them. When I was learning to play guitar, this was one of the tunes I practiced. I developed as a guitar player and my coordination got better and better. Maiden had something different, they brought out that Primal roar from us. This was a New style of Hard Rock and Metal, they had a Punk Drive to them with Boston styled Guitar licks, they changed the game. I often said, no Maiden, no Big 4." Rafael Bittencourt, the guitarist of Brazilian heavy metal band Angra, praised Iron Maiden as the band which finally defined power metal style. Brendon Small, an American musician, stand-up comedian, animator, writer, producer and the actor, known for co-creating the animated series "Home Movies" and "Metalocalypse", was inspired by Iron Maiden music and iconography.


title: Iron Maiden

text: Employed to Serve's Sammy Urwin stated: "(...) their influence is absolutely huge, Maiden are a funny one. They're the one that seems to stick out for people, especially in the hardcore scene. Everyone is into Sabbath and Priest, but Maiden can be the Marmite one of the three. But they've influenced so much metalcore. Everyone from Prayer For Cleansing, Unearth and Darkest Hour – the influence of records like "The Number Of The Beast" on bands like that is undeniable. Not just influential on a musical level, "The Number Of The Beast" is as much a part of heavy music culture as it is a straightforward, mandatory soundtrack for diehard metalheads. In fact, the album has transcended its heavy metal origins and passed into the broader mainstream."


title: Iron Maiden

text: Famous pop singer Lady Gaga stated she admires what Iron Maiden have achieved in their career and aims to follow in their path. "The devotion of the fans moving in unison, pumping their fists, watching the show, when I see that, I see the paradigm for my future and the relationship I want to have with my fans. Iron Maiden‘s never had a hit song, and they tour stadiums around the world, and their fans live, breathe and die for Maiden, and that is my dream. That is my dream." Miley Cyrus stated that Steve Harris's band is one of her favorites and the band's music has had a significant impact on shaping her taste in music. Chuck D, founder of the iconic rap group Public Enemy, admits: "The whole idea for the Public Enemy concept album began with our amazement that bands like Iron Maiden were able to include a number of messages and details on the covers of their albums." Joakim Broden, songwriter who is the lead vocalist, keyboardist, and occasional third guitarist of the Swedish heavy metal band Sabaton, stated Iron Maiden's "The Number of the Beast" "is an album that defines an entire music genre". Band's formula secret is about "taking the energy of punk and put it into heavy metal without losing any of what made metal great."


title: Iron Maiden

text: Miho Rosana, the former bass player of Japanese metal band Lovebites, described her respect to Iron Maiden and their eponymous debut album in a few sentences: "(…) Iron Maiden’s self-titled debut is the greatest album of the last 50 years. It is important because of its unprecedented sound. It saw progressive metal sounds fused with the aggression of punk, and in doing so became the cornerstone of the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal. Truly an iconic album in every way. You can hear Iron Maiden’s influence in so much metal that followed and even in new bands today. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that without them, today’s metal scene would be very different."


title: Iron Maiden

text: Other artists who cite the band as an influence include Chris Jericho, a professional wrestler and lead singer of Fozzy, multi-instrumentalist Twiggy Ramirez (Marilyn Manson, A Perfect Circle, Nine Inch Nails), Myles Kennedy an American musician, singer, and songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the rock band Alter Bridge, and as the lead vocalist in guitarist Slash's backing band, guitarist Dave Navarro (Jane's Addiction, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Guns N' Roses, Nine Inch Nails, Alanis Morissette), Serj Tankian, frontman of System of a Down, Zoltan Bathory, the guitarist of Five Finger Death Punch, musicians of an American heavy metal band Lamb of God, David Vincent and Steve Tucker of Morbid Angel, Lee Altus of Exodus and Heathen, musicians of American progressive metal band Mastodon, Tom Morello, the lead guitarist of RATM and Audioslave, Cam Pipes, lead vocalist of 3 Inches of Blood, Joey Vera bassist of Armored Saint, Vitaly Dubinin, bassist of Aria, Michel Langevin, founding member and drummer of Voivod, Mille Petrozza, vocalist and lead guitarist of Kreator, Marcel Schirmer of German thrash metal band Destruction, Chuck Schuldiner, late frontman, founder and guitarist of Death, Paul Allender, guitarist of British extreme metallers Cradle of Filth, Adam Nergal Darski, co-founder, frontman, composer and the lead guitarist of Polish blackened death metal band Behemoth, David Draiman, the vocalist of American band Disturbed, Ihsahn, composer, vocalist and lead guitarist of Emperor, musicians of German power metal band Helloween, American metal band Machine Head, Washington-based band the Melvins, Bay Area thrash metal band Death Angel, American progressive metal band Fates Warning, Canadian rock band Sum 41, American rock band Skid Row, American heavy metal bands Sanctuary and Nevermore, Paul Gilbert, co-founder of Mr. Big band, Jon Schaffer, the rhythm guitarist and principal songwriter of the Florida-based heavy metal band Iced Earth, Mikael Åkerfeldt, guitarist and lead vocalist of Opeth, and X Japan drummer Yoshiki and former guitarist hide. Andreas Kisser and Max Cavalera of Brazilian metal band Sepultura. Welsh heavy metal band Bullet for My Valentine, American rock band My Chemical Romance, musicians of Sentenced, Cristina Scabbia of Lacuna Coil, Ville Valo, the frontman of HIM, also musicians of Amorphis and Therion. Both current and former Dream Theater members John Petrucci, John Myung, and Mike Portnoy have stated that Iron Maiden were one of their biggest influences. Kat Von D a Mexican-American tattoo artist, model, entrepreneur and recording artist was influenced by the band. Franck Hueso better known as Carpenter Brut listed Iron Maiden's second album "Killers" among ten records which changed his life. Lorenzo Raganzini a techno musician and the performer who uses remixes of metal music including Iron Maiden's classics, described the band as one of his greatest inspirations.


title: Iron Maiden

text: Iron Maiden's musical style has also influenced many Scandinavian extreme metal bands including Nifelheim, Watain, Dissection, Dimmu Borgir, Varg Vikernes of Burzum, Fenriz of Darkthrone just to name a few. Greek metal stage was extremely influenced by the band, not mentioning traditional heavy metal bands, many Hellenic Black Metal artists were inspired by Iron Maiden. Musicians of Rotting Christ, Varathron, Necromantia, or Yoth Iria have been stating about English formation has influenced on them. Polish heavy metal pioneers Turbo many times have mentioned about Iron Maiden being one of their biggest influences to date. The band's second album "Smak ciszy" (1985) was officially dedicated to Iron Maiden. A few decades later Turbo musicians supported live former Maiden's frontman Paul Di'Anno.


title: Iron Maiden

text: Among the countless musicians and bands which have been introduced into metal or influenced by Iron Maiden are: Gene Hoglan of Dark Angel, Dethklok and ex-Death, Testament, Strapping Young Lad and Fear Factory, the late Dimebag Darrell of Pantera and Damageplan, Vicious Rumors, Anathema, Aaron Stainthorpe of My Dying Bride, Bobby 'Blitz' Ellsworth of Overkill, Karl Sanders of Nile, Gojira, Moonspell, Hammerfall, Kurdt Vanderhoof of Metal Church, Annihilator's Jeff Waters, Jorn Lande, Carcass, Stratovarius, Warlock, Larry LaLonde of Primus and ex-Possessed and Blind Illusion, Queensryche, Michael Amott of Arch Enemy, Funeral for a Friend, Children of Bodom, Running Wild, Grave Digger, Necrophobic, Chris Barnes of Six Feet Under and ex-Cannibal Corpse, George "Corpsegrinder" Fisher of Cannibal Corpse, Wolf, Edguy, Angra, Blind Guardian, Nuclear Assault, Gamma Ray, Iron Savior, Powerwolf, Zeal & Ardor, Marek Pająk, guitarist of Vader, Nocny Kochanek, Scream Maker, CETI, Sepultura, A Wilhelm Scream, Savatage, D.R.I., Escape the Fate, Hellsongs, Candiria, Sodom, Sacred Reich, Coroner, Watchtower, Wrathchild America, Forced Entry, Flotsam and Jetsam (whose song "Iron Maiden" is a tribute to the band) and surreal artist Vincent Castiglia among many others.


title: Iron Maiden

text: Brian Slagel, the owner of Metal Blade Records, stated: ""The Number Of The Beast", to me, still to this day, is the perfect heavy metal album. Everything is perfect. The sound is perfect, the songs are perfect, the lyrics are perfect. It's the ultimate heavy metal album and it checks off all the boxes. Forty years on, the influence of "The Number Of The Beast" can be heard in a vast array of contemporary heaviness, and it might be quicker to list notable metal musicians who don't cite the record as an inspiration. For me it along a time when I was really heavily getting into the whole metal thing. I was starting my record company and it was a pivotal point in my life, and which determined what I would do for the rest of it! Maiden motivated me to do whatever I could to make other people hear this amazing music. It was a life-changing experience."


title: Iron Maiden

text: As noticed music journalist Geoff Barton, the band's music constituted an important passage between the classic heavy rock school of the turn of the 1960s and 1970s, based on rhythm 'n blues, and contemporary heavy metal, characterised by sub-genre diversification and stylistic eclecticism. According to Rock 'n Roll Fantasy Camp the style and attitude of Iron Maiden drummer Nicko McBrain has inspired generations of heavy-metal drummers that followed. As stated the former editor of the German magazine "Rock Hard", Götz Kühnemund, Iron Maiden were (and still are) the inspiration for all the heavy metal bands we know today because they're an intrinsically heavy metal group. It is equally important for those who play power metal, speed, thrash, death, black, hard rock – almost every genre. Iron Maiden took hard rock from the '70s, took it into the' 80s, and created a new genre that didn't exist before. This band introduced a DIY approach to all rock music. They even more than all the others popularised guitar harmonies in metal. Many metal bands in existence today have two guitarists, who use double guitar harmonies, and that's where they are inspired by Iron Maiden.


title: Iron Maiden

text: Jörg Pistorius, German music journalist, stated there is: "No single band can claim to have created or invented heavy metal. However, there is one that shaped it and was largely responsible for making it a globally recognized style and market segment with high sales potential. (…) Iron Maiden played fast guitar figures sparkling with energy, combined with harmonious melodies and choruses that could be sung immediately. No band has shaped heavy metal as much as Iron Maiden."


title: Iron Maiden

text: Ian Christe, the Swiss musician, music journalist and an author of publication entitled "Sound of the Beast" claimed that Iron Maiden are responsible for the further development of the genre, carried out under the aegis of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal. As he claimed, Iron Maiden, together with Judas Priest, is responsible for the greatest development of the metal genre. While AC/DC and Black Sabbath remained primal, dark, it was Iron Maiden and Judas Priest who transformed the twin guitar harmonies, creating a whole new quality.


title: Iron Maiden

text: According to music journalist and the writer Neil Daniels Iron Maiden "redefined the whole genre blending classic heavy rock influence with punky vibe, twin guitars attack and progressive approach which finally have created the new quality. Band's influence on generations of rock and metal bands cannot be overstated. They elevated metal to an art form, proving that academic and musical inspirations can coexist." From the artist's profile published by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame it appears that "in the 1980s, Iron Maiden released seven high-octane albums that cemented them as one of the greatest rock bands – creating a blueprint for how heavy metal bands should look, sound and tour."


title: Iron Maiden

text: Former guitarist and co-founder of Judas Priest band, K.K. Downing, confessed Iron Maiden's "music does not quite suit my taste, I cannot deny that it has had a great influence on heavy metal and music in general. As a Brit, I am terribly proud of what they have managed over the years to fill the niche they have created. Besides, I have always admired them for being able to achieve such a great commercial success for their marketing activities."


title: Iron Maiden

text: Steve Harris is considered one of the most influential musicians and composers in heavy rock history. He is also the author of the lion's share of the Iron Maiden's repertoire and the creator of the archetypal composition pattern in modern metal. In addition to writing riffs, vocal melodies and lyrics for most songs, he was also involved in audio-visual production and editing. The riffs created by him are among the most unforgettable in history, as evidenced by compositions such as "The Trooper", "The Number of the Beast", "Phantom of the Opera", "Run to the Hills", "Fear of the Dark" or "Hallowed Be Thy Name". The creator of Iron Maiden has been repeatedly named the best and most influential metal bassist of all time. He is also the originator of extremely expressive, galloping bass lines. His compositional style is based on triplets consisting of sixteenths and eighth notes, creating intense rhythmic background for a double (then triple) guitar attack. Steve Harris is one of the few bass players who can play extremely fast and dense with just his fingers. This ability has become a sensation in the context of the entire heavy metal scene. According to the Ultimate Classic Rock editors "technically it was incredibly impressive to achieve so much speed and dynamics in the sound without using a standard pick". The founder of Iron Maiden inspired masses of future musicians, including such thrash metal bassists as Frankie Bello of Anthrax, and former and current Metallica bassists Cliff Burton, Jason Newsted, and Robert Trujillo.


title: Iron Maiden

text: The first heavy metal videos in history broadcast by MTV were the images for the live versions of "Iron Maiden" and "Wrathchild" taken from official VHS "Live at the Rainbow (Iron Maiden)". The song "Flash of the Blade" was included on the soundtrack of Dario Argento's 1985 horror film "Phenomena" (AKA "Creepers") and was covered by the American band Avenged Sevenfold on their double live album/DVD "Live in the LBC & Diamonds in the Rough". Rhapsody of Fire have also recorded a cover of the song that is featured on the deluxe edition of their album "From Chaos to Eternity". "Flash of the Blade" can also be heard in the "Jem and the Holograms" episode "Kimber's Rebellion", just after the cartoon band members return home from Paris, on a boom-box stereo being carried by a passerby.


title: Iron Maiden

text: The band's name has been mentioned prominently in several songs, such as the singles "Teenage Dirtbag" by Wheatus, "Back to the 80's" by Danish dance-pop band Aqua. and "Fat Lip" by Sum 41. Iron Maiden have also been referenced in Weezer's "Heart Songs" (from their 2008 self-titled "Red" album), Blues Traveller's "Psycho Joe" (from 1997's "Straight on till Morning"), and NOFX's "Eddie, Bruce and Paul" (from their 2009 album "Coaster"), which Sputnikmusic describes as "a humorous retelling of Paul DiAnno's departure".


title: Iron Maiden

text: The number of releases and ventures in tribute to the British formation can be estimated in hundreds, moreover - the reinterpretations of the band's achievements make up an extremely wide range of stylistic variants, such as: numerous sub-genres of rock and metal, soul, pop, classics, symphonic music, alternative music, electro, techno, industrial, hip-hop, rap, reggae, ska, jazz, chorales, pastiches, piano music, early music, string music, early music or acoustic versions with a wide range of classical instruments. In 2008, "Kerrang!" released "", an album composed of Iron Maiden cover songs performed by Metallica, Machine Head, Dream Theater, Trivium, Coheed and Cambria, Avenged Sevenfold, and other groups influenced by the band. In 2010, Maiden uniteD, an acoustic tribute band consisting of members of Ayreon, Threshold and Within Temptation, released "Mind the Acoustic Pieces", a re-interpretation of the entire "Piece of Mind" album. As of 2021 nearly 200 Iron Maiden cover audio-visual releases exist (each featuring various artists), including piano, electro, string quartet and hip-hop tributes among many others.


title: Iron Maiden

text: Iron Maiden songs have been featured in the soundtracks of several video games, including "Carmageddon 2", "", "", "", Marvel's "Guardians of the Galaxy", "Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4", "SSX on Tour" and "Madden NFL 10". Their music also appears in the "Guitar Hero "and "Rock Band" series of rhythmic video games. The U.S shooter game entitled "PowerSlave" was a reference to the Iron Maiden's album of the same name, released In 1984, which also features an Egyptian-themed cover.


title: Iron Maiden

text: Transformers author Bill Forster is an avowed Iron Maiden fan and made several Iron Maiden references, including song lyrics and the phrase "Up the Irons" in his books, including "" series and "The AllSpark Almanac" series. Iron Maiden music, lyrics, themes, fans and iconography have appeared in many episodes and movies including quasi-documentary comedies as "Schemers", "The Night of the Beast" also in documentary movies such as "Global Metal" or band's own "Flight 666" among many others. Iron Maiden songs have also appeared in films, such as "Murder by Numbers"; while MTV's animated duo Beavis and Butt-Head have commented favourably on the band several times. "The Trooper" song and elements of the band's image appeared in a youth musical comedy entitled "Metal Lords" broadcast on Netflix. Numerous threads referring to the history of Iron Maiden and the role of the group in shaping the genre were included in individual episodes of the series "Stranger Things" (the character of Eddie Munson, recordings, presented releases and graphics), while the music of the group was included in the soundtrack of the production of "The Terminal List". On 17 November 2022, German television mogul ARD broadcast a series of documentaries entitled "How Heavy Metal Saved My Life" about the role of music in the lives of fans. One of the episodes was dedicated to Iron Maiden fans.


title: Iron Maiden

text: Bruce Dickinson is the most active in media member of the band. Iron Maiden frontman presented "Bruce Dickinson's Friday Rock Show" on BBC radio station 6 Music from 2002 to 2010. In addition to his show on 6 Music, Dickinson also hosted a series entitled "Masters of Rock" on BBC Radio 2 from 2003 to 2007. His singing and episode acting were presented in "The Club Paradise", "Mr. Bean's Elected", and "" Dickinson's aviation passion and storytelling talent were reflected in "Flying Heavy Metal (Discovery Series)" among many other documents. Bruce Dickinson was the main character of the "Psycho Schizo Espresso" podcast, which was published on social platforms. The topics of individual episodes were phenomena that could not be explained in a rational way. The interviews with controversial people were also broadcast.


title: Iron Maiden

text: In 1982, the band released one of their most popular, controversial and acclaimed albums, "The Number of the Beast". The artwork and title track led to Christian groups in the United States branding the band as Satanists, encouraging people to destroy copies of the release. The band's manager, Rod Smallwood, later commented that Christians initially burnt the records, but later decided to destroy them with hammers through fear of breathing in the melting vinyl's fumes. The protests were not restricted to the US, with Christian organisations preventing Iron Maiden from performing in Chile in 1992.


title: Iron Maiden

text: Contrary to the accusations, the band have always denied the notion that they are Satanists, with lead vocalist, Bruce Dickinson, doing so on-stage in the "Live After Death" concert video. Steve Harris has since commented that, "It was mad. They completely got the wrong end of the stick. They obviously hadn't read the lyrics. They just wanted to believe all that rubbish about us being Satanists." Harris has also stated that "The Number of the Beast" song was inspired by a nightmare he had after watching "", and also influenced by Robert Burns' "Tam o' Shanter". Furthermore, the band's drummer, Nicko McBrain, has been a born-again Christian since 1999.


title: Iron Maiden

text: For their Somewhere Back in Time World Tour in 2008 and 2009, Iron Maiden commissioned an Astraeus Airlines Boeing 757 as transport. The aeroplane was converted into a combi configuration, which enabled it to carry the band, their crew and stage production, thereby allowing the group to perform in countries which were previously deemed unreachable logistically. It was also repainted with a special Iron Maiden livery, which the airline decided to retain after receiving positive feedback from customers.


title: Iron Maiden

text: The aircraft, named "Ed Force One" after a competition on the band's website, was flown by Dickinson, as he was also a commercial airline pilot for Astraeus, and plays a major role in the award-winning documentary "", which was released in cinemas in 42 countries in April 2009. A different aeroplane (registered G-STRX) was used for The Final Frontier World Tour in 2011 with altered livery, adopting the artwork of "The Final Frontier" album, and features heavily in the 2012 documentary "Behind the Beast".


title: Iron Maiden

text: For The Book of Souls World Tour in 2016, the band upgraded to an ex-Air France Boeing 747-400 jumbo jet, supplied by Air Atlanta Icelandic (registered TF-AAK) and customised by Volga-Dnepr Gulf, which allows for more space without the aircraft having to undergo a significant conversion to carry their equipment. In January 2022, Bruce Dickinson told the Associated Press that he would not be piloting band's plane on their upcoming tour citing his nearing the mandatory age limit for commercial airline pilots. According to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), commercial pilots must retire at age 65. However, there is currently no maximum age limit for being a private pilot or for being an Air Force pilot.


title: Iron Maiden

text: Steve Harris, Iron Maiden's bassist and primary songwriter, has stated that his influences include Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin, Uriah Heep, Pink Floyd, Genesis, Yes, Jethro Tull, Thin Lizzy, UFO, Queen and Wishbone Ash. In 2010 Harris stated, "I think if anyone wants to understand Maiden's early thing, in particular the harmony guitars, all they have to do is listen to Wishbone Ash's "Argus" album. Thin Lizzy too, but not as much. And then we wanted to have a bit of a prog thing thrown in as well, because I was really into bands like Genesis and Jethro Tull. So you combine all that with the heavy riffs and the speed, and you've got it." In 2004, Harris explained that the band's "heaviness" was inspired by "Black Sabbath and Deep Purple with a bit of Zeppelin thrown in." On top of this, Harris developed his own playing style, which guitarist Janick Gers describes as "more like a rhythm guitar," cited as responsible for the band's galloping style, heard in such songs as "The Trooper" and "Run to the Hills."


title: Iron Maiden

text: The band's guitarists, Dave Murray, Adrian Smith, and Janick Gers, each have their own individual influences and playing style. Dave Murray is known for his legato technique which, he claims, "evolved naturally. I'd heard Jimi Hendrix using legato when I was growing up, and I liked that style of playing." Stating that he "was inspired by blues rock rather than metal," Adrian Smith was influenced by Johnny Winter and Pat Travers, leading to him becoming a "melodic player." Janick Gers, on the other hand, prefers a more improvised style, largely inspired by Ritchie Blackmore, which he claims is in contrast to Smith's "rhythmic" sound.


title: Iron Maiden

text: Singer Bruce Dickinson, who typically works in collaboration with guitarist Adrian Smith, has an operatic vocal style, inspired by Arthur Brown, Peter Hammill, Ian Anderson and Ian Gillan, and is often considered to be one of the best heavy metal vocalists of all time. Although Nicko McBrain has only received one writing credit, on the "Dance of Death" album, Harris often relies on him while developing songs. Adrian Smith commented, "Steve loves playing with him. [They] used to work for hours going over these bass and drum patterns."


title: Iron Maiden

text: Throughout their career, the band's style has remained largely unchanged, in spite of the addition of guitar synthesisers on 1986's "Somewhere in Time", keyboards on 1988's "Seventh Son of a Seventh Son", and an attempt to return to the "stripped down" production of their earlier material on "No Prayer for the Dying". In recent years, however, the band have begun using more progressive elements in their songs, which Steve Harris describes as not progressive "in the modern sense, but like Dream Theater, more in a 70s way". According to Harris, "Seventh Son of a Seventh Son" was the band's first album which was "more progressive", while they would only return to this style from 1995's "The X Factor", which he states is "like an extension of "Seventh Son"..., in the sense of the progressive element to it". The development contrasts with the band's raw-sounding earlier material, which AllMusic states was "clearly drawing from elements of punk rock", although Harris firmly denies this.


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: The Hobbit is a series of three epic high fantasy adventure films directed by Peter Jackson. The films are subtitled "" (2012), "" (2013), and "" (2014). The films are based on the 1937 novel "The Hobbit" by J. R. R. Tolkien, with large portions of the trilogy inspired by the appendices to "The Return of the King", which expand on the story told in "The Hobbit", as well as new material and characters written especially for the films. Together they act as a prequel to Jackson's "The Lord of the Rings" film trilogy.


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: The screenplays were written by Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Jackson, and Guillermo del Toro, who was originally chosen to direct before his departure from the project. The films take place in the fictional world of Middle-earth sixty years before the beginning of "The Lord of the Rings", and follow hobbit Bilbo Baggins (Martin Freeman), who is convinced by the wizard Gandalf the Grey (Ian McKellen) to accompany thirteen dwarves, led by Thorin Oakenshield (Richard Armitage), on a quest to reclaim the Lonely Mountain from the dragon Smaug (voiced by Benedict Cumberbatch). The films expand upon certain elements from the novel and other source material, such as Gandalf's investigation at Dol Guldur which leads him to the Necromancer, and the heroes' pursuit by the orcs Azog and Bolg, who seek vengeance against Thorin and his kindred.


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: The films feature an ensemble cast that includes James Nesbitt, Ken Stott, Evangeline Lilly, Lee Pace and Luke Evans, with several actors reprising their roles from "The Lord of the Rings", including Cate Blanchett, Orlando Bloom, Ian Holm, Christopher Lee, Hugo Weaving, Elijah Wood, and Andy Serkis. The films also feature Manu Bennett, Sylvester McCoy, Mikael Persbrandt, Lawrence Makoare, and Stephen Fry. Returning for production, among others, were illustrators John Howe and Alan Lee, art director Dan Hennah, cinematographer Andrew Lesnie, and composer Howard Shore, while props were again crafted by Weta Workshop, with visual effects managed by Weta Digital.


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: The first film in the trilogy premiered at the Embassy Theatre in Wellington on 28 November 2012. 100,000 people lined the red carpet on Courtenay Place, and the entire event was broadcast live on television in New Zealand and streamed over the Internet. The second film of the series premiered at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on 2 December 2013. The final film premiered at the Odeon Leicester Square in London on 1 December 2014. The series received mixed reviews, but was a financial success and became one of the highest-grossing film series of all time with $2.938 billion in worldwide receipts. It was nominated for various awards and won several, although not as many as the original trilogy.


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: Jackson and Walsh originally expressed interest in filming "The Hobbit" in 1995, then envisaging it as part one of a trilogy (parts two and three would have been based on "The Lord of the Rings"). Frustration arose when Jackson's producer, Harvey Weinstein, discovered that Saul Zaentz had production rights to "The Hobbit", but that distribution rights still belonged to United Artists (which had kept those rights, believing that filmmakers would prefer to adapt "The Hobbit" rather than "The Lord of the Rings"). The United Artists studio and its parent company Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer were for sale in the mid-1990s, but Weinstein's attempts to buy the movie rights from the studio were unsuccessful. Weinstein asked Jackson to press on with adapting "The Lord of the Rings". Ultimately, "The Lord of the Rings" was produced by New Line Cinema, not the Weinsteins, and their rights to film "The Hobbit" were set to expire in 2010. In September 2006, the new ownership and management of MGM expressed interest in teaming up with New Line and Jackson to make "The Hobbit".


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: In March 2005, Jackson launched a lawsuit against New Line, claiming he had lost revenue from merchandising, video, and computer games releases associated with "". He did not seek a specific settlement, but requested an audit to see whether New Line had withheld money owed him. Although Jackson wanted it settled before he would make the film, he felt the lawsuit was minor and that New Line would still let him make "The Hobbit". New Line co-founder Robert Shaye was annoyed with the lawsuit and said in January 2007 that Jackson would never again direct a film for New Line, accusing him of being greedy. MGM boss Harry Sloan halted development, as he wanted Jackson to be involved. By August, after a string of flops, Shaye tried to repair his relationship with the director. He said, "I really respect and admire Peter and would love for him to be creatively involved in some way in "The Hobbit"." The following month, New Line was fined $125,000 for failing to provide requested accounting documents.


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: On 16 December 2007, New Line and MGM announced that Jackson would be executive producer of "The Hobbit" and its sequel. The two studios would co-finance the film and the latter studio (via 20th Century Fox) would distribute the film outside North America—New Line's first-ever such deal with another major studio. Each film's budget was estimated at US$150 million, compared to the US$94 million budget for each of the films in Jackson's "Lord of the Rings" trilogy. After completion of the merger of New Line Cinema with Warner Bros. in February 2008, the two parts were announced as scheduled for release in December 2011 and 2012. Producer Mark Ordesky, the executive producer of "The Lord of the Rings", planned to return to supervise the prequels. Jackson explained he chose not to direct because it would have been unsatisfying to compete with his previous films.


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: In February 2008, the Tolkien Estate (through The Tolkien Trust, a British charity) and HarperCollins Publishers filed a suit against New Line for breach of contract and fraud and demanded $220 million in compensation for "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy. The suit claimed New Line had only paid the Estate an upfront fee of $62,500, despite the trilogy's gross of an estimated $6 billion worldwide from box office receipts and merchandise sales. The suit claimed the Estate was entitled to 7.5% of all profits made by any Tolkien films, as established by prior deals. The suit sought to block the filming of "The Hobbit". The suit was settled in September 2009 for an undisclosed amount. However the Tolkien Trust's 2009 accounts show that it received payment from New Line Cinema of £24 million (a little over US$38 million). This amount was the Trust's estimated share in respect of the gross profit participation due for the films based on "The Lord of the Rings". Christopher Tolkien said: "The trustees regret that legal action was necessary but are glad that this dispute has been settled on satisfactory terms that will allow the Tolkien Trust properly to pursue its charitable objectives. The trustees acknowledge that New Line may now proceed with its proposed film of The Hobbit."


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: Despite the legal suits, development proceeded and in April 2008, Guillermo del Toro was hired to direct the film. Del Toro has said he was a fan of Jackson's trilogy and had discussed directing a film adaptation of "Halo" with him in 2005. Though that project stalled, they kept in contact. In a 2006 interview, del Toro was quoted saying "I don't like little guys and dragons, hairy feet, hobbits ... I don't like sword and sorcery, I hate all that stuff". After he signed on to direct in April 2008, del Toro posted on TheOneRing.net forums that he had been enchanted by "The Hobbit" as a child, but found that Tolkien's other books "contain[ed] geography and genealogy too complex for my prepubescent brain". In taking the job of director, del Toro was now "reading like a madman to catch up with a whole new land, a continent of sorts—a cosmology created by brilliant philologist turned Shaman". He wrote that his appreciation of Tolkien was enhanced by his knowledge of the fantasy genre, and the folklore research he had undertaken while making his own fantasy films.


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: Pre-production began around August 2008, with del Toro, Jackson, Walsh and Philippa Boyens writing the scripts. Del Toro collaborated with Jackson, Walsh and Boyens via videoconferencing and flew every three weeks, back and forth from Los Angeles (where some of the designs were done) to New Zealand to visit them. Del Toro spent his mornings writing and afternoons looking at material related to Tolkien to help him understand the writer's work. He watched World War I documentaries and asked for book recommendations from Jackson, who is a collector of World War I memorabilia. Del Toro felt Tolkien's experiences in that war influenced his stories.


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: By November 2008, del Toro had said that he, Jackson, Walsh and Boyens would realise something new about the story every week and the script was continually changing. The writing hours increased to twelve each day, as they dedicated three weeks to finally deciding the films' structures. During the first few months of 2009, writing would start from 8:30 am and end at 3:00 pm when del Toro would meet with Weta (i.e., Weta Workshop and Weta Digital film effects companies). Completion of the story outlines and treatments ended in March 2009 and the studios approved the start of writing the screenplay. Filming was expected to take place throughout 2010 in New Zealand, with del Toro renovating the Hobbiton sets near Matamata. For his part, Jackson had kept the Rivendell scale model and the Bag End set (which he has used as a guest house) from the trilogy. During the middle of the shoot, there was expected to be a break which would have allowed del Toro to edit "The Hobbit" while sets would be altered for the second film. The director expected the shoot to last 370 days.


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: Jackson revealed in late November 2009 that he anticipated that the script for "The Hobbit" would not be finished until the beginning of 2010, delaying the start of production until the middle of that summer (several months later than previously anticipated). The announcement created doubts about whether the film would make its previously announced release dates of December 2011 and December 2012. Jackson reiterated that no casting decisions had been made. On 22 January 2010, Alan Horn said the first film would likely not be released until the fourth quarter of 2012.


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: Del Toro and Jackson had a positive working relationship, in which they compromised on disagreements for the benefit of the film. Del Toro believed he would be able to shoot the film himself, although Jackson noted he had similar hopes for filming all of his trilogy and offered to help as second unit director. Del Toro planned on shooting the film in the trilogy's 2.35:1 aspect ratio, rather than his signature 1.85:1 ratio. He hoped to collaborate again with cinematographer Guillermo Navarro.


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: Del Toro shares Jackson's passion for scale models and background paintings, though he wanted to increase the use of animatronics; "We really want to take the state-of-the-art animatronics and take a leap ten years into the future with the technology we will develop for the creatures in the movie. We have every intention to do for animatronics and special effects what the other films did for virtual reality." Spectral Motion ("Hellboy", "Fantastic Four") was among those del Toro wanted to work with again. Some characters would have been created by mixing computer-generated imagery with animatronics and some would have been created solely with animatronics or animation. Gollum would be entirely digital again; as del Toro noted, "if it ain't broke, why fix it?"


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: Del Toro said that he interpreted "The Hobbit" as being set in a "world that is slightly more golden at the beginning, a very innocent environment", and that the film would need to "[take] you from a time of more purity to a darker reality throughout the film, but [in a manner] in the spirit of the book". He perceived the main themes as loss of innocence, which he likened to the experience of England after World War I, and greed, which he said Smaug and Thorin Oakenshield represent. Bilbo Baggins reaffirms his personal morality during the story's third act as he encounters Smaug and the Dwarves' greed. He added, "The humble, sort of a sturdy moral fibre that Bilbo has very much represents the idea that Tolkien had about the little English man, the average English man", and the relationship between Bilbo and Thorin would be the heart of the film. The Elves will also be less solemn.


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: Del Toro met concept artists John Howe and Alan Lee, Weta Workshop head Richard Taylor, and make-up artist Gino Acevedo in order to keep continuity with the previous films, and he also hired comic book artists to complement Howe's and Lee's style on the trilogy, including Mike Mignola and Wayne Barlowe, who began work around April 2009. He has also considered looking at Tolkien's drawings and using elements of those not used in the trilogy. As Tolkien did not originally intend for the magic ring Bilbo finds to be the all-powerful talisman of evil it is revealed to be in "The Lord of the Rings", del Toro said he would address its different nature in the story, but not so much as to draw away from the story's spirit. Each Dwarf would need to look different from the others. Del Toro would have redesigned the Goblins and Wargs and the Mirkwood spiders would also have looked different from Shelob. Del Toro felt the Wargs had to be changed because "the classical incarnation of the demonic wolf in Nordic mythology is not a hyena-shaped creature".


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: Del Toro also wanted the animals to speak so that Smaug's speech would not be incongruous, though he explained portraying the talking animals would be more about showing that other characters can understand them. Smaug would not have a "snub Simian [mouth] in order to achieve a dubious lip-synch". Del Toro stated that Smaug would be the first character design begun and the last to be approved.


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: Del Toro and Jackson considered the sudden introduction of Bard the Bowman and Bilbo's unconsciousness during the Battle of the Five Armies to be "less cinematic moments" reminiscent of the novel's greater "fairy tale world" than "The Lord of the Rings", and they would change them to make "The Hobbit" feel more like the trilogy. However, del Toro did say he considered some of these moments iconic and would require the "fairy tale logic [to] work as is".


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: Several actors were considered by del Toro for roles in the film. He wrote the part of Beorn specifically for American actor Ron Perlman. del Toro had originally considered asking Perlman to voice the dragon Smaug, but decided against this. Del Toro met with English actor Brian Blessed to discuss the possibility of him playing Thorin Oakenshield. The director later stated that he thought Ian McShane "would make the most perfect dwarf". Frequent del Toro collaborator Doug Jones said that he would love to play the Elvenking Thranduil, but del Toro later stated that he had another role (or roles) in mind for the actor. Del Toro was the one who originally pushed to cast Sylvester McCoy as Radagast the Brown, a choice Peter Jackson later followed. While del Toro initially wanted Ian Holm to reprise the role of Bilbo Baggins, he also said that he "absolutely" supported the casting of Martin Freeman as the character, and wanted all other returning "Lord of the Rings" characters to be played by the original actors where possible.


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: In December 2012, Philippa Boyens expressed regret that del Toro's version of the film remained unmade. She revealed that it would have had a different script and visual elements, and would more closely have resembled a fairy tale. Boyens stated that the most significant script change was to Bilbo's characterisation: "It shifted and changed into someone who, rather than being slightly younger and more innocent in the world, once had a sense of longing for adventure and has lost it and become fussy and fusty."


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: In 2010, del Toro left the project because of ongoing delays. On 28 May he explained at a press conference that owing to MGM's financial troubles the "Hobbit" project had then not been officially green-lit at the time. "There cannot be any start dates until the MGM situation gets resolved ... We have designed all the creatures. We've designed the sets and the wardrobe. We have done animatics and planned very lengthy action sequences. We have scary sequences and funny sequences and we are very, very prepared for when it's finally triggered, but we don't know anything until MGM is solved." Two days later, del Toro announced at TheOneRing.net that "In light of ongoing delays in the setting of a start date for filming", he would "take leave from helming", further stating that "the mounting pressures of conflicting schedules have overwhelmed the time slot originally allocated for the project. ... I remain an ally to it and its makers, present and future, and fully support a smooth transition to a new director". Reports began to surface around the Internet about possible directors; apparently the studios wanted Jackson, but such names as Neill Blomkamp, Brett Ratner, David Yates and David Dobkin were mentioned.


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: However, this incident received negative reaction from many "Hobbit" fans, who were angry at MGM for delaying the project. They also tried willing the studio to sell their rights to Warner Bros. On 27 July, del Toro responded to these angry fans, saying that "it wasn't just MGM. These are very complicated movies, economically and politically."


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: On 25 June 2010, Jackson was reported to be in negotiations to direct the two-part film. On 15 October 2010, New Line Cinema and Warner Bros. confirmed that "The Hobbit" was to proceed filming with Jackson as director and that the film would be in 3D. As well as confirming Jackson as director, the film was reported to be greenlit, with principal photography to begin in February 2011. Jackson stated that "Exploring Tolkien's Middle-earth goes way beyond a normal film-making experience. It's an all-immersive journey into a very special place of imagination, beauty and drama."


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: Jackson had said that del Toro's sudden exit created problems as he felt he had a very little preparation time remaining before shooting had to begin, with unfinished scripts and without storyboards, which increased the difficulty to direct it. Jackson stated, "Because Guillermo del Toro had to leave and I jumped in and took over, we didn't wind the clock back a year and a half and give me a year and a half prep to design the movie, which was different to what he was doing. It was impossible, and as a result of it being impossible I just started shooting the movie with most of it not prepped at all. You're going on to a set and you're winging it, you've got these massively complicated scenes, no storyboards and you're making it up there and then on the spot". Jackson also said, "I spent most of "The Hobbit" feeling like I was not on top of it. Even from a script point of view, Fran [Walsh], Philippa [Boyens] and I hadn't got the entire scripts written to our satisfaction, so that was a very high pressure situation". However, Jackson goes on to explain in the DVD/Blu-ray featurettes the various ways in which he and his crew overcame the obstacles encountered during filming. They found ways of making things work, even in a "very high pressure situation" in which he and his crew found themselves, especially the shooting of the Battle of the Five Armies which was shifted from 2012 to 2013 to be properly planned and shot.


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: In May 2010, New Zealand Actors Equity (NZAE) received from the film's producers a sample of the contracts it was offering to actors' agents. NZAE rejected the contracts as not conforming to its voluntary standard, in particular as regarded residuals. NZAE's parent, the Australia-based Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance, contacted the International Federation of Actors, which on 24 September 2010, issued a Do Not Work order, advising members of its affiliates (including the Screen Actors Guild) that "The producers ... have refused to engage performers on union-negotiated agreements." This would subject actors who work on the film to possible expulsion from the union. In response, Warner Bros. and New Line Cinema considered taking the production elsewhere, with Jackson mentioning the possibility of filming in Eastern Europe.


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: Partly out of fear for the Tolkien tourism effect, on 25 October 2010, thousands of New Zealanders organised protest rallies imploring that production remain in New Zealand, arguing that shifting production to locations outside New Zealand would potentially cost the country's economy up to $1.5 billion. After two days of talks with the New Zealand government (including involvement by Prime Minister John Key), Warner Bros. executives decided on 27 October to film "The Hobbit" in New Zealand as originally planned. In return, the government agreed to introduce legislation to remove the right of workers to organise trade unions in the film production industry and to give money to big budget films made in New Zealand. The legislation reversed a decision by the New Zealand Supreme Court called "Bryson v Three Foot Six Ltd" holding that under the Employment Relations Act 2000, a model maker named Mr Bryson was an "employee" who could organise a union to defend his interests. The Employment Relations (Film Production Work) Amendment Bill was introduced on 28 October 2010 after an urgency motion, allowing it to pass its final readings the next day, 66 votes in favour to 50 opposed. The government's legislation has been criticised as breaching the International Labour Organization's core ILO Convention 87 on freedom of association, and giving an unfair subsidy to protect multinational business interests.


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: Some have subsequently called the price (further financial subsidies and specific laws made for the producers' benefit) that New Zealand had to pay to retain the movie 'extortionate'. It was also argued that the discussion had occurred in a climate of 'hyperbole and hysteria'.


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: In February 2013, emails and documents released under orders of the Ombudsman showed that the union representing actors had already reached an agreement with Warner two days before 20 October protest, but Warner refused to confirm the deal publicly. One union representative said those on the march were 'patsies' that had been fooled into thinking the production would be taken offshore. Further emails released showed Government ministers knew a deal had been reached a week before the protest, despite claiming negotiations were still happening.


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: The project had been envisaged as two parts as early as 2006, but the proposed contents of the parts changed during development. MGM expressed interest in a second film in 2006, set between "The Hobbit" and "The Lord of the Rings". Jackson concurred, stating that "one of the drawbacks of "The Hobbit" is it's relatively lightweight compared to "LOTR" ["The Lord of the Rings"] ... There's a lot of sections in which a character like Gandalf disappears for a while – he references going off to meet with the White Council, who are actually characters like Galadriel and Saruman and people that we see in "Lord of the Rings". He mysteriously vanishes for a while and then comes back, but we don't really know what goes on." Jackson was also interested in showing Gollum's journey to Mordor and Aragorn setting a watch on the Shire.


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: After his hiring in 2008, del Toro confirmed the sequel would be about "trying to reconcile the facts of the first movie with a slightly different point of view. You would be able to see events that were not witnessed in the first." He also noted the story must be drawn from only what is mentioned in "The Hobbit" and "The Lord of the Rings", as they do not have the rights to "The Silmarillion" and "Unfinished Tales". Del Toro also added (before writing began) that if they could not find a coherent story for the second film, they would just film "The Hobbit", stating ""The Hobbit" is better contained in a single film and kept brisk and fluid with no artificial 'break point'." By November 2008, he acknowledged that the book was more detailed and eventful than people may remember. He decided to abandon the "bridge film" concept, feeling that it would be better for the two parts to contain only material from "The Hobbit":


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: Del Toro said that he was faced with two possible places to split the story, including Smaug's defeat. He noted the second film would need to end by leading directly into "". In June 2009, del Toro revealed he had decided where to divide the story based on comments from fans about signifying a change in Bilbo's relationship with the dwarves. The second film's story would also have depended on how many actors could have reprised their roles.


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: Although "The Hobbit" was originally made as a two-part film, on 30 July 2012, Jackson confirmed plans for a third film, turning his adaptation of "The Hobbit" into a trilogy. According to Jackson, the third film would make extensive use of the appendices that Tolkien wrote to expand the story of Middle-earth (published in the back of "The Return of the King"). While the third film, which as its title indicates, depicts the Battle of the Five Armies, largely made use of footage originally shot for the first and second films, it required additional filming as well. The second film was retitled "The Desolation of Smaug" and the third film was titled "There and Back Again" in August 2012. On 24 April 2014, the third film was renamed "The Battle of the Five Armies". On the title change, Jackson said, ""There and Back Again" felt like the right name for the second of a two film telling of the quest to reclaim Erebor, when Bilbo's arrival there, and departure, were both contained within the second film. But with three movies, it suddenly felt misplaced—after all, Bilbo has already arrived "there" in the "Desolation of Smaug"". Shaun Gunner, the chairman of The Tolkien Society, supported the decision: "‘"The Battle of the Five Armies"’ much better captures the focus of the film but also more accurately channels the essence of the story."


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: The following is a list of cast members who voiced or portrayed characters appearing in "The Hobbit" films.


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: Martin Freeman was cast in early October 2010 in the role of Bilbo Baggins. He had earlier turned the role down because of scheduling conflicts with the BBC television series "Sherlock". On his casting, Peter Jackson was quoted as saying, "Despite the various rumours and speculation surrounding this role, there has only ever been one Bilbo Baggins for us. There are a few times in your career when you come across an actor who you know was born to play a role, but that was the case as soon as I met Martin Freeman. He is intelligent, funny, surprising and brave—exactly like Bilbo and I feel incredibly proud to be able to announce that he is our Hobbit."


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: Several other actors including Richard Armitage as Thorin Oakenshield, Graham McTavish as Dwalin, Aidan Turner as Kíli, Mark Hadlow as Dori, John Callen as Óin, Stephen Hunter as Bombur and Peter Hambleton as Glóin were cast later that October. On the casting of Armitage, Jackson was quoted as saying, "Richard is one of the most exciting and dynamic actors working on screen today and we know he is going to make an amazing Thorin Oakenshield. We cannot wait to start this adventure with him and feel very lucky that one of the most beloved characters in Middle Earth is in such good hands." McTavish was quoted on his casting, "I think that I would be very lucky indeed if ever again in my career, I was offered an opportunity that was going to be so iconic in its influence and scale with regards to "The Hobbit". I can't think of anything comparable." On the casting of Turner, Jackson stated, "Aidan is a wonderfully gifted young actor who hails from Ireland. I'm sure he will bring enormous heart and humor to the role of Kíli." On the casting of Hadlow, Jackson said, "I have worked with Mark Hadlow on many projects ["Meet the Feebles" and "King Kong"]; he is a fantastic actor. I am thrilled to be working with [him] on these movies." Hadlow also plays Bert the Stone-troll. Callen stated, "I did wonder about my casting and how they had made the choice—maybe the long hair and the beard sold it, I thought. But now that has all gone. Given that Óin is almost 200 years old I can presume only that it was the age." Hunter said, "Being cast in "The Hobbit" is really exciting and really an honour. I auditioned for the original "Lord of the Rings" way back when I signed with my agent in New Zealand. When I saw the films I thought, 'Man, I so want to do "The Hobbit".'"


title: The Hobbit (film series)

text: James Nesbitt and Adam Brown were added to the cast in November 2010 to play Bofur and Ori respectively. It was previously reported that Nesbitt was in negotiations for a part in the film. Jackson said "James's charm, warmth and wit are legendary as is his range as an actor in both comedic and dramatic roles. We feel very lucky to be able to welcome him as one of our cast." Nesbitt's daughters also appear in the film series as Sigrid and Tilda, the daughters of Bard the Bowman. Jackson said "Adam is a wonderfully expressive actor and has a unique screen presence. I look forward to seeing him bring Ori to life." The role was Brown's first film appearance.