After 24 years since his first appearance in the 2001The Fellowship of the Ring, fans are just now discovering that one ofThe Lord of the Rings' funniest lines by its most treasured character, Gimli, was actually completely improvised. Played by John Rhys-Davies, Gimli was a stout-hearted, fierce, and loyal dwarf warrior who was also the son of Glóin, a member of Thorin’s company in Tolkien’s earlier bookThe Hobbit.With his fiery red hair and beard, along with a temperamental personality, it’s of little wonder that his name literally means “fire”, which comes from one of Tolkien’s Mannish dialects.
Hailing from Wales, Rhys-Davies was in his 60s when he took onthe role of the fearless dwarf, but he was also in another popular franchise other thanThe Lord of the Ringsthat some fans might not have known. Davies played Sallah, an Egyptian excavator, in the 1981 filmRaiders of the Lost Arkand later reprised the same role in two subsequentIndiana Jonesfilms. As well as appearing inThe Untouchables,Sinbad: Beyond the Veil of Mists,Star Trek: Voyager,One Night with the Kingand countless other TV and movies, Davies lent his distinctive voice to many video games and animated television series, including the role of Hades inJustice League, the original voice of Man Ray inSpongeBob SquarePantsand also toBaldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance.And for those who didn’t know how multitalented the actor actually was, he also voiced anEnt called Treebeard inThe Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.
Gimli’s “Not the Beard!” Line Started as a Joke Between Orlando Bloom and John Rhys-Davies
During the By Beard and Hammer! Adventures with John Rhys-Davies panel at Fan Expo Denver, whereScreenRantwas also present,Lord of the Rings’John Rhys-Davies uncovered a bit of magical lore behind Gimli’s most iconic line. InThe Lord of the Rings:The Fellowship of the Ring,where thegroup tries to get away from the Balrog by leaping over huge steps, Gimli states that Dwarves do not get thrown, which sees Legolas grabbing his beard before he falls to the depths below as Gimli exclaims “not the beard!”.
Rhys-Davies explained the scene by revealing that he almost fell and Orlando Bloom grabbed his beard by mistake, allowing for the now iconic line to be kept in.
“We were doing a scene with the green screen, and we were jumping from place to place. And I sort of jumped like that, very deliberately tottered. And I remember [Orlando Bloom] just reached out because he thought I was going to fall off this little block. And he grabbed my beard, and I grabbed his hand in a vice-like grip and snarled at him. “Not the beard.” "
Out of allThe Lord of the Ringscharacters, Gimli certainly provides the most amount of comic relief, especially during trying times for the adventuring group. Although “not the beard” is a fantastic line, it’s certainly not his only one. Some other classics include, “Aye, I could do that” to Legolas after their competitive rivalry calmed down, and he was asked if he would fight the final battle “side-by-side with a friend.” Although his most iconic is likely where Aragorn offers his sword and Legolas his bow, before Gimli adds his own weapon to the pledge by saying “And my axe!.”
