Saruman is one of the Lord of the Rings franchise's primary antagonists, a wizard who joins with the Dark Lord Sauron to rule Middle-Earth despite at one time being the close friend and ally of Gandalf, one of the franchise's primary protagonists. Played on the big screen by the late Christopher Lee, an actor with skill and wit beyond compare, Saruman has an abundance of moments deserving of being cemented in LotR meme history, from his chilling line "So you have chosen ... death" to his dramatic declaration "I have seen it."
RELATED: 10 Star Wars/Lord of the Rings Crossover Memes Only Fans Will Get
Here are 10 of the most relevant, most witty, and overall most hilarious memes about Saruman's character.
In The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, Gandalf goes to Saruman to seek advice on how to handle the One Ring. To Gandalf's surprise, Saruman insists they join with Sauron, the Dark Lord who created the Ring and has long been fighting to recover it in order to rule the peoples of Middle-Earth. The ever-sensible Gandalf rebuffs the idea as foolish, which leads to Saruman being forced to imprison his once-friend atop Orthanc.
This meme combines Gandalf's thoughts towards Saruman's nonsensical plan with an appropriate quote (about wizards, no less!) from the popular Netflix series The Witcher.
In The Two Towers, there's a lot of tension built up around a "white Wizard" who Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli confront, thinking him to be Saruman. To their surprise, they find their old, thought to be deceased traveling companion Gandalf the Grey; except he is no longer Gandalf the Grey, but Gandalf the White, as he now bears white robes much like Saruman's.
RELATED: Harry Potter Vs Lord Of The Rings: 10 Best Movies Ranked, According To Rotten Tomatoes
Why exactly he pretended to be Saruman is unclear, but it makes for a good scene with a shocking reveal and just the right amount of suspense.
As we've mentioned before, Saruman imprisoned Gandalf atop Orthanc, but that didn't stop Gandalf from escaping, as, through a seemingly ordinary moth, the wizard was able to contact the ever-dependable Eagles to rescue him.
Considering Gandalf is one of Middle-Earth's most powerful beings as well as a fierce enemy of Sauron (not to mention the fact that he's the only one who can really bridge the gap between the Hobbits and other races, likes Elves and Men), Saruman can't have been happy about Gandalf's likely preventable escape.
There's a scene from The Officethat's gotten a lot of attention in recent years - Dwight makes up a dentist named "Crentist" to explain to Michael where he's been, and Michael remarks that the name sounds a lot like "dentist", which is, of course, a result of Dwight having to lie on the spot.
This meme supposes, similarly to how "Crentist" supposedly became a dentist solely because of his name, that Saruman and Sauron's names being so alike strengthens the connection between the two.
Despite being locked in his tower, far away from the Fellowship, Saruman makes things difficult from the travelers when they go through the mountains in The Fellowship of the Ring. His magical intonations cause wild weather, which leads Gandalf to, against his better judgment, lead his companions through the Mines of Moria.
Of course, Saruman wasn't singing "Let it Snow", but it's rather an appropriate tune considering the Fellowship's predicament.
As previously mentioned, Gandalf reappears in The Two Towers after his supposed death in the franchise's previous installment - and he's sporting a new robe. When Gandalf goes to see Theoden and releases him from Saruman's curse, Saruman (through Theoden) is visibly and audibly shocked by the newfound brightness the once-grey wizard displays.
Of course, it makes sense for Saruman to react this way; it must have been a surprise to see his triumphant foe gleaming with specter similar to his own.
Gandalf realizes the error of Saruman's logic from the very beginning when Saruman tells him somewhat nonchalantly that the two should "join with him [Sauron]. It would be wise, my friend."
RELATED: Lord Of The Rings: 10 Important Facts From The Silmarillion Every LOTR Fan Should Know
Gandalf is obviously confused as well, however, that such a reasonable wizard could even think of joining with their greatest enemy - just as how, in the meme's image, Kristen Bell sits pondering after eating a super-spicy chicken wing on the hit web series Hot Ones.
It's worth noting that the movies leave out a key part of Saruman's character in The Fellowship of the Ring - they change from Saruman the Wise to Saruman Of Many Colors. This ends up meaning the movies have two White Wizards at the same time (which isn't really a problem in and of itself, because there are two Blue Wizards as well and having the same lustrous robe allows for greater conflict between Gandalf and Saruman).
RELATED: 10 Storylines From The Lord Of The Rings Books & Silmarillion That Should Be Made Into Their Own Video Games
At the same time, however, it undermines a moment that, in the books, is important in explaining Saruman's decisions and characterizes his turn to the "dark side".
Saruman has many faces. In Peter Jackson's The Hobbit trilogy, for instance, he's a wizard who fights for good and always seeks out the correct answer using reasonable deductive measures - even if he can be argumentative at times. Unfortunately, that's a side of Saruman we don't see much in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, as just as Gandalf said (and just as this meme comic depicts), Saruman, unable to find a way out of what he sees as inevitable defeat against the armies of Sauron, has abandoned reason for madness.
Make no mistake, he's as smart as ever, but his decision-making is flawed, primarily because his own safety is the only factor he includes in the equation.
NEXT: The Lord of the Rings: 10 Relationships The Fans Wish Had Happened (& 5 That Did That Fans Didn't Want)
Next10 Hilarious Baby Yoda Memes About Siblings We Can All Relate To
Izak Bulten is an amateur film historian who loves all things movies. His previous writing experience includes creating "Top 10" lists for ListVerse and writing logic puzzles for World Sudoku Champion Thomas Snyder. He also maintains "The Magic Lantern Show", a blog centered around news from the world of animation. In his free time, he loves creating worlds and playing Scrabble.
Continued here:
The Lord of the Rings: 9 Saruman Memes To Get You Cry-Laughing - Screen Rant
- Christopher Lee's casual shorts and slippers outfit in Taiwan made heads turn - TODAY - March 16th, 2024
- Christopher Lee Dead: Horror Icon and Legendary Movie Villain Was 93 ... - February 19th, 2024
- "Chris wasn't hearing a bar of it": Christopher Lee Forcefully Auditioned For Another Lord of the Rings Character Before ... - FandomWire - February 11th, 2024
- 'Cancel everything': How Christopher Lee disciplines his son with this one phrase - Yahoo Singapore News - February 3rd, 2024
- Actress Fann Wong surprised by husband Christopher Lee on birthday - The Straits Times - February 3rd, 2024
- Fann Wong surprised by husband Christopher Lee on birthday - The New Paper - February 3rd, 2024
- Christopher Lee: The actor and hunter of Nazi war criminals - Far Out Magazine - January 9th, 2024
- Sir Christopher Lee's Favorite Performance is in a Film You've Never Heard Of - MovieWeb - December 12th, 2023
- Christopher Lee dies at the age of 93 - The Guardian - April 27th, 2023
- Christopher Lee - Tolkien Gateway - March 31st, 2023
- Christopher Lee filmography - Wikipedia - February 10th, 2023
- Where to Start with Christopher Lee - The Film Magazine - October 19th, 2022
- 'Were you desperate to get proposed to?' Christopher Lee crashes Rebecca Lim's new show and roasts her while dishing out relationship advice - AsiaOne - October 19th, 2022
- The Wicker Man TV Series In Development With Andy Serkis The Imaginarium And Studiocanal-Backed Urban Myth - Deadline - October 19th, 2022
- Tim Burton names his five favourite horror movies of all time - Far Out Magazine - October 19th, 2022
- Ten celebrities who served in the military, from Adam Driver to Prince Harry - The National - October 19th, 2022
- These 13 Actors Have Earned the Right to be Called Scream Kings - Dread Central - October 19th, 2022
- David W. Smith | Obituaries | thedailynewsonline.com - The Daily News Online - October 19th, 2022
- Jennifer Hudson Recounts "Fanning Out" Over Duet With Sheryl Lee Ralph: "I Wanted to Make Her Proud" - POPSUGAR - October 19th, 2022
- Tangipahoa Parish Jail - October 11th, 2022
- A monster calls: why the horror universe is an idea whose time has come - The Guardian - October 11th, 2022
- Oblong Box, The (Blu-ray Review) - The Digital Bits - October 11th, 2022
- Was that the balrog that killed Gandalf in the Rings of Power? - Polygon - October 11th, 2022
- Every James Bond movie ranked by critics, according to Rotten Tomatoes - Insider - October 11th, 2022
- Overwatch 2: All Voice Actors And Cast - eXputer - October 11th, 2022
- She got Covid-19 four times this year alone - The Star Online - October 11th, 2022
- Nursing School Collaborates with Nursing School in The Philippines - Boston College - October 2nd, 2022
- The Terrifying, Terrific Horror Movies of 1972 - Nerdist - October 2nd, 2022
- Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King: A beautiful conclusion to the iconic trilogy - The Shield - October 2nd, 2022
- Tyson Fury through the years: Photo gallery - MMA Junkie - October 2nd, 2022
- Duncan man jailed, accused of madness on meth - The Lawton Constitution - September 24th, 2022
- Conor McGregor "can't believe" he's being paid to film Hollywood movie - The Mirror - September 24th, 2022
- The Government of Malaysia Launches the National Energy Policy 2022 - 2040: What it Means for the Renewables Landscape - Lexology - September 24th, 2022
- New Brockton native Brandon Lee part of team cherishing NASCAR win at Bristol - Dothan Eagle - September 24th, 2022
- Cape Cod theater reviewers' thoughts on 2 scary plays and a comedy - Cape Cod Times - September 24th, 2022
- 'His presence is going to be there': Lee Roy Selmon will attend in spirit as trio of OU brothers honored with statue - The Oklahoma Daily - September 24th, 2022
- Nicolas Cage inspired by Christopher Lee for vampire movie Renfield - The Digital Fix - September 16th, 2022
- Reece Shearsmith Tells Richard Herring About Christopher Lee - Beyond The Joke - September 16th, 2022
- 8 Horror Movies So Awful They Were Pulled From The Cinema - WhatCulture - September 16th, 2022
- Man-Thing Makes his MCU Debut in Werewolf by Night - Here's what we know about Man-Thing - Attack of the Fanboy - September 16th, 2022
- Summer of Blood (Blu-ray Review) - The Digital Bits - September 16th, 2022
- Get it over with: Suspect in Kokomo child exploitation case tells police to arrest him on the spot - FOX 59 Indianapolis - September 16th, 2022
- Alabama says it won't be ready to use nitrogen hypoxia method at Sept. 22 execution - USA TODAY - September 16th, 2022
- Christopher Lee, The Real-Life "Most Interesting Man In The World" - August 31st, 2022
- Inside The Fact And Fiction Of Christopher Lee's World War II Service - August 31st, 2022
- How to watch The Lord of the Rings movies and the series in chronological order - Lifestyle Asia India - August 31st, 2022
- Court and arrest reports for Martinsville and Henry County - Martinsville Bulletin - August 31st, 2022
- Every Tim Burton Movie Ranked from Worst to Best - Consequence - August 31st, 2022
- Court lists defendants to appear in Criminal Division on Thursday - Magnoliareporter - August 31st, 2022
- Lee County School Board makes minor revision to Parents' Bill of Rights - Wink News - August 31st, 2022
- A Cardiologist Breaks Down the AHA's New Report on the Most Common Heart Disease Symptoms Best Life - Best Life - August 31st, 2022
- Exclusive Interview: Director Philippe Mora On His Films With Christopher Lee - FANGORIA - August 14th, 2022
- 10 films turning 10 in 2022 - NewsNation Now - August 14th, 2022
- Persephone and the Poultry of the Night | Thumper Forge - Patheos - August 14th, 2022
- Unexpected Demands Made By Lord Of The Rings Actors - Looper - August 14th, 2022
- Rings of Power: Everything you need to know about Amazon's 1bn Lord of the Rings prequel - The Mirror - August 14th, 2022
- Slash Tells Us Why There Will Never Be a Guns N Roses Movie - MovieMaker Magazine - August 6th, 2022
- On the record for Aug. 4 - Seymour Tribune - August 6th, 2022
- Judge Talley will hear criminal docket on Thursday - Magnoliareporter - August 6th, 2022
- Dr. Christopher Reber Receives ACCT 2022 Northeast Regional Chief Executive Officer Award - The Hudson Reporter - August 6th, 2022
- Theatre Review: This 101 Dalmatians is barking up the wrong tree - The New European - August 6th, 2022
- Christopher Lee Euro Films, Dennis Hopper's 'Out of the Blue' Among Titles Due on Disc From Severin and MVD July 26 Media Play News - Media Play News - July 28th, 2022
- 25 Scariest Movies of All Time (2022 Edition) - Cultured Vultures - July 28th, 2022
- Fans Wonder Why a Fantasy Epic Too Big to Fail Did Just That - We Got This Covered - July 28th, 2022
- The Best Witch Movies of all Time, Ranked - The Mary Sue - July 28th, 2022
- NASCAR Driver Christopher Bell and CRAFTSMAN Raise Awareness for Children's Miracle Network Hospitals; No. 20 Special Edition Paint Scheme to be... - July 28th, 2022
- Singer Stefanie Sun turns 44 with cakes and loved ones - The Straits Times - July 28th, 2022
- Tony Dow dead: Wally Cleaver 'Leave It to Beaver' actor was 77 - USA TODAY - July 28th, 2022
- Roane Co. authorities looking for man convicted of neglecting and murdering an elderly relative - WBIR.com - July 20th, 2022
- 22 Incredible Facts About The Life and Career Of Sir Christopher Lee - July 20th, 2022
- Police and Fire Report - Winchester Sun - Winchester Sun - July 20th, 2022
- What We Do in the Shadows cast shares their favorite vampire movies, books, and more - Polygon - July 20th, 2022
- Courteney Cox Set To Make Horror Movie History With 'Scream 6' - We Got This Covered - July 20th, 2022
- Every James Bond Movie, Ranked: The Best of Bond - CNET - July 20th, 2022
- Grandparents of Dean Kerrie say he was just defending his mother and should not be jailed - Sunday World - July 20th, 2022
- Ray Wise Has Always Been More Than "That Guy" - Defector - July 20th, 2022
- Angela Ledgerwood on the Psychic Relief of Reading - Literary Hub - July 20th, 2022
- Athens man charged with manslaughter in fatal hit and run - News Courier - July 12th, 2022
- The Top 10 Worst Film Reboots in History - Geek Vibes Nation - July 12th, 2022
- Arrest records from the July 6, 2022 edition of the Calhoun Times - Northwest Georgia News - July 12th, 2022
Reviewed and Recommended by Erik Baquero