Two of the most popular franchises ever created have some of the most loyal fan bases in the world who know everything there is to know about their respective worlds. The Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter fans have been noticing some similarities between the two cinematic universes over the years. Of course, both of these popular movie franchises are actually adaptations of novels written by authors J. K. Rowling and J. R. R. Tolkien. Because The Lord of the Rings was written several decades before Harry Potter was, many think all those similarities between the two works aren't coincidence or inspiration, but rather a copy of one another.
The Lord of the Rings book trilogy started in 1954, while Harry Potter was not released until 1997 and not finished until 2007. And it is a little ironic that both authors chose to use a pen name of the initials of their first and middle names followed by their full last name. Although, this actually is just coincidence since author Joanne Rowling was advised by a publisher to use a fake name because at the time, readers were more likely to pick up and read a book if it had a male author. But perhaps this is an indication of Rowling's admiration of Tolkien. However, there are some actual similarities in Harry Potter that have copied The Lord of the Rings.
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Producers of Hollywood movies and book publishing companies are interested in one thing, and that's making money. A lot of the time, they want the same story, but different. Meaning, they want creators to tell a story that's already been told and proven successful financially, but with changed details like setting and characters. It would make sense that J. K. Rowling understood this and chose to use The Lord of the Rings as the outline for her own story so that she too could garner enough fame and fortune to perhaps write a new or more personal story later on.
Some of the similarities are pretty major elements in the story. Starting with a simple one, the first similarity between the two worlds is the idea of there being a "chosen one" who must complete a mission in order to defeat the evil villain or else (presumably) all people within that world will suffer as a consequence of failing the mission. In both stories, this person is a young male who lives with their uncle, and they have to battle a being referred to in both franchises as the Dark Lord. But they are young and cannot possibly know what to do without some help.
Both works include the use of a wise old wizard who serves the protagonist as a mentor. Not only are Frodo and Harry similar in appearance, but Gandalf and Dumbledore both share similar features such as a long grey beard and wizard hat. In both stories, the inciting incident that sets off a series of events that propels the protagonist into the story is a birthday. For Harry, it's his 11th birthday, and for Frodo, it's Bilbo's 111th birthday party.
In The Lord of the Rings, the Dark Lord's life force is bound to the One Ring. In Harry Potter, the Dark Lord's life force is bound to seven Horcruxes. Both heroes must destroy the objects so that the Dark Lords cannot regain full power. If Frodo puts on the ring, he will become invisible to everyone else. This is similar to Harry's invisibility cloak. Frodo normally keeps the ring on a necklace around his neck for safekeeping, but always carrying it has put a burden on him since the Dark Lord is draining his will and energy. This is similar to the Slytherin locket Horcrux that Ron wears around his neck until it can be destroyed. Both Ron and Frodo experience a change in personality due to the objects they carry.
There are a lot of characters in The Lord of the Rings that J. K. Rowling clearly used in her Harry Potter series. Instead of Nazgûl, she called them Dementors. Both creatures are cloaked in black, they are neither living or dead. Both works include a small creature whom the reader is supposed to feel sympathy for. For Harry Potter, that character is Dobby, and in LOTR, it's Gollum, both of which talk in third person. And there is a big giant spider in both stories. In the first entry in both franchises, the main characters fight a large troll.
In both stories, there is an object that allows the protagonist to see a possible future or a desire. In LOTR, Galadriel shows Frodo a mirror (which is actually just a basin of water) that shows him the future, present, or past. In Harry Potter, there are two different objects used. The first is the Mirror of Erised which allows Harry to see his biggest desire (or possible future) and the second is the Pensieve, which shows memories (or the past).
Harry is the boy who lived and carries a scar on his forehead which he received from the evil Dark Lord. In LOTR, when Merry and Pippin are picked up by the orcs to be taken to Isengard, Merry gets cut on his forehead leaving a scar. Now, Harry and Merry have scarred foreheads. Also, Frodo receives a scar from a Morgul Blade. So now, Harry and Frodo both have scars, given to them by evil forces, that still hurt when that evil force grows stronger. All these similarities make it hard to believe J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter series had any originality to it at all. It seems more like a fun take on The Lord of the Rings story instead, and is perhaps the greatest fan-fiction.
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