Actor Josh Gad and whoever helped him out have pulled off something quite impressive, and quite entertaining. During coronavirus-induced lockdowns, Gad has produced a show called “Reunited Apart,” in which he holds videochats with celebrities from across the world. The latest episode of Reunited Apart was surely the culmination of a great deal of favor-currying, calling and emailing, producing, and logistical coordination (between multiple time zones and countries), and it was all worth it: Gad’s efforts reunited virtually the entire principal cast of the Lord of the Rings film trilogy — including director Peter Jackson and screenwriter Philippa Boyens from the production side — for nearly an hour of banter and reminiscing:

I encourage you to watch the whole thing for yourself, so I won’t say much about it here. I will say, though, that aside from being so entertaining, it is refreshingly human. The people summoned to the call are some of the most famous in the world. Yet they, too, are starved of physical company, forced to deal with the inadequacies of videoconferencing technology, trading in their own inside jokes and jabs superficially at one another’s expense but actually out of compassion for one another, etc. It would seem a lot like any one of the calls many of us have been on over the past few months — if they weren’t the cast and crew of some of the best movies ever made. It is truly wonderful, and a treat for our times.

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