10 Dumb Movie Trailers That Ruined The Film's Ending

The most obvious spoiler in the Two Towers advertising campaign was the return of Gandalf, who, after falling into the abyss during a battle with a Balrog, was assumed dead at the end of the Fellowship of the Ring.

However, the fact that the source material is decades old (and that Sir Ian McKellen was named on the credits) meant that keeping his return a secret was a nonstarter, though deciding to show Gandalf riding to the rescue right at the death was a decision that is a little harder to understand.

The film culminates with the Battle of Helms Deep, a 20 minute affair that represents one of the greatest siege scenes in modern cinema. For those that watched the Two Towers trailers carefully, however, it was less exciting than it should have been.

After being told that an army of Uruk-Hai have been bred with the purpose of destroying the world of men, and that said men will retreat to mountain fortress Helms Deep, the trailer then shows Gandalf - unmistakable on his bright white stallion Shadowfax - galloping down a hillside with hundreds of riders at his back.

The shot cuts away just before the wizard and his Rohirrim reinforcements smash into the enemy Uruk-Hai that entrench Helms Deep, though after taking a second to absorb what you've just seen it becomes painfully obvious that this is how the epic siege will end, ruining the battle for viewers who now know that Gandalf will eventually show and save the day.