• Salesforce Tower, the tallest building in San Francisco, was lit up for Halloween to depict the Eye of Sauron from “The Lord of the Rings.”
  • The idea originated from an online petition that had more than 11,000 signatures by Halloween.
  • Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff, whose company is headquartered in the skyscraper, seemed to shoot down the idea early in October. But the glowing eye was visible on Wednesday night.

As the sun set on Halloween, San Francisco was treated to a surprise: Salesforce Tower, the tallest building in the city’s skyline, lit up in fiery colors to depict the Eye of Sauron, the iconic symbol the Dark Lord adopted in “The Lord of the Rings.”

The idea for the skyscraper’s Halloween costume gained traction through a Change.org petition at the beginning of October. By Halloween, it had more than 11,000 signatures in support of the tower getting a “Lord of the Rings” makeover.

With 11,000 LED lights making up the screen atop the tower, the glowing eye could be seen clearly against the dark sky in San Francisco on Wednesday.

https://twitter.com/BrockKeeling/status/1057809170563424256?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

But the stunt originally didn't seem likely to happen, as Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff quickly shot down the idea early in October.

Read more: Over 1,300 people are asking CEO Marc Benioff to turn Salesforce Tower into the 'Eye of Sauron' on Halloween night - but he's not into it

Though the 1,070-foot-tall tower serves as the software company's headquarters, the building and the display on top are owned by Boston Properties. The artist in charge of the LED display told the San Francisco Chronicle in May that he would never portray an advertisement or holiday-themed image on it.

But that apparently didn't stop whoever had the ultimate say about what would appear atop Salesforce Tower on Wednesday. Perhaps they were persuaded by the petition organizers' appeal to "help us unite the city, and raise the torch on Halloween night as one community, together."

Or perhaps it was Sauron, with his powerful will and overbearing strength, who convinced them.