Amazon’s ‘Lord of the Rings’ TV Show Responds to Diversity Backlash – The Hollywood Reporter
In an eagerly awaited first look at Amazon Lord of the Rings TV series, Rings of PowerThe project’s creative team had some words about online trolls who were outraged that the show would feature a much more diverse cast than Peter Jackson’s trilogy.
“For us, it feels very natural to have the adaptation of [author J.R.R.] Tolkien’s work will reflect what the real world looks like,” said Lindsey Weber, executive producer of the series. Vanity Fair, there are also some new photos from the series. “Tolkien is for everyone. His stories are about his fictional races working at their best as they leave the isolation of their own cultures and come together. ”
Tolkien scholar Mariana Rios Maldonado added, “Who are these people that feel threatened or disgusted at the thought that an elf is black or Latino or Asian?”
The story follows the history of the Second Age of Middle-earth and includes the plot of an elf named Arondir, played by Ismael Cruz Córdova – the first person of color to play the elf Tolkien on screen – and the dwarf princess named Disa, played by Sophia Nomvete – the franchise’s first female dwarf, as well as the Black woman role play first LOTR dwarf. There are also familiar characters like younger versions of 11 favorites Galadriel (Morfydd Clark) and Elrond (Robert Aramayo).
However, two types of beloved characters have been restricted to the series: Mages and Hobbits, “those who were not major players in the Second Age”. The production will still feature Hobbits, of some sort, by including Hobbit ancestors called harfoots, but they will have peripherals story “on the sidelines of the larger mission.”
The main settings in the program include dwarf mines of the Misty Mountains (at its height of glory before falling into darkness and ruin), the fairy kingdom of Lindon and the island of Númenor. More new details about the series in VF File.
The news comes as Amazon prepares to roll out the first trailer for Rings of Power on Sunday’s Super Bowl LVI TV show.
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power followed the forging of the original Rings of Power that allowed Dark Lord Sauron to spread darkness across Middle-earth.
According to Amazon, the show “brings to the screen heroic legends from the legendary history of the Second Middle-earth Age. This epic drama is set thousands of years before the events of JRR Tolkien Hobbits and Lord of the Rings and will transport viewers back to an era when great powers were forged, kingdoms rose to glory and fell, heroes unlikely to be tested, hope hung by the finest ropes. and the greatest villain ever to flow from Tolkien’s pen is threatened to shroud all of the world in darkness. Set in a time of relative peace, the series follows a group of characters, both familiar and new, as they confront the long-feared reunion of evil coming to Middle-earth. From the darkest depths of the Misty Mountains, to the majestic forests of the elven capital Lindon, to the breathtaking island kingdom of Númenor, to the furthest reaches of the map, these kingdoms and characters will create legacies that will last long after they’ve gone.”
Production was primarily filmed in New Zealand. Then last fall it was announced that production had moved to the UK
The cast includes Cynthia Addai-Robinson, Robert Aramayo, Owain Arthur, Maxim Baldry, Nazanin Boniadi, Morfydd Clark, Ismael Cruz Córdova, Charles Edwards, Trystan Gravelle, Sir Lenny Henry, Ema Horvath, Markella Kavenagh, Joseph Mawle, Tyroe Muhafidin , Sophia Nomvete, Lloyd Owen, Megan Richards, Dylan Smith, Charlie Vickers, Leon Wadham, Benjamin Walker, Daniel Weyman and Sara Zwangobani.
The first season of LOTR will premiere on Friday, September 2 on Prime Video and will air in 240 territories around the world. New episodes will be released weekly.
