Amazon's Rings of Power - General Discussion Thread (SPOILERS)

[Fincher]

I was kind of wondering if Beldor might be a hobbit or a dwarf of something, since neither actor seems to be the Aragorn type.

 

[THORin]

Baldor lived late in the Third Age, so I think it’s more likely that Beldor is a code name for another character, possibly Elrond.

I was kind of wondering if Beldor might be a hobbit or a dwarf of something, since neither actor seems to be the Aragorn type.

There shouldn’t be any (or at least, many) hobbits in this series, since it would be a huge retcon to have them around in the Second Age, but we can certainly expect to see plenty of Dwarves. For the record, I think Beldor is an elf - specifically a code name for Elrond. I say that because (a) this character was originally set to be played by Poulter, who looks identical to Hugo Weaving, and (b) the character is said to have a counterpart named Neldor who could be Elrond’s twin brother Elros.

 

[Deck Rickard]

This guy was pretty good as the young Ned on GoT.

 

[OtherwiseKnownAs]

 

[Persona]

What an info dump!

A lot of POC, which I like, but you just know the racists are gonna come out of the woodwork just like they did for the Wheel of Time cast announcements, probably even moreso. A lot of different body types and backgrounds, too, very eclectic.

No sign of the rumored Maxim Baldry.

It was mentioned that Morfydd Clark might be Galadriel. I am watching the new Dracula series on Netflix and she was quite good in the first episode as Mina.

I dunno if I have seen anything else by any of these actors other than the two GoT-ers and Markella's bit part in Hanging Rock.

 

[Kane52630]

Digging the casting news.

Nazanin Boniadi was so f***in good in Hotel Mumbai.

 

[Boom]

Deadline says production finally starts next month.

Let's ****ing goooooo.

 

[Mjolnir Reborn]

What an info dump!

A lot of POC, which I like, but you just know the racists are gonna come out of the woodwork just like they did for the Wheel of Time cast announcements, probably even moreso. A lot of different body types and backgrounds, too, very eclectic.

No sign of the rumored Maxim Baldry.

It was mentioned that Morfydd Clark might be Galadriel. I am watching the new Dracula series on Netflix and she was quite good in the first episode as Mina.

I dunno if I have seen anything else by any of these actors other than the two GoT-ers and Markella's bit part in Hanging Rock.

As I've read a lot of Tolkien I prefer things to be kept as true as possible, but can live with them reshaping how Middle-Earth's stories are constructed so POC's are included, as long as they do it in a way that makes sense and doesn't challenge the logic of the world.

I haven't looked up how people reacted to the Wheel of Time casting, but to me that will have a direct effect on the story and setting, seeing how most of the main characters are from a small village out in the middle of nowhere, and it's a plot point that one of them looks different than the rest (although not so different that he isn't more than unusual for the local ethnicity to most people that aren't very worldly). Mixing a lot of ethnicities in that village does change the way they can portray the setting as well as the mystery of Rand. A tall, redheaded person just shouldn't be much of a thing if there are variations of skin color everywhere.

They aren't telling as specific of a story in the LotR show, as far as I know, so it won't be as difficult waters to tread in that regard.

 

[Mad Ones]

Do we know where in the timeline of Middle Earth this show is taking place?

There's almost infinite story potential in the Silmarillion

 

[OtherwiseKnownAs]

Do we know where in the timeline of Middle Earth this show is taking place?

There's almost infinite story potential in the Silmarillion

Second Age.

 

[Kane52630]

 

[InCali]

I think it was Mairon.

Mairon was his name in Valinor. Thauron, Gorthaur (the cruel), and Sauron are names given to him by the Elves (Sindarin most likely). I believe Annatar was also the name he used when dealing with the Numenoreans, but Tar-mairon was, as I recall, used?? "Tar" was a prefix used by early Numenoreans (Quenyan). Ar-Pharazon (Tar-Calion) abandoned this for the prefix "Ar" (King) in Adunaic. Things didn't work out too well for him.

 

[Silvermoth]

It’s so great to see a more diverse cast. We deserve a more diverse cast

 

[Persona]

I take it back, I have seen Nazanin in a few things, like Homeland. She's good!

I think she could be a good Numenorean queen.

I don't feel like I'm seeing Sauron in the announced castings. Still wonder if Amazon might try to get a bit more of a "name" for that role. I mean, they are spending enough money on this thing.

Still think Hiddleston would be ideal for that but I guess he is going to be shooting that darn Loki show.

Maybe Michael Fassbender is available?

 

[THORin]

This cast is fabulous, and they already have my sword, my bow, my axe and whatever else they need from me.

 

[Albright]

I bet December 2021 is the targeted release - 20 year after the Lord of the Rings

 

[OtherwiseKnownAs]

 

[Deck Rickard]

It’s so great to see a more diverse cast. We deserve a more diverse cast

Yeah. I love love LOVE the Peter Jackson movies but the one thing about them that bothers me is the lack of diversity. Yeah, I know it's supposed to be pre-historical Europe but it's also a series about elves and dwarves and magical rings. Also, it's a little problematic in the books and the movies and the they only people described as being of darker skin are allied with Sauron. I'm not calling Tolkien a racist but that always seemed a little f***ed up to me.

 

[Da-Scribe]

I had that conversation recently with a buddy. Jackson's LotR trilogy, much as I loved it, would be mired in controversy if it dropped nowadays. But hey, 2001 was a very different time. This series' casting choices are a great step forward at the end of the day.

 

[DarkKnight88]

That’s more because of the books than anything.

A year earlier we had a very racially diverse cast in another fantasy epic Dungeons and Dragons. The movie was garbage but I’ll give them that.

 

[Persona]

For the LotR movies, I think it was tough to add much diversity and keep it true with the world-building of Tolkien's books and how different people groups are kind of separated from each other, much as our world itself was before travel evolved.

There is a lot of opportunity, though, with a Second Age series that focuses on Numenor and some of the southern regions of Middle Earth, to introduce diversity in a natural and organic way. I was disappointed when all the initial casting rumors were of Caucasian actors, so it was nice to get the bigger reveal and see that diversity.

 

[Mad Ones]

So much of the Middle Earth lore is about Elves living in a diaspora and those types of stories (should) lend themselves to a diverse cast.

Not LOTR, but the Dragon Prince's world is the most beautiful and diverse fantasy world ever put on screen. I'd love to see that show influence live action stuff.

 

[THORin]

This just put a huge burden on LOTRonPrime’s shoulders - to paraphrase Enya, “a promise lives within them now” to create something that can honor both J.R.R. and Christopher’s legacies. No easy feat!

 

[Marvolo]

I think this is a good thing for Middle Earth. Chris Tolkien was a wonderful and indispensable curator of Tolkien's written material, but Chris's time was long past, and he was holding the property back in other mediums.

 

[THORin]

I think this is a good thing for Middle Earth. Chris Tolkien was a wonderful and indispensable curator of Tolkien's written material, but Chris's time was long past, and he was holding the property back in other mediums.

He hasn’t been the head of the Tolkien Estate since 2017, and while he was certainly no fan of the movies, he also didn’t stand in Peter Jackson’s way.