Why does The Rings of Power have so many new characters compared to The Lord of the Rings? And why could this be Amazon’s biggest Middle-earth risk?
Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power has more new characters than you can shake a Smeagol at – here’s why, and how these fresh faces might just cause Amazon’s TV series serious problems. If those recent excursions into space alongside William Shatner proved anything, it’s that Jeff Bezos is a man who gets what he wants. So when the Amazon chief requested Prime Video have its very own Game of Thrones, he didn’t just get any fantasy IP… he got The Lord of the Rings. Airing September 2, 2022, The Rings of Power reaches back thousands of years through Tolkien’s dustiest tomes, starring Aragorn’s ancient ancestors, Legolas’ Lindon luminaries, and Pippin’s proto-Hobbit predecessors.
Despite signing on the dotted line in 2017, proper The Rings of Power details only started emerging once calendars turned to 2022. First came the official title reveal, then a series of handy character posters, followed by key images featuring Morfydd Clark’s Galadriel, Robert Aramayo’s Elrond, and various others. Finally, a 60-second teaser trailer aired during the Super Bowl, giving a first glimpse of the Middle-earth action to come. Clear throughout all of the above is just how many new characters The Rings of Power will introduce. And not simply “new to live-action” either – new to Tolkien’s entire mythology. Already, we know about Arondir, Disa, Halbrand, Bronwyn, the Harfoots, and the nomadic hunters. Inevitably, there will be others.
Whereas Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings cast was comprised almost entirely of figures from J.R.R. Tolkien’s pen, The Rings of Power‘s newcomers greatly outnumber its established names. And that’s odd, because even taking into account The Rings of Power‘s Second Age setting, there’s no shortage of authentic Tolkien characters to borrow. Whatever qualities you seek, whether you need an elf, a dwarf, or a Númenorean, there’s someone in Tolkien’s legendarium that fits the bill. For The Rings of Power to rely so heavily upon original characters seems unnecessary at best, outright gratuitous at worst. With that said, there’s a good reason The Rings of Power‘s cast feels so unfamiliar. J.R.R. Tolkien might’ve crafted an extensive Second Age lore populated by characters he created, but these represent incomplete snapshots of in-universe history – a far cry from the fleshed-out narratives of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings.
One of the sources The Rings of Power will likely draw from is literally called “Unfinished Tales,” highlighting how sizable chunks of Tolkien’s Second Age remain blank. That means whichever characters Amazon selected for The Rings of Power – original or otherwise – embellishments were required to turn Tolkien’s fictional mythology into a traditional narrative. Furthermore, many characters Tolkien does provide for this era are little more than a name, a date, and a title. The Rings of Power‘s time period made an influx of new characters unavoidable.
The Rings of Power‘s fresh-faced character additions may be a necessity; that doesn’t necessarily mean they won’t become a problem. As book-to-movie adaptations go, Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy is more or less a faithful representation of the source material, but many Tolkien readers – not to mention the author’s son, Christopher – felt the movies lacked authenticity. When Jackson’s The Hobbit trilogy then took the bold step of adding a totally new main character (Evangeline Lilly’s Turiel) the outcry could be heard from Mordor to the Halls of Mandos. That was just one character. The Rings of Power has a whole cast of made-for-TV additions that must win fans over, and the entire show could hinge on whether audiences accept these non-Tolkien creations.
Perhaps The Rings of Power‘s abundance of original personalities is why production remained so secret even though spoilers leaked approximately 68 years ago – to avoid characters being dismissed before even getting chance to introduce themselves. Maybe viewers will recognize The Rings of Power isn’t your classic page-to-screen adaptation, and cut the TV series more slack than The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit.
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