Warner Bros. Animation, New Line Cinema, and Sola Entertainment previewed 20 minutes of its upcoming anime feature The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim, receiving thunderous applause during the packed presentation on Tuesday at the Annecy Animation Festival.
Kamiyama’s Inspiration and Guidance
Director Kenji Kamiyama said he was inspired by not just J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings books, but by the films of Peter Jackson and Fran Walsh, who were confirmed as executive producers of the movie during the session. Speaking about Kamiyama’s meticulous approach to the material, he was quoted saying, There is such power to the story
.
A Saga Predating Bilbo Baggins
The new story is set nearly 200 years before Bilbo Baggins comes into contact with the ring of power and centers on the House of Helm Hammerhand, the King of Rohan (voiced by Brian Cox), with a focus on his daughter, the strong-willed Princess Héra (voiced by Gaia Wise). In a riveting clip, a dispute erupts during a council meeting, leaving Wulf, a ruthless Dunlending lord, seeking vengeance. Brian Cox’s involvement brings significant weight to King Helm Hammerhand’s character. As stated by one commentator, Helm will be voiced by Brian Cox, a great actor known for many roles but most recently for his part in Succession
.
Eowyn Returns as Narrator
Excitingly, Miranda Otto reprises her role as Éowyn from Peter Jackson’s trilogy, this time lending her voice as the narrator. As revealed during an interview: Then, and this may be the biggest news, came the reveal that Miranda Otto would be returning to reprise her role as Eowyn, Shieldmaiden of Rohan from the Lord of the Rings trilogy, as Eowyn will be the narrator of the story.
An Anime Feature with Distinct Vision
Producers Philippa Boyens (who also co-wrote the story), Jason DeMarco, and Joseph Chou emphasized that with its stylish anime look, they didn’t set out to make an animated Peter Jackson movie. DeMarco stated clearly that their goal was to make this uniquely a Kamiyama movie.
A Welcomed Legacy
The fans are going to go nuts for this
, enthused Andy Serkis. Serkis himself reprises his iconic role as Gollum in another project titled Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum, which he is set to direct. During discussions at Annecy, he also teased his performance-capture based retelling of George Orwell’s classic novel Animal Farm, highlighting his ever-expanding creative endeavors.
The Lord of The Rings: The War of Rohirrim debuts in North America on December 13th and internationally beginning December 11th.
Follow Us
