Oh Deepfake, taking things to a level that makes a lot of people go ‘hmmm’. This time around, not that it’s much of a surprise, we’re being treated to a look at what might have happened if the Beatles had been the stars of The Lord of the Rings, and the effect is kind of disturbing considering where they put all the guys. McCartney as Frodo makes some sense, though Ringo as Samwise likely makes more sense to old school fans while Harrison and Gandalf and Lennon as Gollum are funny assignments that can make a person shake their head while smiling or just wonder aloud how in the world Deepfake made such a decision. Domagoj Valjak of The Vintage News has something interesting to share about this subject. One might almost think that Boromir might have been given the honor of having Lenin take his face as that might have made a bit of sense as well, or McCartney being cast as Aragorn with Harrison as Legolas and Ringo as Gimli. There are a number of ways this could have gone down really but it almost feels as though Yoko should have been Gollum and McCartney and Lennon should have been Frodo and Sam. Makes sense, right? Anyway, the effect is kind of fun since despite the fact that Deepfake isn’t perfect as of yet it’s still getting there and obviously playing around here and there with the facial software.
It makes sense that LOTR is getting a little more attention now since the series isn’t too far away and fans are already starting to remember that Amazon has had this project lined up for a while. The cast has been set for some time and obviously things have been moving along much as they need to so it’s not hard to figure that the series is going to be hitting screens soon enough and the patience of the fans is going to be rewarded. LaToya Ferguson of IndieWire has more to say on this subject. What a lot of people might not remember however is that this is a prequel to the movies, not a direct prequel but one that takes place in the Second Age, which is thousands of years before the original story, around the time that Sauron actually created the ring of power and gifted the other rings to the rest of the rulers across Middle Earth. So we won’t be seeing a lot of the characters that were made popular in the movies that Peter Jackson helped to elevate in such a manner. This is uncharted territory for a lot of fans since back in the days of Mordor’s real power Sauron was the big bad that everyone knew to fear, but there were likely other dangers in the Second Age as well that precipitated the one ring’s design.
It’s going to be quite different to watch a Lord of the Rings series without a lot of the characters that we’re used to, but when you remember that characters such as Galadriel, Elrond, and several others were still around back in those days it’s easier to hope for something familiar and well within the experience of a lot of people that might be lost in the woods for a bit. The initial stories that gave way to such popularity when they appeared on the big screen were all published long, long before they ever became live action movies with a huge fan following, and even before they were picked up as animated features that were kind of trippy if you recall since they were made in the 70s. The books have remained a cohesive story throughout the years though and have continued to entertain entire generations as catchphrases and parts of the books and movies have continued to be seen throughout pop culture in various ways, helping to shape and nurture future stories as the genius of Tolkien has opened up entire vistas of storytelling in a way that defies easy explanation. Michael Poteet of Entertainment Earth would likely agree with this. In a way that’s what great storytelling is, highly adaptive and able to be evolved from one place to the next as ideas are taken and reworked to fit into one narrative or another. The LOTR model has become something that many upon many stories have taken after and has also been an inspiration to create new and exciting tales that are meant to grip the imagination and entice people to even greater heights when it comes to the stories they create.
There’s a lot for the coming series to live up to but something indicates that it’s going to be able to stand on its own two feet if only because it’s displaying a different age that takes place before what we’ve already seen. The story will have a lot of responsibility in keeping things straight and maintaining continuity, but a lot of fans are likely to be very forgiving of several foibles should they occur.
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