The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power marks the first time J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Silmarillion will be depicted on screen. But with such famous predecessors in Peter Jackson‘s Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trilogies, fans are naturally going to compare the franchises. The Rings of Power cast spoke with Emily Aslanian in the TV Insider and TV Guide Magazine studio, sponsored by Hollywood unBranded at San Diego Comic-Con 2022 this weekend, and they happily shared one way in which the Prime Video series is similar to the Jackson trilogies: the orcs.
The orcs in The Rings of Power are not CGI creatures. Like Jackson’s, each actor portraying one of the many vicious beings was covered in elaborate special effects makeup and costumes to the point where the actor was unrecognizable.
“I think one of the things that made us fall in love with that first trilogy was those practical effects and the artistry of it. You really saw these creatures,” Ismael Cruz Córdova (who plays Arondir) said. “Our show, our creatives, and our showrunners really wanted to go back to that magic.”
“That’s how it felt when we were doing this [series],” he added. “It was real. It was there. These were our friends, but you couldn’t see them through the prosthetics.” Indeed, seeing them in person was a “trip,” as Cynthia Addai-Robinson (who plays Queen Regent Míriel) described.
“To see it up close — on camera it’s phenomenal — but you’re standing in front of this actor and you just don’t see them. You don’t see the actor underneath,” she said. “The eyes and everything is a trip. It’s insane.”
Córdova and Addai-Robinson were joined by Charles Edwards, Daniel Weyman, Ema Horvath, and Maxim Baldry for our video interview. Baldry plays a human fans saw in flashback in Jackson’s films, Isildur, the man who will one day destroy Sauron, but refuse to destroy his ring (you owe Frodo a finger, my guy). Horvath plays Isildur’s sister, Eärien, who she says is “more of the adult” between her and her older brother. Weyman plays The Stranger, whose role is being kept under tight lock and key, although some details are slowly rolling out. And Edwards plays Celebrimbor, the elf who will one day create the rings of power.
Although Celebrimbor is destined to create the most insidious weapon in Middle-earth, Edwards says he’s good at heart.
“He means well. He’s quite vain about his work, although he wants his work to be of benefit to the elven race. He wants it to do good, but also he likes getting praised for it,” Edwards said, adding that while he’s not inherently evil, viewers meet Celebrimbor at a vulnerable time, leaving him impressionable.
And as for The Stranger, he apparently has a “fiery” entrance. “Shooting that was extraordinary,” Weyman said. “I came into this hangar, massive soundstage and there was just fire everywhere. I think they had 80 different fire points all controlled by crew members who were bringing them up. They could raise them and lower them remotely. We were filming in this well, so when you got right deep into the center of the well, the heat was excruciating.”
Check out the full video interview with Córdova, Addai-Robinson, Horvath, Baldry, Weyman, and Edwards, above.
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, Series Premiere, Friday, September 2, Prime Video
