Nearly 20 years after “The Return of the King” brought the original “Lord of the Rings” trilogy to a close, fans are about to go on yet another adventure in Peter Jackson’s distinctive version of Middle-earth — and it’s utterly unlike anything we’ve seen from this franchise before. Prime Video’s “The Rings of Power” has provided a welcome return to author J.R.R. Tolkien’s groundbreaking fantasy world, but the series remains otherwise unconnected to the films that most audiences consider the definitive adaptations of the source material. That all changes with “The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim.”
Warner Bros. has finally unleashed the first official trailer for the prequel film (watch above), giving us a chance to sink our teeth into the new footage like Gollum taking a bite out of some fish, raw and wriggling. The official synopsis is as follows:
Set 183 years before the events chronicled in the original trilogy of films, “The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim” tells the fate of the House of Helm Hammerhand, the legendary King of Rohan. A sudden attack by Wulf, a clever and ruthless Dunlending lord seeking vengeance for the death of his father, forces Helm and his people to make a daring last stand in the ancient stronghold of the Hornburg — a mighty fortress that will later come to be known as Helm’s Deep. Finding herself in an increasingly desperate situation, Héra, the daughter of Helm, must summon the will to lead the resistance against a deadly enemy intent on their total destruction.
“The War of the Rohirrim” takes some very familiar imagery and characters from “The Two Towers” to tell a brand-new story with a bold visual language never before seen in Middle-earth. Check out the trailer at the link above!
The War of the Rohirrim is an origin story for Helm’s Deep — with a punch
Did you ever think you were going to see scenes from Peter Jackson’s “The Lord of the Rings” movies, set to composer Howard Shore’s unmistakable (and award-winning) score, used to promote fresh new stories unfolding in the same continuity? The nostalgia is strong with this first trailer for “The War of the Rohirrim,” definitively setting the action in the same world as the previous trilogies before neatly transitioning to the film’s gorgeous anime aesthetics. Narrated by actor Miranda Otto (reprising her original role as the Shieldmaiden Éowyn for the first time since 2003’s “The Return of the King”), the trailer frames the action as surviving members of the realm of Rohan passing down their myths and legends to a new generation.
This particular story follows the figure of Helm Hammerhand, the great king who would eventually provide the name for the mountain stronghold of Helm’s Deep, seen in “The Two Towers” as the main setting of one of the most epic and spectacular battles ever committed to film. The almost “Game of Thrones”-like plot sees Helm (voiced by the great Brian Cox), his headstrong daughter Héra (Gaia Wise), and his entire house come into direct conflict with a rival faction known as Dunlendings, led by the vengeance-seeking warrior Wulf (Luke Pasqualino). The epic tale is directed by Japanese filmmaker Kenji Kamiyama from a script credited to Jeffrey Addiss & Will Matthews and Phoebe Gittins & Arty Papageorgiou, with the original creative trio of Jackson, Philippa Boyens, and Fran Walsh returning as producers. And for the nerds among us, illustrator/concept artist Alan Lee and Richard Taylor are also involved, alongside John Howe.Â
“The War of the Rohirrim” hits theaters December 13, 2024.
