Looks likeThe Witcherisn’t the only gritty fantasy series making its move into the anime world. NowThe Lord of the Ringsis ready to enter the fray. Thanks to a talented anime director and even a few returning veterans, a new story in the classic J.R.R. Tolkien world is about to be told in a very different style.
A new movie announced last year from New Line Cinema and Warner Bros. Animation, titledThe Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim, has just gotten its first look and possible release date. LikeThe Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolfbefore it, this new anime film spinoff will serve as a sort of prequel to the main story. But whileNightmaretold the tale of Vesemir, who was an important character in the regular series,The War of the Rohirrimaims to focus on a character only referenced in the originalLord of the Ringsbooks and movies. While Warner Bros. has yet to reveal the cast or a full preview of the film, they’ve released some concept art that’s sure to invoke some feelings from Tolkien diehards.
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The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrimwill follow the life of Helm Hammerhand, a name many fans might recognize as both the former king of Rohan and the namesake for theinfamous fortress Helm’s Deep. In a time roughly 200 years beforeThe Lord of the Ringsand evenThe Hobbit, viewers will get to see a different time in the history of Middle-earth and even the creation of that iconic stronghold. But while the subject is interesting enough, the people behind the project are worth excitement all on their own.
Kenji Kamiyama, who directed the beloved anime seriesGhost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complexandthe recentBlade Runner: Black Lotus, will take the helm of the upcoming prequel film. He’ll be joined by the Oscar-winning Philippa Boyens, writer for the originalLord of the RingsandHobbitmovies, though she’ll be taking an executive producer role this time around. Instead, the writing is in the hands of her daughter Phoebe Gittins along with her writing partner Arty Papageorgiou. The 2 of them are adapting the screenplay from a script by Jeffrey Addiss and Will Matthews.
Boyens isn’t the onlyLOTRveteran joining the team. Richard Taylor, founder of special effects company Weta Workshop and winner of several Oscars for makeup and effects inThe Lord of the Ringsseries, is part of the creative team behindWar of the Rohirrim. But he isn’t the only heavy-hitter Tolkien expert taking part in the project. The team includes Alan Lee, who also won an Oscar for art direction in the trilogy and gained his fame through his illustrations for certain editions of Tolkien’s original novels. Fellow illustrator on the project John Howe has a similar resume, working alongside Lee as chief conceptual designers for theLOTRtrilogy and even illustrating some cards forMagic: The Gathering.
All of this is certainly enough to get Tolkien fans excited, and even more casualLord of the Ringsenthusiasts are sure to be paying attention now. The concept art alone should be enough to get fans hungry for more, but the people behind this exciting new feature just take it to a whole different level. Here’s hoping the wait isn’t as agonizing as it’s been forAmazon’sThe Rings of Power.
The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrimis set to release April 12th, 2024, in theaters.
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