Lord Of The Rings fans divided over new prequel movie

A new The Lord of the Rings movie is arriving in cinemas later this year and fans are divided over the prequel animation.

There are very few novel-to-movie portrayals that have been adapted quite as well as J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings, directed by Peter Jackson. Well, apart from The Hobbit movie trilogy at least, the less said about those, the better.

Check out The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim trailer below!

Earlier this year it was announced that we’re getting a new The Lord of the Rings live-action movie with The Hunt for Gollum directed by the voice and motion capture actor of Sméagol, Andy Serkis. What’s more, Peter Jackson will return as one of the producers.

Later this year, we’re also getting another adaptation, namely The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim. Set 200 years before the War of the Ring and will star the returning Mirando Otto as Éowyn alongside Brian Cox as Helm Hammerhand.

“A sudden attack by Wulf, a clever and ruthless Dunlending lord seeking vengeance for the death of his father, forces Helm Hammerhand, the King of Rohan, and his people to make a daring last stand in the ancient stronghold of the Hornburg,” reads the synopsis of The War of the Rohirrim.

Recently, the release date for The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim was announced to be arriving in cinemas on 13 December 2024. However, while the trailer for the movie looks promising, not everyone is convinced.

All Middle-earth knows the tale of the war of the ring. But 200 years before that, there was an older tale. #LOTR The War of the Rohirrim - only in theaters December 13. pic.twitter.com/V3nuKyNVnw

— Warner Bros. Pictures (@wbpictures) September 22, 2024

“I hope the movie is good but I'm still not a fan of having an unnamed character as the lead (I assume they’re talking about Éowyn), feels like it'll take much of the impact of the actual story in favour of fleshing her character out,” said Redditor limark.

“Yep, Helm Hammerhand is a supporting character in his own story and Frealaf isn’t even in the poster. Awesome, replied Dry_Method3738.

“I don't like much of the design, maybe the story will be good. Still, I would have liked it if there was more of that Rohirrim flavour in the design,” exclaimed JackAquila.

“I just can't get excited about the art style. It screams generic fantasy anime. Not hating on anime, I used to buy fansubs back in the day,” said a deflated jojocookiedough. “But there is nothing special to set it apart. It's so bland and nondescript to look at, that it's painful.”

At the end of the day, it’s all about personal preference and I for one will be hoping to see this in the cinema. Perhaps one advantage that The War of the Rohirrim might have over The Hunt for Gollum, is that its story is from appendices of The Lord of the Rings whereas The Hunt for Gollum is an original story.

The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum is expected to release in cinemas sometime in 2026.