How the cast of Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power persuades hold-outs

When the first season of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power dropped in 2022, there were a few overarching narratives.

The first was that the series was the most expensive show ever made with a price tag of a reported $US456 million for its first season and $US250 million to secure the rights. The second was a toxic segment of the fandom that arc-ed up (or should that be orc-ed up?) about its diverse casting.

The third was that for all of its merits — and there were many, including its high-end production values thanks to that pot of money — enthusiasm for The Rings of Power was tempered by its dense lore and multitude of subplots and characters, which made it tricky for newcomers to navigate J.R.R. Tolkien’s fictional universe.

Set thousands of years before The Lord of the Rings in Middle-earth’s Second Age, the series is a prequel to the story laid out in Peter Jackson’s LOTR and The Hobbit trilogies.

But it’s Jackson’s movies that could provide the entry point to those reticent — so far — to take a step into this high-concept fantasy world.

Australian actor Charlie Vickers who plays a crucial role in the production’s large ensemble cast, told The Nightly he looked to Jackson’s The Fellowship of the Ring in persuading potential fans because most people have seen those films, or at least a part of them.

He explained that the key is the speech Cate Blanchett gives which details the origin story of the One Ring to rule them all.

“This season is the making of the rings, which is the first thing she talks about,” he said. “To me, that’s all based on Tolkien lore and because it was popularised by Peter Jackson, that gets me excited as well. That’s a good of talking to people about it.”

Vickers was one of those people who wasn’t versed in Tolkien’s books but had seen the movies and played the video games.

“I’d never read a page of Tolkien before I was cast in this,” he admitted but is now so into it that when asked what other character he would portray if not for his, he can pluck out Tom Bombadil, a hobbit who sings and dances.

He’s not the only one of his cast who is relatively new to Tolkien’s books. Australian Tyroe Muhafidin didn’t grow up on it but his dad was a huge fan and once he booked the role, he dived in and found it “so easy to fall in love with”, while Markella Kavenagh’s father had successfully persuaded her into them before she ever heard of The Rings of Power auditions.

For New Zealander Leon Wadham, growing up in Wellington, the home of Jackson’s Weta Studios, meant LOTR had been part of his “life forever”.

The first season of The Rings of Power was filmed in New Zealand and when it upped sticks and shifted to the UK for the second series, the Kiwi industry was devastated.

Wadham had been surprised by the move but when he arrived in London, he was “grateful to see sets that were made in my home country and costumes that were made in New Zealand”.

He added, “I feel connected to New Zealand in that way. The work started there and I’ll always carry that forward with me.”

The four Australian and New Zealand actors are part of a very large ensemble but there is a contraction of storylines in this second season, after the expansive world-building and scene-setting of the previous instalment. Which makes it easier for audiences to keep track.

Not that anyone needs a reminder of who Vickers is playing. When he first popped up on screen in 2022, it was as Halbrand, a human who may have been a lost king, but by the end of the season one finale, his true identity was revealed: Sauron.

As in, the Big Big Big Bad of Tolkien’s universe. Vickers said he liked having the secret out in the open but missed the power of keeping it as well. “It’s like the power has dissipated because everyone knows. I miss just sitting in interviews like this in the back corner, not saying much and lurking,” he added with a wry smile.

Sauron may be a god and a stand-in for all the harrowing darkness Tolkien experienced on the frontlines of World War I, but Vickers still brings his own humanity to the character.

“It’s making it make sense – what he seeks – and playing that as genuinely possible,” Vickers said. “That’s more powerful than any moustache twirling, villainous acting, winking at the camera. The villainy comes from the way it’s framed within the show.

“If I play everything straight, it makes it more interesting to watch.”

Ultimately, Tolkien’s works, published 70 years ago, borne from his experiences of more than 110 years, still resonate in 2024. While high-concept fantasy may not be for everyone, those who choose to embrace it, will find that at its core is a universal story, it’s just packaged up in elves, dwarves, wizards and epic orc battles.

Kavenagh said, “The themes of friendship, uniting against challenges and difficulties, and forming these unlikely alliances to fight for a better world, they’re relevant throughout every generation and unite people and connect people.”

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season two starts on Prime Video on August 29