Elijah Wood Doesn't Like That Amazon is Calling Its Middle Earth Series THE LORD OF THE RINGS

The Lord of the Rings trilogy star Elijah Wood has some thoughts on Amazon’s Middle Earth series and its title. He has some issues with them calling it Lord of the Rings, saying that it’s “bizarre.”

During a recent interview with Empire, Wood explained that calling the series Lord of the Rings is not accurate to the show’s story and setting:

“I find it bizarre that they’re calling it Lord Of The Rings as a shorthand, because it’s not Lord Of The Rings! It takes place in the Second Age of Middle-earth. I am fascinated by what they’re doing with the show. They’re calling it The Lord Of The Rings, but I think that’s slightly misleading. From what I understand, the material they are working on exists chronologically further back in history in lore of Lord Of The Rings or Middle Earth than any characters represented in Lord Of The Rings. It sounds more Silmarillion era. Not to get nerdy, but it’s the Second Age of Middle Earth.”

I wasn’t aware that the series would in fact be titled Lord of the Rings. I’ve been describing it as a “Middle Earth series inspired by J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings” because I haven’t seen an official title announced. But, I imagine Wood has some insight on the project that the rest of us don’t for obvious reasons.

Regardless, Wood is right. The Lord of the Rings refers to the novel written by J.R.R. Tolkien that would be adapted into three films that include The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, and The Return of the King. If the series is actually titled Lord of the Rings, it’s obviously for marketing purposes because it’s a title that’s familiar with audiences.

Amazon’s series is set thousands of years before the events of the book, during the Second Age of Middle-earth. It’s an era that was covered in The Silmarillion, and the series will dive into the forging of the rings, including the One Ring to rule them all, as well as Sauron’s rise to power. Here’s the synopsis:

Amazon Studios’ forthcoming series brings to screens for the very first time the heroic legends of the fabled Second Age of Middle-Earth’s history. This epic drama is set thousands of years before the events of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, and will take viewers back to an era in which great powers were forged, kingdoms rose to glory and fell to ruin, unlikely heroes were tested, hope hung by the finest of threads, and the greatest villain that ever flowed from Tolkien’s pen threatened to cover all the world in darkness. Beginning in a time of relative peace, the series follows an ensemble cast of characters, both familiar and new, as they confront the long-feared re-emergence of evil to Middle-earth. From the darkest depths of the Misty Mountains, to the majestic forests of the elf-capital of Lindon, to the breathtaking island kingdom of Númenor, to the furthest reaches of the map, these kingdoms and characters will carve out legacies that live on long after they are gone.

Regardless of Wood’s thoughts on the title, he is open to returning to the role of Frodo if the opportunity presented itself, “If there was a world where that made sense and organic to what they’re doing, then yes. Look, any excuse to get to go to New Zealand to work on something, I am absolutely there.”

Game of Thrones alum Bryan Cogman is serving as a consulting producer on the show, and J.A. Bayona (A Monster Calls, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom) is set to direct multiple episodes. J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay are leading the charge on the project as the writers and showrunners. It’s also been said that the series will have a “mind-blowing” scale.

The cast for the series includes Robert Aramayo, Owain Arthur, Nazanin Boniadi, Tom Budge, Morfydd Clark, Ismael Cruz Córdova, Ema Horvath, Markella Kavenagh, Joseph Mawle, Tyroe Muhafidin, Sophia Nomvete, Megan Richards, Dylan Smith, Charlie Vickers, Daniel Weyman, Cynthia Addai-Robinson, Maxim Baldry, Ian Blackburn, Kip Chapman, Anthony Crum, Maxine Cunliffe, Trystan Gravelle, Sir Lenny Henry, Thusitha Jayasundera, Fabian McCallum, Simon Merrells, Geoff Morrell, Peter Mullan, Lloyd Owen, Augustus Prew, Peter Tait, Alex Tarrant, Leon Wadham, Benjamin Walker, and Sara Zwangobani.

What do you think about the Amazon series being titled Lord of the Rings?