Prime Video has revealed that Laurence Olivier Award-winning actor Rory Kinnear (The Imitation Game) who was previously announced as joining the Season 2 cast of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, will be portraying the fan-favorite J.R.R. Tolkien character Tom Bombadil. The announcement comes after multiple online speculation with many Tolkien fans loving the character for decades.
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The character’s absence from on-screen depictions of Middle-earth has become a topic of conversation. This news was revealed through brand-new images from the series and an interview in Vanity Fair that was released online.
THE RINGS OF POWER IS FINALLY BRINGING THE ICONIC CHARACTER TO LIFE ONSCREEN
According to the series’ showrunners J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay, they are excited to bring this new element to the story and are thrilled to have Kinnear bring the character to life. He stated the following on Tom Bombadil’s upcoming live-action debut:
“He’s whimsical and magical and almost verging on silly. But also has the wisdom of the ages and the music of the spheres and deep emotional wells of ancient history and myth, and his conception and function are tied to Norse myths and have deep roots in European fairy tale.”
-Patrick McKay, Series Showrunner-
They also spoke about how Tom Kinnear defies the tonal shift of the rest of the season which makes his character that more interesting and dark. For Kinnear, he has embraced the opportunity to jump into the famed yellow boots. “There’s this sense of huge experience, huge openness, huge empathy, and having gone through so much that he [Bombadil] knows it’s the small things that are important. That felt actually quite domestic, felt quite reachable in terms of my understanding of who he was.”
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Tom Bombadil is described as a figure of unknown origin in Tolkien’s works who projects timeless wisdom, often propelling characters in a direction to see things more clearly. He helps them understand the wide world around them. He claims to be as old as Middle-earth itself and he’s essentially in search of a meaning. He’s famously known for wearing yellow boots, a blue jacket and a feathered hat. He is also prone to enigmatic expressions in singsong verse.
It has also been revealed in Vanity Fair by Chris Smith, Tolkien Publishing Director at HarperCollins, that the book titled The Adventures of Tom Bombadil will be re-released in paperback on August 20, 2024, ahead of the streaming series’ return on Prime video. Season 2 will premiere exclusively on Prime Video on August 29, 2024.
About The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2
Release Date: August 29, 2024
Directors: Charlotte Bränström, Sanaa Hamri, Louise Hooper
Showrunners/ Executive Producers: J.D. Payne, Patrick McKay
Co-Executive Producer: Charlotte Bränström
Producers: Kate Hazell, Helen Shang
Network: Amazon Prime Video
Cast: Morfydd Clark, Ismael Cruz Cordova, Charlie Vickers, Markella Kavenagh, Megan Richards, Sara Zwangobani
Synopsis: In Season Two of The Rings of Power, Sauron has returned. Cast out by Galadriel, without army or ally, the rising Dark Lord must now rely on his own cunning to rebuild his strength and oversee the creation of the Rings of Power, which will allow him to bind all the peoples of Middle-earth to his sinister will.
Building on Season One’s epic scope and ambition, the new season plunges even its most beloved and vulnerable characters into a rising tide of darkness, challenging each to find their place in a world that is increasingly on the brink of calamity. Elves and dwarves, orcs and men, wizards and Harfoots… as friendships are strained and kingdoms begin to fracture, the forces of good will struggle ever more valiantly to hold on to what matters to them most of all… each other.
What do you guys think? Are you excited to see Rory Kinnear’s live-action adaptation of Tom Bombadil in The Rings of Power? Who’s your favorite The Lord of the Rings character? Let us know and don’t forget to check out our socials and Discord! If you liked this article and want to read more, make sure to follow us for more content.
SOURCE: Amazon MGM Studios, Vanity Fair
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