Amazon Prime’s new multi-million dollar series, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, premiered on Friday, September 2 on the streaming platform. A separate retelling to Peter Jackson’s Academy Award winning film trilogy, this new eight-part adventure invites viewers back to J. R. R. Tolkien’s realm of Middle-Earth.
Interest peaked for the new Lord of the Rings series when it was revealed that it would be the most expensive series ever made. Multinational giant Amazon bought the television rights to the franchise in November 2017 for US$250 million with a five season production commitment worth at least US$1 billion.
Filmed in both the United Kingdom and New Zealand, the new series is not short of Welsh talent. Actors Morfydd Clark, Owain Arthur and Trystan Gravelle all feature in prominent roles. Elsewhere in the cast is Robert Aramayo (Game of Thrones), Maxim Baldry (Years and Years), Cynthia Addis-Robinson (Spartacus, Arrow) and Sir Lenny Henry.
North Wales’ Owain Arthur, 38, plays the dwarven prince Durin IV in the fantasy series. Some viewers may recognise Owain for his roles in BBC’s Casualty or in Rownd a Rownd on S4C. The actor said: “Being a Welshman and being a Welsh speaker makes it a bit more relatable, I suppose, and I have a sense of ownership over it.”
Owain stressed that he found it “very rare” to work alongside a prominent Welsh cast. “When you’re working over the border, to meet somebody who speaks Welsh, let alone work with them, is unlikely. And then all of a sudden, you find yourself in New Zealand with three Welsh-speaking actors.” The actor confirmed how a Welsh connection was very prominent on set.
This is a feeling that was echoed by Carmarthenshire’s Trystan Gravelle, 41, who plays Pharazôn – an advisor to queen regent Míriel. He said: “I think you’re always going to have that connection on set [with Welsh people.]
“To see Morfydd [Clark] take names and numbers and to be an absolute badass elf - I think it’s fantastic not only for Welsh people but for women as well.” Trystan is, of course, referring to series lead, Morfydd Clark, who plays Galadriel – a role originally played by Cate Blanchett in Peter Jackson’s original series of films.
Galadriel is an Elven warrior who believes that evil is returning to Middle-Earth. For Morfydd, the task of learning the fictional language of ‘Elvish’ wasn’t as tricky as you might think. Tolkien himself previously went on record to say that the Welsh language provided some inspiration for the language of the Elves. Morfydd said: “It made it much easier to start with because I had all the sounds and all the rolled r’s, but when something is so close to Welsh but not Welsh, that’s when it becomes tricky.”
The Penarth-raised actress, 33, touched on how her father would read her The Hobbit (Tolkien’s prequel to The Lord of the Rings) when she was a child. She described how she was very aware of the Welsh connections to the series when she was young. “My Mum was very keen to tell me that, when my Dad was reading The Hobbit to me, and it was a source of such huge pride.
“I think that when I was younger, I felt that the Welsh language was made fun of a lot more and knowing that Tolkien thought it was a wonderful language, meant a lot to me. And now I think that it has shifted and lots of people think that Welsh is a wonderful language now.”
Morfydd cited how reading Tolkien’s Middle-Earth appendices and re-watching the original Peter Jackson films helped influence her portrayal as Galadriel. But was she ever intimidated by what had come before?
“Yes definitely,” she said, “I think that’s why it is good to switch between different types of research. Sometimes it was the physical and sometimes it was more academic. I even thought, sometimes, ‘what would [Galadriel] be feeling?’” The role itself required Morfydd to learn how to use a sword and ride a horse.
During her time on the show, Morfydd discussed how she shared a close relationship with co-stars Trystan and Owain. This Welsh camaraderie was ever present on set and she said: “I think, just in general, because we’re in New Zealand for so long and the whole cast was there all the time, everyone became very close and I think lots of them learnt loads about Wales whether they wanted to or not.”
“My mum is desperate to host people in Wales,” she added, “So that will definitely be happening!” Considering how in August 2021 it was announced that future series of The Lord of the Rings would be filmed entirely in the United Kingdom, there’s a chance that the whole cast may need a place to stay in Wales.
Rounding up, all three Welsh Lord of the Rings actors expressed their excitement for people to see the series. Trystan said: “Ultimately, I think that any fantasy world is a chance to not only lose yourself but also, a chance to imagine yourself in a better version of yourself. I want the show to engage, to inspire and to entertain people.”
Owain agreed and added: “That’s ultimately why [Tolkien] wrote this and we’re just a vessel to facilitate that world.”
Morfydd, meanwhile, described how there’s a lot of emphasis on hope and courage in Tolkien’s world. She said: “I think that’s something we often need to be encouraged and told we’re allowed to be hopeful and that caring and being sincere matters.”
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power is available to watch on Amazon Prime.
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