Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy was over 20 years ago and in Amazon’s fantasy series The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, a new cast populates Middle Earth. But that doesn’t mean that every previous star is interested in watching the latest Tolkien interpretation, as Elrond actor Hugo Weaving betrayed.
Lord of the Rings star Hugo Weaving has had enough of Elrond and Middle Earth
Hugo Weaving (Matrix) has played the elf Elrond a total of five times: in three Lord of the Rings and two Hobbit films. As host in Rivendell, wise advisor and father of Arwen, the now 64-year-old has plenty of experience in the fantasy series. However, the British actor does not plan to watch the new Middle Earth series The Rings of Power, which has just started its second season, as he revealed to RadioTimes:
I didn’t see it and apologize to Robert [Aramayo]. No, I spent too much time in Middle Earth and have no particular interest in returning there. But I love New Zealand and was back there recently.
Robert Aramayo plays a younger Elrond in the prequel series and is one of the fan favorites, as our character ranking after season 1 proved. Season 2 of Amazon’s Lord of the Rings series was no longer filmed in New Zealand, but Hugo Weaving’s departure is going in a different direction anyway:
It’s funny when you spend so much time on one particular work in one way… It’s a big movie, a huge franchise. But for me the role is not that important [in meiner Karriere] like for the fans. So my apologies to Robert, but I haven’t seen the series. I’m sure he’s great.
Hugo Weaving has not held back with his opinion in the past. Back in season 1 of The Rings of Power, he stressed that there was “no chance” of seeing him as Elrond again. He even went so far as to call his Lord of the Rings character a “clotheshorse” because he had so little to do in terms of acting. In comparison, his successor Robert Aramayo is much more active in Middle Earth as a young Elrond and can still uncover some of Elrond’s secrets there.
When is the new episode of The Rings of Power coming out?
The Lord of the Rings series currently releases a new episode every Thursday. Episode 4 (of a total of 8) will be released on September 5, 2024 at 9 a.m. on Amazon Prime *.
The Rings of Power in the podcast: Is season 2 of the Lord of the Rings series worth watching?
After a two-year break, Amazon’s big fantasy series The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power is back. We discuss what makes Season 2 different and whether the first three episodes are convincing.
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After the revelation of the villain Sauron, the cards in Middle Earth are reshuffled. Esther and Mario view the result of the second season with very different perspectives. A spoiler-free first podcast part is followed by a series review with a more in-depth Lord of the Rings analysis.
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