First Look at ‘LotR: Rings of Power’ Orcs – War of Wrath Survivors are a Different Breed
We’ve seen elves, dwarves, and harfoots – meet The Rings of Power Orcs! These survivors are different than the orcs you’ve seen before.
The Rings of Power is going to take place during the Second Age. It’s a time filled with bloodshed that starts with the founding of Númenor and is capped off with The War of the Last Alliance. The entire period is plagued by Sauron being Sauron. He created the Rings of Power, built Barad-dûr, and lost a significant finger during the Second Age.
Before all of that, the orcs were nearly wiped out after the War of Wrath in the First Age. The small numbers that survived had to scatter across the lands. They became scavengers forced to create small communities. They are very different than the orcs we’re used to seeing on screen.
via Amazon
The Rings of Power Orcs
Thanks to IGN we have our first look at the orcs appearing in The Rings of Power. They’ve opted to go with practical makeup instead of the wonky CG orcs we got in The Hobbit movies. Executive producer Lindsey Weber spoke about how important this choice was.
“Well, I love Orcs. I love creature design, so I’m very happy to talk about this stuff. JD and Patrick — the showrunners — the very first page of their bible was about Orcs. They have a real passion for them, they love practical prosthetics and design, and they felt that they needed exploration given that this is the Second Age and thousands of years before the events of the Third Age. It was really important to them to treat them as their own culture and explore their world on its own two legs in its own right.”
They do look different than the ones seen in the LoTR trilogy twenty years ago, but it’s clear they’re related. Meet some of The Rings of Power orcs…
via Amazon
via Amazon
The design team wanted a wilder, more raw look and they’ve definitely accomplished that. They’re not heavily organized and they’ve had to scavenge to survive – and they look it. Orcs also getting more screen time in the show, more characters – including some female orcs.
“… there’s one Orc in particular, who’s very, very tall and strong, who has a particularly enjoyable fight with one of our Elven characters that I suspect will be, or hope will be a favorite among fans.”
The Rings of Power is really digging in to the history of Middle Earth to present a story (they hope) fans will tune in for. It takes place over thousands of years. For that reason we’re going to be getting something a little different than what’s on the page, something that works more for television and welcomes a broader audience – not just Tolkien purists.
via Amazon
The Rings of Power Synopsis & Cast
The ensemble cast is huge and includes Peter Tait (was in the original movie trilogy). It also includes faces you would recognize from Doctor Who and Westworld. There aren’t any huge names, but I think that will work out better for the show.
“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. It 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.“
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power arrives on Amazon Prime Video on September 2.
