We’re living in a golden age of high fantasy prequels. Just weeks after House of the Dragon began airing on HBO, Amazon started dropping episodes of its highly anticipated Lord of the Rings series, The Rings of Power. But amid the influx of praise for this big-budget, richly imagined return to Middle-Earth, there has been a small contingent of viewers who object to the inclusion of non-white actors in this fantastical setting, and claim that this contradicts the vision of author J.R.R. Tolkien.
In other words, black and brown hobbits and elves are bringing out the white trolls, including none other than billionaire tech founder Elon Musk, who tweeted that Tolkien would be “spinning in his grave” at the notion of diverse casting.
British actor and comedian Lenny Henry, who plays Sadoc Burrows in the show, responded to the complaints in a recent interview with the Times, asking simply: “In worlds of dragons and elves, why is the casting of a black man the limit at which fantasy fans are prepared to suspend their disbelief?”
He went on to explain his perspective of this new production, and the importance of representation in mainstream media. “That’s to do with it being the 21st century; people want to see themselves,” he said. “Of course, if you go back, there’s going to be that thing that prevails because the books don’t say… but that was then, this is now and we’re telling the story now.”
He also pointed out that some of the fictitious characters of Middle-Earth are described as “hard-skinned and darker in complexion,” including the Harfoots, a subspecies of Hobbit which he happens to be portraying in the show. So even if all Hobbits in prior adaptations have been white, the casting of a Black performer in this instance does seem to tally with Tolkien’s vision.
Ismael Cruz Córdova as Arondir and Lenny Henry as Sadoc Burrows in The Rings of Power.
Elsewhere, Puerto Rican actor Ismael Cruz Córdova, who plays the elf Arondir, recently told Esquire that unfortunately, he was all-too-prepared for the racist abuse he would receive once the show came out. “I fought so hard for this role for this very reason,” he says. “I felt that I could carry that torch. I made sure that my elf was the most Elven, the most incredible, because I knew this was coming.”
He has since posted a powerful thread to Twitter in which he spoke about what it means for him to have landed such a prominent role.
“It’s not about the billboard,” he wrote. “It’s about becoming unmissable, undeniable, irrevocably present and rooted, as a people, as beings, as individuals. A huge ‘we are here’. And we have been here… Looking for zero favors but to live with the same chances to dream and thrive as anyone else. If you’ve ever felt discarded, marginalized, silenced – you are my people. And this moment is yours too!”
Philip Ellis is a freelance writer and journalist from the United Kingdom covering pop culture, relationships and LGBTQ+ issues. His work has appeared in GQ, Teen Vogue, Man Repeller and MTV.
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