The writings of J.R.R. Tolkien have entertained a variety of audiences over the years. From the pages of books as well as movie screens, Middle-earth has continued to hold incredible appeal over many decades. First came the Ralph Bakshi animated films, before Peter Jackson‘s Oscar-winning offering in The Lord of the Rings trilogy and The Hobbit films came forth. Since then, Prime Video has launched The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power series, which is already in its second season. However, the appeal of Middle-earth remains strong and director Kenji Kamiyama has opened up about his reasons for taking on the upcoming animated film, The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim.

The War of the Rohirrim is set to tell the story of one of the most iconic and famous names from Tolkien’s appendices, Helm Hammerhand, King of Rohan, a character only referenced in Jackson’s original Oscar-winning trilogy. “I loved The Lord of the Rings, including The Hobbit, and watched it as a fan. I thought it would be rare to have the chance to make it into a movie,” director Kamiyama said to Japanese news site Oricon, according to CBR. Describing the upcoming animation as “a challenge I should take on,” the director, whose credits include Eden of the East and Blade Runner: Black Lotus, goes on to describe how he expanded on Tolkien’s original writings. Kamiyama revealed, “200 years before the story of the ring, there was a story about King Helm, the ninth king since the founding of Rohan, whose bloodline was cut off, and I thought I would make a movie out of that story…[since it has] only about 11 pages in the original, I had to expand the content a little more, so I made the youngest daughter of Helm’s three children the main character.” He adds later, “Of course, I thought about how to connect this film to the world 200 years ago, but I think I was able to incorporate some other gimmicks that will make Lord of the Rings fans smile.”

The War of the Rohirrim will feature a conflict that doesn’t necessarily tie into the War of the Ring and Sauron. The film’s main villain and heroine are both partially creations of Kamiyama’s mind. “I created an original episode for the movie using parts that were not in the original. The youngest daughter did not have a name…so I added Héra as an original character for the movie,” the director said of Gaia Wise’s role as Héra. Luke Pasqualino‘s Wulf, the main villain, is also a creation by Kamiyama.

Uniting the Fandom Under the Banner of Rohan

Image via Warner Bros

For some within Tolkien’s fandom, the Jackson trilogies are the gold standard for those who seek to adapt the tales of Middle-earth. Prime’s Rings of Power has experienced some criticism for how it has chosen to represent Middle-earth at various stages since it premiered in 2022. With his upcoming animated film, director Kamiyama hopes to unite all sections of Tolkien’s fandom under one banner:

“Anime has become a movement overseas…I’m grateful for the opportunity to produce The Lord of the Rings through animation. We, the director and I, all agreed that it was impossible to make it happen, but we created this film together…I hope that not only fans of The Lord of the Rings will enjoy it, but also that they will watch it as a Japanese animated film. When I saw the live-action trilogy 25 years ago, I was left with the impression that it was an amazing movie, and I felt that I had to protect that impression [with this film] at all costs …I wanted people to have that experience again. That’s why I ended up drawing it in the traditional Japanese animation style.”