For a lot of us, one of our favorite performances of the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy is that of King Théoden of Rohan. Bernard Hill‘s performance is beautifully memorable as a stubborn yet compassionate ruler. But the actor has no love or compassion for the recent “The Rings of Power” series. In a recent interview, Hill shared his feelings on Amazon’s most expensive series to date.
He really, really, did not mix words on his opinion of the show. “It’s a money-making venture and I’m not interested in watching that or being in it,” Hill said. “Good luck to them and all that stuff but it’s not like the real thing.”
It’s a…strong…statement, and maybe isn’t necessarily unfounded. Peter Jackson‘s “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy saw incredible financial and critical success. But the same attempt to create another epic with 3 “The Hobbit” films left fans disappointed. “They did it well…they expanded it [but] I think you can only stretch a piece of elastic so far,” Hill said.
Whether Hill’s co-stars of the original trilogy feel similarly remains to be seen. J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay were chosen for the series due to their intense passion for the works of JRR Tolkien. But knowing this is meant to be a five season series, it may well be they find themselves in the precarious trap of spreading themselves too thin. So far, it hasn’t wowed us the same way as “Lord of the Rings.” But we can all agree that’s a tough act to follow.
Season one of “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” is currently streaming on Amazon. Season two is currently filming.
