Sir Lenny Henry on why people will be 'surprised' by Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power

Virgin Radio

31 Aug 2022, 06:43

It’s almost time to return to Middle-earth in Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.

The prequel series on Prime Video will take place thousands of years before the Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, and will focus on the Second Age, the forging of the Rings of Power, the rise of Dark Lord Sauron and the last alliance between Elves and Men. 

Alongside the mammoth cast, including Morfydd Clark, Robert Aramayo and Owain Arthur, is actor Sir Lenny Henry, who will play a Harfoot elder called Sadoc Burrows. 

While at the mystical world premiere of The Rings of Power in London last night (Tuesday 30th August), virginradio.co.uk spoke exclusively to the legendary comedian about what fans can expect, and according to Sir Lenny, they won’t be disappointed. 

He explained: “What we hope is, with this recreation, with this retelling of the Legendarium, that people get plugged in and locked into this new bunch of stories. It's very exciting. 

“[Showrunners] J.D [Payne] and Patrick [McKay] have done an extraordinary job of weaving new stories, from hints and suggestions in the canon that weren't explored. This is an extraordinary bunch of stories that I think people will plug into.”

You might think getting into the world of Hobbits and Elves might be tricky for the tall funnyman, who clocks in at six-foot-three, but walking into the set of the J.R.R Tolkien fantasy wasn’t as difficult as first thought. 

Lenny added: “We were all three-foot-two tall! I've got big ears and rubber feet. You never know if it's gonna work or not, but the minute you walk onto the set, and all this care and attention in detail has been brought to life that you just think, ‘Oh, we're going to be fine’. 

“They did everything possible to make us feel at home and all of a sudden we could do our best work. I think hopefully people will be surprised and joyful when they see it.”

LotR fans have waited a long time for this new Tolkien adventure, with Amazon first buying the TV rights in 2017, and reportedly cost more than £350 million to create, making it the most expensive series ever. 

Amazon and the creators will be keeping their fingers crossed for the same success as the original Lord of the Rings trilogy, which dominated the box office, earning more than £2.5 billion. 

The Lord Of The Rings: The Rings Of Power begins on Amazon Prime on 2nd September. New episodes will drop weekly.