The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power was well-received by viewers and critics upon its debut last September. The show has, however, suffered backlash from toxic fandom for the racial diversity of its cast. And some cast members are firing back.
"I mean, it is infuriating," actor Owain Arthur told Variety at this weekend's Monte-Carlo Television Festival. Arthur plays Dwarven Prince Durin in the series. "Like, you go, 'Oh, God, really? Are we still there as a human race?' That drives me wild -- the guys have been through a lot."
"To be on the receiving end of things -- and I hope one day, we will, as a human race, just be one," Arthur said. "I mean, it sounds kind of maybe pathetic or dramatic what I'm saying here, but, genuinely, just stop racism."
Actor Cynthia Addai-Robinson commented on her wish to move past Rings of Power's trolls as the show inches forward. Addai Robinson plays the island nation of Númenor's Queen Regent Míriel.
"What I’m looking forward to, as we move on to Season 2, is allowing that conversation to be in the past and just plow ahead," Addai-Robinson said. "When you have progress, it's like we're not going to go backward from the things that we’ve established. I'm ready to acknowledge it and move on from it, because I think we've kind of said all there is to say, really. I know that I have."
Actor Ismael Cruz Córdova received threats and has faced other direct attacks. "My phone got hacked. I had bank account attempts of being hacked. My PayPal got hacked," Córdova had revealed in a previous interview. The actor plays Elven fighter Arondir on the show. "My friends got messages. I got death threats. I got things mailed to me. People found out my address. It was a lot of that." Córdova was not in attendance at the festival.
The Rings of Power is based on events established in J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of The Rings novels. The series predates the film trilogy, which adapted Tolkien's novels, by thousands of years. The Rings of Power is set during the Second Age of Middle Earth. Major events chronicled include the rise of Dark Lord Sauron, and the creation of the actual Rings of Power.
Production of the show's second season began late last year, and is expected to air sometime in 2024. Filming on the show continues despite the Writers Guild of America strike.
Season 1 of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power is currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
Source: Variety