Lord Of The Rings’ 2024 Movie Can Do This Original Trilogy Character Justice After 22 Years

The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim will finally give a Lord of the Rings trilogy character the attention and appreciation they deserve. The upcoming 2024 film is set nearly 200 years before the events of Frodo’s story, so there will be a limited number of mortal LOTR characters around during this time. However, this isn’t to say there won’t be some familiar faces (or voices) in War of the Rohirrim. Not only can audiences expect the return of one of the characters, but the prequel movie will change how you feel about their role in the overarching story.

Warner Bros and New Line Cinema are again producing a Lord of the Rings movie, this time an animated film titled War of the Rohirrim. Set about 160 years before Frodo left the Shire to destroy the One Ring, the upcoming movie follows the story of Helm Hammerhand, a King of Rohan whose story Tolkien outlined in the appendices of his Lord of the Rings. To get this tale across to audiences, War of the Rohirrim will be narrated by Éowyn, who will again be played by actor Miranda Otto. Ultimately, this will mean some much-needed attention for her character.

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Éowyn’s Lord Of The Rings Role Is Often Overlooked

Éowyn’s role in The Lord of the Rings was far from negligible. She was responsible for taking down the Witch-King of Angmar, quickly turning the tide of the Battle of Pelennor Fields with her “I am no man!” moment. Still, in the grand scheme of the trilogy story, the shieldmaiden of Rohan is often overlooked. In Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy, she was presented as the doomed corner to Aragorn’s love triangle, an unfortunate place for any female character. Then, there was no time in the films to include Éowyn’s happy ending with Faramir in Gondor.

Even Éowyn great deed of defeating the Witch-King is frequently challenged since, in Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings books, it was only because Merry had stabbed the Ringwraith in the back of the leg with a Barrow-blade that shieldmaiden’s final strike was successful. Ultimately, this further contributes to the common dismissal of Éowyn’s (and other female Lord of the Rings characters’) roles. Though she won’t be performing any great feats of battle in The Lord of the Rings: War of the Rohirrim, the upcoming move can still repair this injustice.

Éowyn’s 2024 Lord Of The Rings Return Can Improve Her Character

Éowyn’s role in the 2024 The Lord of the Rings movie is valuable since it connects the film to the Peter Jackson trilogy, but this isn’t the only reason that her contribution is a big deal. One of the defining features of her personality is her desire to be remembered—to leave her mark on the world with her sword like those in legends. The story of Helm Hammerhand, Éowyn’s distant ancestor, was undoubtedly one of the tales she had grown up on, which led her to desire nothing more than to stand bravely on the battlefield. In this way, her War of the Rohirrim role adds further depth to her character.

As well as this, War of the Rohirrim can potentially add context to Éowyn’s story that Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy missed out on. If her character—not just Otto—is telling the story of Helm Hammerhand, then the animated movie may start by showing what Éowyn’s life looks like since Return of the King. She and Faramir got married and had children, so perhaps her narration is actually an attempt to tell her little ones about the history of Rohan’s warriors. Thus instilling in them the lessons that made all the difference in her adventures.

War Of The Rohirrim Will Change How You Feel About Éowyn

Regardless of whether Éowyn’s role in War of the Rohirrim is strictly that of a narrator or something a little more, the 2024 Lord of the Rings movie will mean a chance to hear more of this often overlooked character. Just as Galadriel’s narration at the start of The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring has become iconic, the same will most certainly be true for Éowyn in the upcoming film. This will mean a fresh new perspective of shieldmaiden.

Additionally, the animated Lord of the Rings movie will change how we see Rohan and its people as a whole. After all, Helm Hammerhand’s story isn’t just the tale of a stubborn and powerful king—it’s Théoden, Éomer, and Éowyn’s history. So The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim will establish the events that formed who these people were as a culture and how, though it would be over 100 years, a maiden like Éowyn would come to be the hero of her own story.

The Lord of The Rings: The War of The Rohirrim

Set before the events of the original Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim is an animated action-adventure fantasy film that follows a King of Rohan named Helm Hammerhand. When his home comes under siege by Dunlendings, Hammerhand prepares himself and his allies to fight back against them, with the war leading to the eventual establishment of Helm’s Deep.

Release Date

December 13, 2024

Director

Kenji Kamiyama

Cast

Brian Cox , Miranda Otto , Gaia Wise , Luke Pasqualino , Laurence Ubong , Shaun Dooley

Studio(s)

New Line Cinema , Warner Bros. Animation , Sola Entertainment

Distributor(s)

Warner Bros. Pictures