Summary
The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrimwill introduce a new female protagonist, and she may be the best possible feminist icon for theLord of the Ringsfranchise. Tolkien’s books were woefully short on prominent female characters, with a select few including Éowyn from Rohan and the elf Galadriel. For this reason, recent screen adaptations have attempted to make some changes.The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Powerleaned into Galadriel’s warrior status, but this has been, overall, controversial. However,War of the Rohirrim’s Hèra may be a different story.
Theupcoming anime movieThe Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrimwill be set about 200 years before the events of Frodo’s story. Early in the film’s production, it was said that it would follow the war between Rohan’s Helm Hammerhand and the Dunlendings. While this is still true, it has since been revealed thatWar of the Rohrrimwill center more on Helm’s daughter, who was unnamed in Tolkien’s version of the story. While such changes or extensions ofThe Lord of the Ringscanon are typically frowned upon, this may be an exception.
Lord Of The Rings: War of the Rohirrim Images Reveal First Look At New Characters
New images have been released from The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim, revealing a first look at two new characters to the franchise.
War Of The Rohirrim Will Follow Hèra & A Female Tribe Of Warriors
Helm Hammerhand’s Daughter Will Be A Major Focus Of The New Lord Of The Rings Movie
Twenty minutes ofWar of the Rohirrimwas screened at an Annecy panel, and during this short preview, the film’s new protagonist was introduced. While the story will still follow Helm Hammerhand and his war against the Dunlendings (which is one of the more exciting stories involving Rohan from Tolkien’s legendarium), the film will more specifically center around Helm’s daughter, Hèra. This is an interesting change since, in canon, this fateful war began when Hammerhand refused to marry his daughter to a Dunledning lord, Wulf.
The character will call on an all-female tribe of fighters for help, transforming this Lord of the Rings tale into the sort of feminist story the franchise needs.
Helm’s daughter had little else to do with the story in Tolkien’s version of events, butWar of the Rohirrimis making a change. The screening revealed thatthe newly dubbed Hèra would take on a warrior role, forced into a position of leadership following Hammerhand’s decisions. The character will call on an all-female tribe of fighters for help, transforming thisLord of the Ringstale into the sort of feminist story the franchise needs.
Rings Of Power’s Galadriel Has Been Controversial, But Hèra May Be Easier to Accept
Hèra Being An Original Imagining Of Hammerhand’s Daughter Will Make Changes Easier To Swallow
Hèra isn’t Hollywood’s first attempt at giving female characters a more prominent role inThe Lord of the Rings. Peter Jackson’s movie trilogy made Arwen a much stronger feature of the story, making her a part of Frodo’s rescue when she didn’t even have lines in Tolkien’s books. Then, Prime VideosThe Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Powerhas made Galadrialfar more warrior-like than she has typically been portrayed in the past. This has been a somewhat controversial change. While Tolkien once described Galadriel as “Amazonian” in the First Age, Amazon has been accused of taking this too far for pandering.
Rather than explicitly changing a character, War of the Rohirrim pulls the curtain back a little further, allowing audiences to observe a part of the story that Tolkien might have overlooked.
The expansion ofHèra’s character may be less upsetting to Tolkien enthusiasts since giving her a name and a warrior-like role doesn’t technically contradict anything the author wrote. Rather than explicitly changing a character,War of the Rohirrimpulls the curtain back a little further, allowing audiences to observe a part of the story that Tolkien might have overlooked. This shouldn’t be too hard to pull off, especially considering Éowyn’s role inThe Lord of the Rings.
Hèra Is The Perfect Continuation Of Éowyn’s LOTR Story
Éowyn Telling Hèra’s Story Makes Perfect Sense For Her Lord Of The Rings Character
Perhaps the most significant reason Tolkien enthusiasts could accept the Hèra character is her connection toLord of the Rings’s Éowyn. The shieldmaiden of Rohan revealed herself to be a formidable warrior inReturn of the King, proving herself by secretly riding into a doomed battle and defeating the dreaded Witch King of Angmar.Éowyn was the best-presented female character in Tolkien’s centralLord of the Ringsstory. As a distant descendent of Helm Hammerhand’s line, it makes sense that other female warriors would make up her ancestry.
The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrimwill hit theaters on June 03, 2025.
The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrimhas taken advantage of this, and Éowyn’s character is a promised feature of the upcoming film. Miranda Otto, who played the feminist icon in Peter Jackson’sLord of the Ringsmovies, will even lend her voice to the character in the upcoming anime. It sounds as ifÉowyn will be the film’s narrator, as the character presumably tells the tale of another great female warrior of Rohan. This creates an exciting level of cohesion betweenWar of the RohirrimandLord of the Ringsand should ultimately result in a far more effective feminist story thanRings of Powercould muster.
The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim
Cast
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.
