Will Poulter is one of the most interesting young talents in all of Hollywood, having already worked with A-list filmmakers such as Alejandro González Iñárritu (The Revenant) and Kathryn Bigelow (Detroit). But the English actor has just landed the biggest role of his career, as he has been cast as one of the leads in Amazon’s Lord of the Rings series.
Poulter joins Australian actress Markella Kavenagh in the big-budget adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien‘s beloved masterwork. Plot details remain scant, though the show’s official Twitter account hinted at exploring the Second Age, which in Tolkien mythology was the time in which the Rings of Power — including Sauron’s One Ring — came into existence.
The Lord of the Rings series hails from Star Trek Beyond scribes JD Payne and Patrick McKay, and boasts Game of Thrones alum Bryan Cogman as a consulting producer. Additionally, J.A. Bayona (Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom) is set to direct multiple episodes, as well as executive produce alongside his partner Belén Atienza. The series will be produced by Amazon Studios in cooperation with the Tolkien Estate and Trust, HarperCollins, and New Line Cinema, which distributed Peter Jackson‘s feature films.
Other executive producers include Lindsey Weber, Bruce Richmond, Gene Kelly, Gennifer Hutchison, Jason Cahill, Justin Doble, and Amazon’s former head of genre programming Sharon Tal Yguado. Ron Ames serves as producer, while Helen Shang serves as co-producer, and Stephany Folsom serves as consulting producer. Hutchison, Cahill, Doble and Shang are credited as writers, while Glenise Mullins serves as writing consultant.
Poulter recently starred in Netflix’s interactive Black Mirror movie Bandersnatch as well as Ari Aster‘s deranged horror movie Midsommar. He broke out in films like The Maze Runner and We’re the Millers, and nearly played Pennywise in It before director Cary Fukunaga was replaced by Andy Muschietti, who wound up casting Bill Skarsgård as the killer clown instead.
But everything happens for a reason in Hollywood, and you never know where a closed door might lead you. In this case, it led to Lord of the Rings, which is probably one of the most anticipated series of all time. It will require a major time commitment from Poulter, who will likely spend years on the LOTR series, but that doesn’t sound so bad, especially given the fanfare that surrounds this property. He may have missed out on Pennywise, but I’d say everything worked out for Poulter in the end. He’s represented by WME and Hamilton Hodell, and Variety broke the news of his casting.
via Collider