The War of the Rohirrim

Frodo may have had enough of the One Ring, but audiences aren’t done with Middle Earth yet, as the anime prequel film “The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim” is fast hitting theaters.

Set many years before the events of Tolkien’s main Lord of the Rings trilogy, The War of the Rohirrim is joined by Philippa Boyens, co-writer of Peter Jackson’s critically acclaimed franchise adaptation and renowned anime filmmaker, to tell a new story set in the warring world of men.

Read more: What happens to the film and television rights to “The Lord of the Rings”?

With stunning imagery—and especially a name that will sound familiar to fans of Jackson’s film trilogy—The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim promises to show us a new side of Tolkien’s rich fantasy world.

Here’s everything we know about it so far.

When will War of the Rohirrim be released?

Later this year, audiences can return to an animated Middle-earth when The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim hits theaters on Friday, December 13.

The film is directed by Kenji Kamiyama, the acclaimed filmmaker behind successful anime projects such as “Blade Runner: Black Lotus” and several installments in the expanded “Ghost in the Shell” series.

Is there a trailer for “War of the Rohirrim”?

Unfortunately, no trailer for “The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim” has been released yet.

Of course, it could be on this site, but it enjoys the invisibility provided by the One Ring. But until it’s removed – or the powers that be decide to put a trailer online – we’ll never know for sure.

What will happen in the Rohirrim War?

“The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Roirrim” takes place 150 years before the unification of Middle-earth to defeat Sauron and at a time when the land’s many tribes were divided.

Here we meet Helm Hammerhand, a powerful king of ancient Rohan, and his attempts to protect his kingdom from attackers known as the Dunlendings.

This makes Hammerhand the stuff of legend and ultimately serves as the inspiration for the name of one of Rohan’s most famous fortresses: Helm’s Deep.

Regarding the decision to tell this story as an anime, Boyens explained that through this art form, Kamiyama was able to take this world in bold and exciting new directions.

“There are certain things that I think we couldn’t necessarily have done – or it would have been extremely expensive – elements of storytelling that you could do in anime in a way that was actually quite breathtaking,” she recently told People.

The Lord of the Rings: War of the Rohirrim – Cast

Brian Cox, star of the series “Succession,” will lend his voice to Helm Hammerhand, the legendary King of Rohan, while Gaia Wise will lend her voice to his rebellious daughter Héra.

Miranda Otto, the star who played the famous Rohan heroine Éowyn in Jackson’s trilogy, returns to narrate Kamiyama’s prequel. “I think she was on the mic for about 10, 15 minutes and you could feel the voice and the character coming back,” Boyens said of Otto’s return to the role. “It was incredibly beautiful to watch her do it.”

“Skins” star Luke Pasqualino plays Wulf, the brutal leader of the Dunlendings who has a bone to pick with the Rohirrim, while Shaun Dooley plays his father Freca.

The show will also feature the vocal talents of Yazdan Qafouri, Lorraine Ashbourne, Benjamin Wainwright, Jude Akuwudike, Bilal Hasna, Michael Wildman and Janine Duvitski.

The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim hits theaters on Friday, December 13