Andy Serkis spoke to the BBC about backlash over the lack of racial diversity in The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum while filming the movie in New Zealand. The BBC asked Serkis directly about the lack of diversity in the cast announced so far, according to Deadline.
What Serkis said
Serkis pointed to the source material’s cultural framing as part of his answer. Serkis explained that Tolkien drew heavily from Norse mythology, which gives the world a distinct cultural atmosphere. According to the Hollywood Reporter, Serkis described the Shire as having a distinctly white cultural character. He added that its residents are generally uninterested in the world beyond its borders. so much as keeping outsiders from coming in.
He acknowledged the backlash directly. “Yes, there have been criticisms,” Serkis said, before addressing how the production is responding to it: “It’s only where relevant basically,” he said, referring to where the film might diversify its casting for smaller or supporting roles.
The cast so far
The main cast announced for The Hunt for Gollum includes Ian McKellen returning as Gandalf, Elijah Wood returning as Frodo Baggins, and Lee Pace reprising his Hobbit trilogy role as Thranduil. New cast members include Jamie Dornan as Strider (Aragorn), Kate Winslet as a character named Marigol, Leo Woodall as Halvard, and Anya Taylor-Joy as a character named Seren, according to CBR. Serkis is taking on dual roles as director and Gollum in the upcoming film.
Not the first time this debate has come up
Criticism of Lord of the Rings casting isn’t new. Peter Jackson’s original trilogy, which starred Elijah Wood and Viggo Mortensen, drew similar criticism over the years for its predominantly white cast of heroes. Some critics have also pointed to specific details in Tolkien’s writing that complicate the “the Shire is meant to be white” argument — including passages describing the Harfoots, one of the three hobbit subgroups, as having brown skin.
A different approach from Rings of Power
Amazon’s The Rings of Power took a different route, casting the franchise’s first Black Elves and Dwarves alongside a broader range of actors of color. That decision drew its own backlash from some fans, including a 2022 post from Elon Musk that read, “Tolkien is turning in his grave,” according to Fox News. Original trilogy cast members Elijah Wood, Billy Boyd, and Dominic Monaghan later posed for photos wearing elf ears in a range of skin tones with the caption “You Are All Welcome Here,” in support of the show’s cast.
Serkis’s own record on diversity
The BBC noted that Serkis has spoken in favor of diversity in Hollywood elsewhere in his career. According to SFF Gazette, Serkis revealed in 2018 that being one of the few white actors on the Black Panther set helped him better understand what it’s like to be part of an ethnic minority in a film production.
What else is known about the film
The Hunt for Gollum is set between the events of The Hobbit trilogy and The Fellowship of the Ring, and centers on Gollum’s history before he became Gollum, alongside Gandalf’s search for answers about the origins of Bilbo’s ring. Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens, who wrote the original trilogy, are penning the script along with Phoebe Gittins and Arty Papageorgiou, with Peter Jackson producing, according to Yahoo Entertainment. Warner Bros. will release The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum in theaters globally on December 17, 2027.
