It's time to go back to Middle-earth, as The Lord of the Rings: War of the Rohirrim is finally hitting the big screen this weekend. It's a treat for The Lord of the Rings fans, telling an epic tale of Rohan and how the fabled fortress of Helm's Deep got its name more than a century before the events of the Peter Jackson trilogy. The premise itself is already a huge connection to the movies, along with Eowyn's (Miranda Otto) narration, but there is much more that bridges the gap between those two stories, making War of the Rohirrim a great addition to Middle-earth lore.
Variag Mercenaries and Mumakil Connect to Sauron’s Armies
Image via Warner Bros Some time after Helm Hammerhand's (Brian Cox) duel against Freca (Shaun Dooley), Héra (Gaia Wise) is riding with Fréaláf (Laurence Ubong Williams) and Olwyn (Lorraine Ashbourne) when the group meets a rogue Mumakil. Fréaláf attacks the beast similarly to how Théoden King (Bernard Hill) and his Rohirrim do in The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, possibly hinting at how Rohan learned to deal with such huge creatures.
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Fréaláf also mentions that it's uncommon for Mumakil to wander so far north from their homes. They hail from Harad, south of Mordor, and are among the Haradrim's most powerful weapons. Fréaláf also notes the presence of Variag mercenaries from Khand. Those two groups are Sauron's allies in the War of the Ring, helping to take Osgiliath from Faramir's (David Wenham) forces in The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers and fighting at the Battle of Pelennor Fields in Return of the King.
The Watcher in the Water Connects to ‘Fellowship of the Ring’
Image via New Line Cinema One of the most terrifying scenes in The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring is when the Fellowship is attacked by a lake monster before entering Moria. That beast is known as the Watcher in the Water, and another one of its kind appears in War of the Rohirrim when Héra leads the rogue Mumakil into the forest toward the lake. General Targg (Michael Wildman) properly names it, erasing any questions.
Before The War of the Rohirrim, most fans believed the Watcher that lives in the lake in front of the Doors of Dúrin was the only one of its kind. It still may be; in The Fellowship of the Ring novel, Gandalf (Ian McKellen) confesses he doesn't know if there are more of them and that they are among the Nameless Things that have been drawn from the depths of the Misty Mountains — now we know there is at least another Watcher in the Water. That particular beast also has ties to The Hobbit — it kills Óin (John Callen) during Balin's (Ken Stott) failed attempt to reclaim Moria.
Orcs From Mordor Scavenge the Mountains Looking for Rings
When Héra finds the secret passage Helm has been using to infiltrate Wulf's (Luca Pasqualino) army, she has to hide from a group of Orcs scavenging the mountains looking for rings. One of them even asks, "What does Mordor want with rings?" This is an obvious tie to the Lord of the Rings trilogy, because Sauron is the lord of Mordor, and he really is looking for the One Ring at that moment in Middle-earth history. The only thing is that, according to J.R.R. Tolkien's timeline, he only goes to Mordor after the events of The Hobbit, and The War of the Rohirrim takes place much earlier.
The Wizards Aid the Free Peoples of Middle-Earth in the Struggle Against Sauron
At the end of The War of the Rohirrim, Fréaláf becomes king of Rohan, and Saruman (Christopher Lee) visits him to offer his assistance in the future. Saruman moving into Isengard and the end of the Long Winter happen in the same year (2759 of the Third Age), with Gondor unable to properly man the fortress before and offering it to the White Wizard.
Also, Héra is summoned by Gandalf the Grey, who has no headquarters and wanders Middle-earth sowing rebellion against Sauron and the coming darkness. He asks Héra to report on the war with Wulf and Mumakil and Variag involvement, since those are obvious links to Mordor and Sauron's return. By then, not many people believe him or take his warnings seriously, but Héra certainly will, as she is perfect to be one of Gandalf's agents and sources.
The untold story behind Helm's Deep, hundreds of years before the fateful war, telling the life and bloodsoaked times of its founder, Helm Hammerhand, the King of Rohan.
Release Date December 13, 2024
Director Kenji Kamiyama
Runtime 134 Minutes
Main Genre Fantasy
The Lord of the Rings: War of the Rohirrim hits theaters on December 13th in the U.S.
English (US) ·