The Lord of the Rings franchise can be considered one of the biggest pop culture phenomenons. The franchise can be praised for sending several actors to worldwide stardom in no time. One such name is Viggo Mortensen who played the role of Aragorn. But unlike many significant actors who reprised their LoTR roles in future projects, Mortensen refused to be seen again in the franchise. When asked about the reason, the actor claimed that his return wouldn’t have made any sense.
Following the highly acclaimed trilogy, the fantasy franchise returned with a Hobbit trilogy as well as The Rings of Power Amazon Prime series. While both of the projects served as prequels to the original trilogy, several LoTR stars reprised their roles in the Hobbit films. When asked about the reason for his absence, Viggo Mortensen explained the logic behind it.
Why was Viggo Mortensen not seen in The Hobbit trilogy?
When Peter Jackson returned with The Hobbit trilogy, the fans saw many significant actors from the original trilogy returning to the fantasy world of Middle-earth. These include big names such as Ian McKellen, Elijah Wood, and Orlando Bloom. But when the fans questioned the absence of the ranger Aragorn, he explained it logically.
In an interview with The Guardian back in 2013, the 64-year-old actor claimed that though he was approached for the project, his respect for Tolkien’s source materials didn’t let him do so. Elaborating on his absence, Viggo Mortensen said that his appearance wouldn’t have made any sense due to the time gap between the two trilogies.
“Before they started shooting, back in 2008, one of the producers did ask if I would be interested. I said, ‘You do know, don’t you, that Aragorn isn’t in The Hobbit? That there is a 60-year gap between the books?’”
So according to Tolkien’s books, Viggo Mortensen’s character was nothing more than 10 during the events of The Hobbit trilogy. Although it can’t be denied that with de-aging technologies or other plot points, the movie might have gone a different route to present a fan-service moment but the A History of Violence actor didn’t want to disrespect the source materials.
Also Read: Lord Of The Rings Cast: Then vs. Now (Some Of Them DID NOT Age Well)
What is the future of The Lord of the Rings universe?
The Rings of Power Amazon series was one of the most biggest things that conquered the Internet last year. Even though the series is set thousand years before the events of the LoTR movies and is not based on the lives of the character of Elijah Wood or Viggo Mortensen, the fans were hyped up to explore more about the world. But unfortunately, the magic didn’t work too well as the show largely garnered mixed reactions.
Also Read: Rings Of Power Showrunner Reveals Season 2 Will Take A Couple Of Years To Finish
After a highly mixed first season, it is a precedent that the second season will take some time to release now. Besides a mixed reception, the show was also subjected to racial controversies which also affected it a lot. According to the makers, the viewers will love the show in the upcoming seasons and certain things won’t make sense till the last and fifth season comes out. So it will be seen if the makers can fulfill their promise and if the second season can perform better which is rumored to be dropped in 2024.
All the movies of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit along with The Rings of Power series can be streamed on Amazon Prime.
Source: The Guardian
