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While we wait for the new Lord of the Rings film to arrive, what better way is there to pass the time than pore over every detail of the Peter Jackson trilogy? However, as one viewer found on the latest rewatch, it can cause you to spot some slightly frustrating inconsistencies.
Redditor Significant-Owl7994 shared their confusion over one particular plot hole in The Return of the King. It all revolves around the scene when Frodo and Samwise end up in Shelob's lair on their journey to Mount Doom. The monster stabs Frodo, almost killing him. We don't see exactly where her stinger gets him, but it seems from the angle of the attack that it goes through his chest.
However, as the user points out, Frodo is wearing a Mithril shirt at this point, which should have been impenetrable. "A spear that would have killed a wild boar didn't break the armour, yet Shelob's stinger did...?" they wondered, asking the Lord of the Rings community how the monster was able to break through the mythical metal.
Several pointed out that in J.R.R. Tolkien's book, this encounter went a little differently to get around this, as Shelob stabs him near the neck, above the shirt. As one replied, it seems like it was a mistake in the Peter Jackson adaptation. "I LOVE the movies, but I feel this is a total oversight and I think fans are incredibly generous to suggest he was stung somewhere 'around' the vest when the angle clearly shows her stabbing his stomach," they wrote.
"I'd say it's one of those filming errors that just snuck past them. If I remember correctly in the book Shelob stings Frodo in the neck," another agreed.
How Did Shelob's Stinger Get Through Frodo's Mithril? from r/lotr
A third user does have a head-canon that could help explain this plot hole, but you'll just have to decide whether you believe it or not. "I always (to make the movie scene make more sense) went with the fact that Shelob is the daughter of Ungoliant and a direct descendant of the big dark evil from the outerverse," they commented. "Her stinger is a far more powerful weapon than a spear, since it's attached to what is a power beyond ancient evil."
There's also another theory that the Mithril may have been how Frodo survived the encounter. The size of Shelob's stinger should have likely done fatal damage so potentially if it was stopped slightly by the armored shirt, it may have been how he was able to wake up after. "Maybe the Mithril is HOW he survived? Like maybe it was just the tip, and only a small amount of venom got through without a real 'stab wound,'" a fourth user suggested.
The debate rages on among fans of the franchise, but it wouldn't be the only plot hole in the saga. Probably the most infamous of all is why Frodo couldn't just fly on a giant eagle to Mordor, which some even thought had a nod in the Prime Video prequel series The Rings of Power.
The Lord of the Rings returns to the big screen with the upcoming The Hunt for Gollum, which is due out on December 17, 2027. Meanwhile, The Rings of Power season 3 arrives on Prime Video on November 11, 2026.
