Amazon, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power cast, and actors from Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings trilogy have all defended the new show against the recent racist backlash.
Since even before the series started, a vocal minority have aimed racist vitriol at the diverse cast of the Amazon series – the show marks the first time non-white actors have played Dwarven and Elvish characters. Actor Ismael Cruz Cordova told Esquire he had received "pure and vicious hate speech" for two years after being cast as Arondir.
Now, Elijah Wood, Dominic Monaghan, and Billy Boyd – who played the Hobbits in Peter Jackson’s film trilogy – have posed for a definitive message: "You Are All Welcome Here"
You Are All Welcome Here @LOTRonPrime @DonMarshall72 #RingsOfPower https://t.co/8txOhlHa2f pic.twitter.com/nWytILT0zGSeptember 7, 2022
Sean Astin, who played Samwise, also posted a picture of the Elvish message – again, translated to ‘You Are All Welcome Here’ – on his Twitter page.
Head of Amazon Studios Jen Salke said that racism in any form is not acceptable: "We’re really proud of the cast that we have in the show. We welcome discussion and even criticism around the series; however, we will not condone racism of any kind."
In a powerful joint statement released on The Rings of Power Twitter account, the show’s cast began: "We, the cast of Rings of Power, stand together in absolute solidarity and against the relentless racism, threats, harassment, and abuse some of our castmates of color are being subjected to on a daily basis. We refuse to ignore it or tolerate it."
It continued, "Middle-earth is not all white. BIPOC belong in Middle-earth and they are here to stay." You can read the full statement here.
The message, then, is clear from all sides – racism will not be tolerated. Middle-earth welcomes everyone, no matter their color.
