Amazon's Lord of the Rings Reportedly Replaces Will Poulter With Game of Thrones Actor

Amazon's Lord of the Rings television series may have found its star to replace Will Poulter. Deadline reports that Robert Aramayo is in talks to play the lead role of Beldor. Poulter had been negotiating for the role but had to drop out because of scheduling conflicts. Amazon did not comment on the report. Aramayo may look familiar to Game of Thrones fans. He played young Ned Stark in Game of Thrones' sixth season, during flashback scenes to the last days of Robert's Rebellion. His other credits include roles in Harley and the Davidsons, Nocturnal Animals, Lost in Florence, and Galveston.

Aramayo will play the heroic Beldor opposite another Game of Thrones actor, Joseph Mawle, as the show's villain, Oren. The series is also said to have cast Morfydd Clark to play a young Galadriel. The cast also includes Markella Kavenagh, Ema Horvath, and Maxim Baldry.

In November, Amazon renewed the Lord of the Rings series for its second season ahead of production starting. Principal photography is expected to begin soon as the series is said to be aiming for a 2021 debut. Production will take place in New Zealand, where Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings trilogy and The Hobbit trilogy were filmed. The project is expected to be the most expensive television show ever made.

Amazon tasked Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom director J.A. Bayona with directing the pilot episode of the series. "JRR Tolkien created one of the most extraordinary and inspiring stories of all time, and as a lifelong fan it is an honor and a joy to join this amazing team," said Bayona when the news broke. "I can't wait to take audiences around the world to Middle-earth and have them discover the wonders of the Second Age, with a never before seen story."

Bayona will also executive produce with producing partner Belén Atienza. The Lord of the Rings is being written with a writing room led by JD Payne and Patrick McKay.

"We are thrilled to have J.A. and Belen joining the fellowship as we continue to develop this epic series," said Payne and McKay. "We have been great admirers of J.A.'s work for years, and know that his epic, cinematic, and deeply heartfelt aesthetic is the perfect sensibility to bring Middle-earth to life anew."

Are you excited about Amazon's new Lord of the Rings television series? Let us know what you think about it in the comments section.