The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power's Depiction of Galadriel Surprised Star Morfydd Clark

Morfydd Clark takes the lead in Prime Video's The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power as Galadriel, a character that should be familiar to Lord of the Rings fans. However, fans may be surprised by this younger Galadriel compared to her older self seen in J.R.R. Tolkien's original Middle-earth saga. Galadriel in The Rings of Power has an edge to her and skirts close to darkness in a way that seems opposite of the calm and graceful Lady of Lorien from The Lord of the Rings (well, calm and graceful except when tempted by the Ring). Speaking to ComicBook.com, Clark says even she was surprised by the series' take on Galadriel. 

"It definitely surprised me because I thought I was a fan," Clark says. "I'd read The Hobbit, Lord of the Rings, seen the films, but I had no idea about the First and Second Age. That was really kind of exciting to kind of learn all this extra stuff about this world that I loved. I think it's really interesting that she is so conflicted and going through so much because I feel the people in my life who ended up the most kind of chill and serene as Galadriel… have usually been through a lot. It was interesting to work with the opposites, you know? How far can she go from what we know she will become?"

This younger Galadriel finds herself, through some unexpected circumstances, crossing paths with a man named Halbrand, played by Charlie Vickers. Vickers told us about Halbrand and his relationship with Galadriel.

"He's a man from the Southlands who's leaving his past behind," Vickers says. "Hence he ends up in the middle of the thundering seas trying to start going on a journey, I guess? A few circumstances occur, and then, yeah, he meets Galadriel and I think their relationship in the first instance is one of survival, that they're together by necessity and they understand that they maybe have this connection but they don't think, at least in his mind, it's not a tangible one. He can't define it. They have an interesting relationship that develops as the show unfolds. I think Galadriel makes him question things, both in his past and his future."

Due in part to this association with Halbrand, Galadriel soon finds herself to be Elf caught up in the affairs of Men. That's not a place she's necessarily comfortable being.

"I think she's interestingly out of touch and separated from them, but also sees herself as a guardian," Clark says of Galadriel's feelings towards the Men of Middle-earth. "She wants them to be safe and protected but also doesn't understand how men exist. She is an Elf alone in many regards, and that was interesting to explore because I think so much of the power of all the characters in Middle-earth comes from their community and she's somewhat at odds with that."

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power debuts on Prime Video on September 1st. 

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