Summary

• The first trailer is released for The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim, an anime set in the world of Middle-earth, hundreds of years before Frodo's story.
• The film tells the story of Helm Hammerhand, the King of Rohan, and his daughter, Hèra, as they become embroiled in a war with the Dunlendings.
• The War of the Rohirrim trailer teases a return to Peter Jackson's vision of Middle-earth, with lots of action and an epic scope.

The War of the Rohirrim's story takes place hundreds of years before Frodo's epic quest, following Hèra (Gaia Wise) and her father, Helm Hammerhand (Brian Cox), the King of Rohan, as they face off against Wulf (Luke Pasqualino) and his Dunlending army.

Now, Warner Bros. shares the first trailer for The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim, providing the best look yet at the film's animation style and the action to come. Check it out below:

The trailer provides a brief tease of the general setup for the film, which is namely that Helm kills the Dunlending ruler in a fight, sparking a quest for revenge from Wulf that quickly escalates. The footage also features moments from Peter Jackson's live-action trilogy, teasing a return of his vision for Middle-earth.

What The War Of The Rohirrim Trailer Reveals About The Film

A Familiar Version Of Middle-earth Returns

A major sentiment in the trailer is that, unlike Prime Video's The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, The War of the Rohirrim will be taking place in Jackson's vision of Middle-earth. Jackson, notably, serves as an executive producer on the project alongside his Lord of the Rings trilogy co-writer Fran Walsh, with Philippa Boyens, the third in their writing trio, serving as a producer. In addition to these three returning creatives, Lord of the Rings cast member Miranda Otto is also returning to the project to voice Éowyn in a narration capacity.

Prime Video's The Rings of Power season 2 premieres later this month.

The creative DNA of the beloved Lord of the Rings trilogy, then, is all over The War of the Rohirrim, and this could be a major selling point. The trailer teases a return to familiar versions of Rohan and Helm's Deep from the films, but Mûmakil and Great Eagles return as well. As for the animation style, lead characters are depicted in a more traditional anime style, but the backgrounds and environments are seemingly rendered in a more realistic way to recapture the look from Jackson's films.

The War of the Rohirrim trailer promises lots of epic action, as well as a siege on Rohan itself. As for Hèra, she marks the franchise's first female protagonist, and the trailer certainly suggests she will be given lots of time to shine as she undergoes her hero's journey and becomes a true warrior. Many questions still remain about The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim, but it's certainly looking like an epic return to a familiar version of Middle-earth.

Source: Warner Bros.