Amazon's 'Lord Of The Rings' TV Series Somehow Adds More Names To A Cast That May Or May Not Be Captives, Send Help

Hmm, where should we even start with this one? Let's go with the new batch of actors just reported to be joining Amazon's crown jewel Lord of the Rings series (though we should really stop referring to it by that name) for its first season. Clearly, this show won't let a silly little thing like "filming" (it has been in production since early 2020, mind you) stop it from adding to its ever-expanding roster.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, joining the cast are Charles Edwards (Downton Abbey, The Crown), Will Fletcher (The Girl Who Fell), and fresh faces Amelie Child-Villiers and Beau Cassidy. Naturally, precise details as to their respective roles are being kept hidden in the shadows (scared of who you are, of what you are, etc.). At the very least, however, we can confidently go out on a limb and say that with such an extremely English background and ingrained aura to him, Edwards will fit right in with the heavily Anglo-Saxon inspired world of Middle-earth. Beyond that, well, your guesses are as good as ours.

Seriously though, we know that the Amazon series will be exploring a vast, previously-unseen epoch in Lord of the Rings history that far predates the events of the films. Canonically unconnected with Peter Jackson's trilogy, the Game of Thrones-esque epic has an exciting blank slate with which to redefine our conceptions of the world while adding a whole host of adapted and brand-new characters. There's currently no premiere date as of yet.

Alright, here's where it gets a little weird. In an interview with Collider (via IGN), Benjamin Walker (no, don't even ask, nobody knows who the Underground Railroad, Jessica Jones, and Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter actor is playing on this show either) opened up and spilled some choice details regarding the grueling production of this massive, wildly expensive saga currently filming in New Zealand. Some might say it sounds somewhat... distressing? Like, Merry and Pippin being captured by Uruk-Hai levels of distressing?

For one thing, Walker doesn't seem to know how long he'll even be in New Zealand for.

"It is a bit nebulous at this point. We've been here a long time and they'll let us go when they're done with us."

We've all had jobs where every workday is a grind and the days start to blend together until we no longer have any concept of time anymore, but it feels kind of notable that this quote regarding something as basic as a filming schedule sounds more like a cry for help instead.

Not to be outdone, Walker further adds to the chaos as he describes his audition process. Get this: while waiting for a callback, showrunner J.D. Payne finally got in touch with Walker to offer some more details about the role. The catch? Payne was at the hospital as his wife was about to go into labor. For Walker's part, this is actually what helped him decide to accept the role.

"[Payne]'s got the level of commitment you're going to need to get this show to be where it should be. It would be a huge mistake to not take part."

I, for one, appreciate less intense working environments, but then again I suppose that's why I'm not a successful actor.