This article contains spoilers forThe Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim.The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrimhad some truly franchise-topping moments in its 134-minute runtime. This animated movie was released in December 2024 as the first anime picture ofThe Lord of the Rings, following the release of Ralph Bakshi’s animatedThe Return of the Kingin 1980.The War of the Rohirrimmovieis directed byGhost in the Shellmaster Kenji Kamiyama. It brought decades' worth of anime expertise to fantasy’s best franchise, creating some ofThe Lord of the Ring’sbest scenes.
The War of the Rohirrimpictureis the firstLord of the Ringsmovie since 2003’sThe Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. This landmark moment met huge pressure, especially withThe Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollumset for launch in 2026. The picture met with mixed reviews but a generally positive audience reception, with fans commenting on the movie’s intriguing interpretation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s classic story. Based on “The House of Eorl,” a story from Appendix A ofLotR, the movie is full of scenes that reinvent the classic fantasy world.
10A Southron Is An Omen Of Distant Threats
War Of The Rohirrim Teases Tolkien’s Wider World
One of the most intriguing moments ofThe Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrimwas the surprise appearance of a Southron. This mysterious race was one ofLord of the Rings’types of Menmost closely associated with war, and was also known as the Haradrim.The Haradrim, or Southrons, came from Harad, a southerly location even lower on theLotRmap than Mordor.
I’m Less Confident About Warner Bros' Lord Of The Rings Plans After Middle-earth’s New Movie
The War of the Rohirrim is the latest Lord of the Rings movie, and unfortunately I think it signals a problem that future films are going to repeat.
Located just under Mordor, Harad was often under Sauron’s sway. This background made the Southron’s appearance inThe War of the Rohirrima tasty piece of lore for longtimeLord of the Ringsfans. The decaying corpse ofa Southron was included near the start of the movieas a portent of bad things to come. Indeed, war was coming to Rohan, while the wider War of the Ring was only just starting to take shape. This exciting context made this one of the best parts ofWar of the Rohirrim.
9A Watcher In The Water Lies In Wait
The Mythical Beast Got A New Look In War Of The Rohirrim
The Lord of the Rings: TheWar of the Rohirrimbrought J.R.R. Tolkien’s scary Watcher in the Water backto life. This high fantasy creature debuted on screen inThe Lord of the Rings:The Fellowship of the Ringmovie. Lurching out of the Lake of Sirannon, this beast tried to pull Frodo back into the depths with it. Peter Jackson’s iconic portrayal of the beast precipitated Kenji Kamiyama’s.
The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrimwas released on August 08, 2025.
Kamiyama’s Watcher in the Water was a far cry from Peter Jackson’s, bringing all the anime legend’s expertise to bear on its design. Ralph Bakshi also included the Watcher in the Water inThe Return of the King, leaving Kamiyama’s beast to appear entirely unique. With what appeared to be trees growing out of its head,this monster had nailed camouflage, recalling anime creatures from classics like Pokémon and creating one ofThe War of the Rohirrim’sbest scenes.
8Shieldmaidens Make A Comeback
Éowyn’s Importance In Lord of the Rings Is Recognized
The War of the Rohirrimhonored Éowynin many ways, which led to some of the best scenes of the movie.The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrimcentered on Hèra, the unnamed daughter of Helm Hammerhand in “The House of Eorl.“TheWar of the Rohirrimtold the story of the shieldmaidensin one of its opening scenes, mentioning how this old tradition had nearly died out.
Lief looked on in awe at the shieldmaidens' banner as he was told their story.
This had a strong parallel toThe Lord of the Rings, whereby the shieldmaiden tradition was even more unknown. Hèra and her handmaiden,Olwyn, took up the mantle of the shieldmaidensinWar of the Rohirrim. This referred to Éowyn, of course, one ofThe Lord of the Rings’strongest womenand its most famous Rohirrim shieldmaiden. Lief looked on in awe at the shieldmaidens' banner as he was told their story, resurrecting all the awe and majesty of previous tales in one of the movie’s best scenes.
7Saruman Makes Himself Known In War Of The Rohirrim
Christopher Lee Returns To The Lord Of The Rings
The iconic Christopher Lee returned from the dead for a perfectly-timed cameo inThe Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim. Lee played Saruman inPeter Jackson’sLord of the Ringstrilogy, but sadly passed away in 2015.TheWar of the Rohirrimwas able to use archival footageto create the lines needed, mixing old recordings of Lee’s voice. Lee’s return to screens for Saruman was easily one of the movie’s best scenes.
Lee’s anime avatar even looked just like him in this standoutWar of the Rohirrimscene.
Saruman’s appearance in the movie was a canonical element of the adaptation, as he also appeared toward the end of “The House of Eorl” as a portent of his future rule. Saruman was only just moving into Isengard at the time ofThe War of the Rohirrim.Therefore,ending the movie with his appearance perfectly foreshadowed his rise to power. Lee’s anime avatar even looked just like him in this standoutWar of the Rohirrimscene.
6Hèra Rides To Meet Gandalf In War Of The Rohirrim
Gandalf’s Rune Signifies New Beginnings
Hèra rode out to meet Gandalfin a shock Easter egg, alluding to one ofThe Lord of the Rings’best characters. At the end of the movie, Hèra was on her way out on another adventure, as Hama had predicted with his song at the movie’s beginning. However, this time, she went to meet a mysterious figure that never appeared on screen. She carried a letter from him, excitingly inscribed with his rune.
Before time
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Elves awoke in Cuiviénen
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War of Wrath ended
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Fans ofThe Hobbitwill recognize this rune as the one that Gandalf carved on Bilbo Baggins' door in the firstHobbitmovie. Not long after revealing the rune,The War of the Rohirrimconfirmed that it did indeed signify the presence of Mithrandir, who was around on Middle-earth even at this point in the Third Age.This Tolkien treat made this closing scene one of the high pointsofWar of the Rohirrim.
5Orcs Prove That Sauron Is Already Worried About The Ring
Two Orcs Were Voiced By A Very Special Duo
Orcs featured in one ofThe Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim’sbest scenes. As a surprise Easter egg and a reference toThe Lord of the Rings,this pair of Orcs was voiced by none other than Billy Boyd and Dominic Monaghan. These actors, of course, played Pippin Took and Merry Brandybuck in the original trilogy. Their chemistry was still undeniable, even as a couple of Sauron’s servants.
However, what was most fascinating about the Orc scene inThe War of the Rohirrimwas the picture that it painted of the wider world.The War of the Ring was starting to brew already, even as the Rohirrim fought the Dunlendings. The movie proved this by showing how Sauron was looking for the One Ring while the Rohirrim were wrapped up in their territorial war - one of the Orcs wondered out loud what Sauron wanted with rings while putting one away in his pouch.
4Helm Goes Into Wraith Mode In The Lord Of The Rings Anime
Helm Hammerhand Loses His Humanity
Helm Hammerhand went into demon modeinThe War of the Rohirrim, creating an anime power-up that was a movie highlight. Helm Hammerhand was the main character of “The House of Eorl,” so his role inThe War of the Rohirrimalways had to be huge.The War of the Rohirrimmade Hèra the main character, which surprised a lot of fans, as she was only given one line in the source material.
The movie was wise to make Hèra its lead, which allowed it to leave Helm, her father, with an element of mystery. Butthe movie would certainly have been remiss to leave out all the Helm highlightsof the short story.The War of the Rohirrimgot this balance just right, including the essential scene - Helm going berserk and killing enemies with his bare hands. Anime was the perfect format for this madness, with Helm’s eyes whited out to express his descent into savagery.
3Hama Faces His Fate With No Fear
Hèra’s Brother Was The Unsung Hero Of The Movie
Hama showed more courage than most characters did over the course of the whole movie as he got off his horse and looked head-on into his impending doom. The gentleHama was one of the best parts ofWar of the Rohirrim, making his tragic fate all the more affecting. Hama, like Hèra, was far from a main character in “The House of Eorl,” but was given much more storyline in the movie.
Hèra’s brother was more of a bard than a soldier, preferring to play his lute and sing songs than to secure the strongest horse in the army. The movie had made it known thatHama had a slow horse, foreshadowing his death. When he was trying to outrun Dunlendings, his companions made it away, but his horse slowed to a stop. Hama was calm and kind, patting his horse on the back as he got off and drew his bow, making this one of the most heroic scenes inWar of the Rohirrim.
2Helm Dies A Warrior’s Death
Helm Hammerhand Freezes To Death Standing
Helm Hammerhand died a warrior’s death inThe Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim, making for a tear-jerking scene.Helm always had to die heroically, but it wasn’t certain whether the movie would show him in his full glory. Helm was a morally gray figure, exhibiting brutal and overly aggressive behavior. The movie could have easily made Helm more villainous, but it respected his legacy via his death scene.
10 War Of The Rohirrim Easter Eggs & Lord Of The Rings References
The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim is full of The Lord of the Rings Easter eggs and callbacks, referencing J.R.R. Tolkien throughout.
Helm was renowned in Rohirrim legend, as per “The House of Eorl,” for roaming the plains while he and his people were besieged in Helm’s Deep. The Dunlendings may have held the Rohirrim under siege, but Helm wasn’t about to let this stop him from attempting to beat them. While others slept,Helm crept out and killed his enemies one by one. Helm died during these final attempts to save his people in the movie, freezing to death standing up outside the fortress door.
1Middle-Earth Soars Into View For The First Time In 10 Years
The Rohan Theme Made A Strong Comeback
The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrimmade the most of its time on-screen to bring pure nostalgia back to viewers right from the start. The movie’s opening scene may have been its finest, despite many incredible moments to come. HowardShore’s Rohan theme burst triumphantly out from speakersas the shot panned gracefully over the hilly plains of Rohan, recalling some of fantasy’s best cinema.
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towersintroduced Rohan fully, laying out legendary characters like Gríma Wormtongue, Théoden, and Éomer. This soundtrack, embedded into a new piece of music by Stephen Gallagher, went perfectly with the movie’s opening visuals. This opening scene ofThe Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrimwas crazily lifelike for anime, evoking the beautiful landscapes of New Zealand that the Jackson movies were known for.
The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim
Cast
Set before the events of the original Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim is an animated action-adventure fantasy film that follows a King of Rohan named Helm Hammerhand. When his home comes under siege by Dunlendings, Hammerhand prepares himself and his allies to fight back against them, with the war leading to the eventual establishment of Helm’s Deep.
