Source : PERTHNOW NEWS
Jamie Dornan has admitted he feels the pressure of taking over one of cinema’s most iconic fantasy roles.
The Fifty Shades of Grey and The Fall actor, 44, is set to portray a younger version of the legendary warrior Aragorn in the forthcoming Lord of the Rings film – The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum – and says he has no intention of trying to outdo Viggo Mortensen, 68, in the role after the star famously played the character in Peter Jackson’s Oscar-winning trilogy.
Speaking to L’Officiel, in an interview translated by Slashfilm, Jamie discussed the challenge of following the original performance and his determination to honour the character.
He said: “There’s pressure when you’re trying to follow in those footsteps. I’ve been asked to play a super iconic role, and I’ll do my best. But for me, Aragorn will always be just Viggo. His performance is one of my all-time favorites, and I feel honored to try to recapture at least some of the energy he originally brought to the character. There’s no part of me that’s trying to outdo him.”
The Northern Irish actor, who also starred in Kenneth Branagh’s acclaimed film Belfast, will portray Aragorn before the events of The Fellowship of the Ring, when the future king of Gondor was living as a solitary ranger known as Strider.
Viggo played Aragorn in The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers and The Return of the King, released between 2001 and 2003.
His character became one of the central figures in the battle against Sauron, eventually reclaiming the throne of Gondor after helping Frodo Baggins complete his mission to destroy the One Ring.
The forthcoming LOTR film will explore an earlier period in Middle-earth, with the story focusing on the search for Gollum before the events of the original trilogy.
Andy Serkis, 62, who provided the voice and motion-capture performance for Gollum in the original films, is returning to play the character and will also direct the production.
Andy previously directed Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle and Venom: Let There Be Carnage, and worked as second-unit director on Peter’s The Hobbit trilogy.
The Hunt for Gollum will mark his first time directing a main instalment of the Lord of the Rings film franchise.
The film will also see the return of Ian McKellen, 87, as Gandalf and Elijah Wood, 45, as Frodo Baggins, alongside Lee Pace, 47, reprising his role as the Elvenking Thranduil from The Hobbit films.
New additions to the cast include Kate Winslet, 51, as Marigol, Leo Woodall, 30, as Halvard, and Anya Taylor-Joy, 30, as Seren, an elf from the Woodland Realm who serves King Thranduil.
Kate, who became a global star through Titanic and recently appeared in Avatar: Fire and Ash, previously worked with Peter on the 1994 drama Heavenly Creatures.
Leo is known for his performances in The White Lotus and One Day, while Anya starred in The Queen’s Gambit, The Menu and Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga.
The new story follows Gandalf sending Aragorn to track down Gollum, whose knowledge of the One Ring could threaten Middle-earth if it falls into the hands of Sauron.
Peter, 64, who directed the original Lord of the Rings and Hobbit trilogies, is producing the film alongside Fran Walsh, 67, and Philippa Boyens, 64.
The screenplay has been written by Fran, Philippa, Phoebe Gittins and Arty Papageorgiou.
Production began earlier this year, with Warner Bros releasing footage of Andy returning to his motion-capture role as Gollum.
The film is scheduled for worldwide release on 17 December 2027, while another Middle-earth project, The Lord of the Rings: Shadow of the Past, is also in development, with Stephen Colbert, 62, among its writers.
