Will Poulter has reportedly been cast in the television series of the Lord of The Rings.
According to reports, the 26-year-old British actor has been handed one of the lead roles in the long-awaited spin-off, produced by Amazon.
The news was revealed by Variety magazine, who stated the Bandersnatch star's specific part is being kept under wraps, but added that sources close to the series have confirmed he will be a lead.
Advert
Amazon would not confirm the reports.
Despite news of the $1bn spin-off being announced last year, not much is known about what lies in store for fans of the iconic fantasy franchise.
However, earlier this month, we were introduced to the writing team behind it all. The gang was unveiled in a video titled 'Meet our Fellowship' - and one of them has now given us a little insight to the programme's production, revealing how many episodes we can expect for the first season.
Advert
While the series length has not yet been confirmed by Amazon, in an interview with Deutsche Tolkien last month, Tolkein scholar Tom Shippey, who is part of the show's creative team, discussed the logistics behind shooting the programme.
Addressing rumours that locations for filming included Scotland and New Zealand, Shippey said: "The exact locations are of course uncertain and it could well be several. The shooting itself does not take place chronologically, but is oriented towards the locations.
"Logically, you try to bundle all the scenes that take place in one location and film them so that you have it done and don't have to return to that place several times. But this also implies that everything has to be clear at the start of filming, you have to know the end.
"There's supposed to be 20 episodes for the first season. So, until they've decided what the end is going to be, they can't start filming."
Advert
We still don't know anything particularly firm about the plot, with posts from the official Twitter account hinting it could be a prequel to the original trilogy, taking place during Middle-earth's Second Age and the forging of the rings.
One of the most recent posts said: "One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne. In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie." Fans think this could mean the series will be set before the movies.
Advert
However, hopefully the series will remain faithful to Tolkien's original source material. While Shippey admitted Amazon has 'a relatively free hand when it comes to adding something', the Tolkien Estate still has a big say in what goes down, ensuring that nothing changes 'the boundaries which Tolkien has created'.
"The Tolkien Estate keeps a very careful eye on everything and is quite capable of saying no," Shippey said.
"They retain a veto over everything that concerns Tolkien."
Advert
The series is set to premiere on Amazon Prime Video at some point in 2021.
Featured Image Credit: PATopics: World News, Entertainment, Interesting, US Entertainment, Lord Of The Rings