Orlando Bloom — who we sometimes know as the elf of Mirkwood, Legolas Greenleaf — made an appearance on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon to discuss his role in the first Broadway production of Romeo and Juliet in 36 years.
Actor Orlando Bloom is currently making his Broadway debut (sans blonde wig, we assume) in a new production of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet.
This is the first time Romeo and Juliet has been staged on Broadway in 36 years — and we have THREE pairs of tickets to giveaway to lucky TORn readers!
Bloom’s co-star is two-time Tony Award® nominee Condola Rashad, and the production is directed by five-time Tony Award® nominee David Leveaux. The play will open on Broadway on Thursday, September 19, 2013 at the Richard Rodgers Theatre; preview performances have been running since Saturday, August 24, 2013.
German Magazine Cinema, has published a pretty fascinating article all about the second Hobbit movie, “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug,” dropping casual spoilers as if they are common knowledge. What is a little odd is that the magazine doesn’t make clear where it gets quotes from Peter Jackson or Evangeline Lily or Orlando Bloom and it sure doesn’t make clear where all the spoilerific plot information comes from. We can’t vouch for the accuracy of the quotes.
Friends at thorinoakenshield.net have a full online translation of the print publication and since we aren’t German speakers, we can’t say if anything is lost in translation, but it reads pretty clearly.
Here are some highlights but if you read beyond this point, expect full-on potential spoilers! (We can’t say if they are true or not, but the writer surely dishes the info matter-of-factly.)
****Seriously, last chance, major potential spoilers!****
“A greedy dragon, a rather testy skinchanger, a river ride full of action and the battle of the White Council against the Necromancer of Dol Guldur: Middle-earth fans should be prepared for something big; because with “The Hobbit – Desolation of Smaug” (starting December 12th) Peter Jackson will (once again) show all he’s got.”
“A lot of the appendices will also be used in part 2.”
“Hardcore fans will find the revelation of the Necromancer (Benedict Cumberbatch as CGI shadow) as witch master Sauron just in a couple of sentences in the book. And according to Tolkien the pale orc Azog doesn’t survive the Battle of Azanulbizar (in the beginning of “The Hobbit – An Unexpected Journey”), while Jackson definitively turns him into Thorin Oakenshield’s arch enemy now. Orcs invading Esgaroth on the other hand was completely invented by Peter Jackson. Just like Tauriel – this young, only 300 years old elf which will add a bit of femininity to the male dominated story.”
“This story needs estrogens”, Evangeline Lilly jokes. And Peter Jackson adds: “Thanks to characters like Tauriel we will discover more about the life in Mirkwood, which is completely different from Rivendell.” But the Silvan pointy-eared beauty is not supposed to be a mere copy of Arwen from the old trilogy. After all the people of the wood elves is a lot more dangerous and suspicious than Elrond and his companions. “We are like ninjas from the undergrowth.” (Lilly)”
“Peter Jackson not only uses additions like this to narrate a coherent chronicle of Middle-earth, he also uses them to sprinkle a little treat for spare time hobbits here and there. For example fanboys will anticipate the first encounter of Legolas and Gloin, father of grumpy dwarf Gimli from the “Rings” films. Other than “An unexpected Journey” the sequel is going to be distinctly darker though, stresses Jackson.
“One climax of the new trilogy, which over 2000 actors and extras worked on, is the death of the dragon. Whether Smaug’s fall will end part 2 however is yet unknown. Certain is that the Battle of the Five Armies will play the center role in “The Hobbit – There and Back Again”.
Those are the highlights and you can read the full translation right here, from ThorinOakenshield.net along with scans of the magazine’s pages while the German publication can be found online here, but we didn’t find a link directly to the article.
Entertainment Weekly delivers again with this fabulous new still shot of Tauriel and Legolas from The Desolation of Smaug.
One does note that there’s been a lot of focus on elves in Warner Bros. marketing lately, though. What gives?
Some readers are starting to wonder whether the tale of the hero, Bilbo, is taking a back seat in the Desolation of Smaug. Or is it just that elves are easier for Warner Bros. to market out there in the main-stream media?
For those attending Comic-Con, Peter Jackson announced that he will not be sending actors or a sizzle reel to the giant popular culture show this year. However, TheOneRing.net does have a panel to talk about “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug” on Thursday, July 18 at 5:30 to 6:30 in room 6A with a seating capacity of around 1,000. We will present our unofficial look at the film and we hope to spring a surprise guest or two at the affair as well. Be warned, there is always a line and never enough seats for TORn’s annual panel so plan ahead with many getting turned away every year. (We will also be selling shirts to keep our website alive financially at the Badali Jewelry booth and the Weta Workshop booth, come see us at both!)
For the rest of the world that doesn’t get to attend the San Diego even anyway, the team behind the scenes on the production presents a brand new production diary complete with what will surely be a new fitness fashion Dwarvercise! It also has some really good looks at the seldom seen storage facilities with the Art Department’s Ra Vincent, a glimpse of Evangeline Lily and Orlando Bloom riding a green creature and plenty of the crew getting the production back into the swing of pick up shooting, currently happening as you read.