There Are American Godzilla Movies, So Why Not a Japanese ‘Lord of the Rings’?

‘The War of the Rohirrim’ is part of a 30-year trend that has seen every successful franchise, from ‘Star Wars’ and ‘Star Trek’ to ‘The Sopranos,’ get a prequel of some sort.

Via Warner Bros. Pictures
Héra, voiced by Gaia Wise, in 'The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim.' Via Warner Bros. Pictures

In 2020, podcaster Eric Molinsky discussed the idea of “fantasy in translation” during an episode of his fine series, “Imaginary Worlds.” He elaborated on the famous case of the Israeli fighter pilots who while being held as prisoners of war at Cairo translated “The Hobbit” into Hebrew, and spoke of how the Russian version of “The Wizard of Oz” became a thriving sub-franchise unto itself. Those are powerful examples, as no fantasy story is considered more resolutely English than J.R.R. Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings” saga or more all-American than the “Oz” franchise. 

When it was announced that there would be an anime adaptation of a Tolkien story, my first thought was that there is already an American series of Godzilla movies, so why not a Japanese “Lord of the Rings”?

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