Every Character In The Hobbit Movie Trilogy Who Wasn’t In J.R.R. Tolkien’s Book

Peter Jackson’s adaptation of The Hobbit is known for being far more extensive than the original book, including the additions of several characters. J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings books are dense fantasy epics, which resulted in a trilogy of films that embraced that grandeur. The Hobbit, on the other hand, is a much lighter and more whimsical tale, which was partially why it was strange that Warner Bros. decided to develop three epic-length films from its source material. To compensate, the movies required characters who weren’t in the text.

The Hobbit movies are widely controversial among Tolkien fans. While they aren’t the most direct adaptations, and they undoubtedly have some fluff, they still have excellent qualities. Peter Jackson knows Middle-earth, and the portrayals of iconic book characters like Bilbo and Smaug were everything one could hope for. The more divisive choices, however, were the additions of original characters fresh to the movies, as well as characters from the Lord of the Rings movies and other parts of Tolkien’s world who aren’t included in The Hobbit.

10

Legolas

Played By Orlando Bloom

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Orlando Bloom’s Legolas was a fan-favorite in Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings films, making his addition to The Hobbit an interesting choice. Legolas’ father, Thranduil, appeared in both The Hobbit book and movies, though he’s only referred to as Elvenking in the original text. It makes sense that Legolas would have been in the Mirkwood during this period, but there were still critiques regarding the nature of his appearance.

The version of Legolas we see in The Hobbit feels rather different from the version in the original trilogy, primarily due to the inclusion of Tauriel. In The Lord of the Rings, Legolas is a fairly light-hearted character, with a majority of his speaking lines used for camaraderie with Gimli. He’s far more emotionally driven in The Hobbit, causing him to be significantly less likable, representing the egotism of his father. Understandably, this is a younger and less mature version of the character.

9

The Necromancer

Voiced By Benedict Cumberbatch

Sauron the Necromancer in The Hobbit Battle of Five Armies.

The Necromancer is a phantom villain spreading evil in the Mirkwood who causes Gandalf to leave Thorin’s party in the middle of The Hobbit. Of course, the identity of the Necromancer is revealed to be the Dark Lord Sauron, who’s establishing his return prior to The Lord of the Rings. This plotline is only briefly mentioned in the original book, but Gandalf describes the events in detail later on in The Fellowship of the Ring, confirming that this is where he disappeared during the text. Essentially, the movies fill in the gaps in Tolkien’s story with some modifications for additional action.

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8

Galadriel

Played By Cate Blanchett

Galadriel

Aside from mention of the White Council fighting the Necromancer, Galadriel doesn’t appear in The Hobbit. She’s first introduced in the later chapters of The Fellowship of the Ring, but Tolkien’s writings in Unfinished Tales offer some notion of what Galadriel was doing during the Quest for Erebor, which was used in Peter Jackson’s adaptation. In the movie The Battle of the Five Armies, Galadriel directly appears at Dol Guldur to support Gandalf, unleashing her power against Sauron and defeating him.

7

Azog

Voiced By Manu Bennett

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Azog is an entirely original character to The Hobbit films, contributing an orc threat that pursues Thorin’s party throughout the trilogy. Azog is Thorin’s mortal rival in Peter Jackson’s iteration, creating a personal threat from the typically feral orc characters. Azog and Thorin end up killing each other in their final duel in The Battle of the Five Armies, providing an explanation for Thorin’s fate, which is limited in detail in the books. This character was an addition to the movies who was generally criticized for lacking depth or thematic ties to what The Hobbit is about.

6

Saruman

Played By Christopher Lee

Christopher Lee as Saruman in Rivendell in The Hobbit

Like Galadriel, Saruman was included as part of The Hobbit’s version of the White Council. In the books, this is mentioned to have many more participants, but the films only add the chief characters. It’s nice to see Christopher Lee’s Saruman before his direct descent into darkness, with the prequel movies showing him at a stage when he was the respected White Wizard. However, even at this point, Peter Jackson clearly demonstrates the ideological differences that differentiate him from Gandalf. In Tolkien’s writings, his first mention is in The Fellowship of the Ring.

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Frodo Baggins

Played By Elijah Wood

The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit Elijah Wood and Martin Freeman as Frodo Baggins and Bilbo Baggins

Elijah Wood makes a cameo appearance in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, appearing as Frodo Baggins. Peter Jackson’s version of The Hobbit provides narration and scenes from Sir Ian Holm, who portrayed Bilbo as an older Hobbit in The Lord of the Rings. In these scenes, Bilbo recounts his journey to Erebor, framing the story of The Hobbit in a way that makes it more of a prequel to the previous movies, presenting an opportunity for Frodo to make an appearance. In Tolkien’s books, Frodo isn’t mentioned until The Fellowship of the Ring, when he becomes the main character.

The Red Book of Westmarch is the book where Bilbo and Frodo chronicle their respective adventures, tethering the two stories.

4

Alfrid

Played By Ryan Gage

Alfrid threatenng Bard in The Hobbit

Alfrid Lickspittle joins The Hobbit films in The Desolation of Smaug, providing a secondary human villain character for the Lake-town plotline. Alfrid is another additional antagonist who comes off as rather simple and predictable, especially given that he’s constantly played off for comedic relief. Alfrid seems to resemble Grima Wormtongue in some capacity, but he’s far less interesting and comes off as a cartoon-like counterpart. This amplified criticisms of the second and third films’ overtly silly elements, much like the river barrel chase scene as the Dwarves escape Thranduil’s Halls.

3

Bard’s Family

Played By Peggy Nesbitt, Mary Nesbitt, & John Bell

Bard drawing an arrow in The Hobbit.

In the films, he has two additional daughters named Sigrid and Tilda, who are entirely original characters.

Bard the Bowman is a man of Lake-town who appears in both The Hobbit book and the film adaptations; he’s famous for slaying Smaug and becoming the first king of the re-founded Dale. Bard was succeeded by his son, Bain, but the movies show more about his personal life and his children. In the films, he has two additional daughters named Sigrid and Tilda, who are entirely original characters. As for Bain, Bard’s son appears on-screen in the movie after only being mentioned in the Appendices of The Return of the King, not in The Hobbit.

2

Tauriel

Played By Evangeline Lilly

Tauriel from The Hobbit Desolation of Smaug

Evangeline Lilly was one of the biggest stars on the planet at the time of her casting in The Desolation of Smaug, having been a lead on Lost for all six seasons. Her character, Tauriel, was entirely original to The Hobbit story and, unfortunately, wasn’t a hit. She’s introduced as an Elvin captain whom Legolas has a crush on, though Thranduil won’t permit their marriage due to her being a Silvan Elf.

Bilbo Baggins from The Hobbit trilogy above a blurred poster for Lord of the Rings

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A love triangle ensues regardless, with Tauriel fancying the dwarf Kíli, played by Aidan Turner, and Legolas remaining passionate about Tauriel. This was one of the most criticized narratives in The Hobbit films, as Tauriel ultimately serves a limited purpose in the story outside of contributing romantic drama that doesn’t exist in any Tolkien story. The story has commonly been called “shoehorned,” as it’s essentially fluff to add time to the films and provide some romance appeal to the movies.

1

Radagast

Played By Sylvester McCoy

Radagast looking to the side in The Hobbit.

Radagast the Brown was mentioned in The Hobbit book initially before making his first appearance in The Fellowship of the Ring, making him another character who received a far more prominent role in the movies. Radagast is one of the Istari sent to Middle-earth by the Valar, making him kin to Saruman and Gandalf. His inclusion isn’t too far-fetched, as he’s mentioned in the books as being an associate of Beorn, the skin-changer who also appears in the film adaptations.

The Hobbit

Created by

Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Guillermo del Toro

First Film

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

Latest Film

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies

Cast

Martin Freeman, Ian McKellen, Richard Armitage, Benedict Cumberbatch, Evangeline Lilly, Luke Evans, Lee Pace, Orlando Bloom

Summary

The Hobbit film series is a fantasy adventure trilogy directed by Peter Jackson, based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s novel The Hobbit. Set 60 years before The Lord of the Rings, the films follow Bilbo Baggins’ quest to reclaim the Lonely Mountain from the dragon Smaug. The series grossed nearly $3 billion worldwide and is known for its elaborate visuals and epic storytelling.

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