Morfydd Clark, who plays Galadriel the Elf in Prime Video’s The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Powerdescribes the preparation that went into the monumental horseback battle sequence of the sixth episode.
Episode 6, titled “Udûn,” finally gave fans the bloody battle that they’ve long been waiting for. Throughout the fast-paced fighting scenes, Galadriel dodges orcs’ weapons by swiftly sliding off the saddle to the side of her horse, and Clark, in an interview with Variety, admitted that these impressive feats were performed by a stunt person. “I can’t believe that was possible,” she said. “Before doing this, I thought so much of horse stunts were CGI, but it wasn’t.”
Clark continued her praise of the stunt team, saying, “There were loads of amazing stunt riders on this, but their horses were incredible and so was the connection they had with them. Seeing the stunt team say goodbye to their horses when we finished was really emotional.”
The Horses of Middle-earth
Horse riders reportedly trained for four months in order to prepare for the dynamic sequence: three hours of stunts per day and three days of riding per week. For Clark and other members of the cast, the equestrian training was helpful but challenging. “Lots of us had started having never ridden — me anyway — and were quite nervous and scared,” Clark recalled. “I rode a horse called Titan, who is apparently one of the greatest horses they’ve ever had and is the most well-trained. I feel that a lot my horse riding skills are down to the horse I was on, but I’m no longer terrified. Once you feel comfortable on a horse, it’s the closest to magic I’ve ever experienced. You also have this connection to the people of the past, something that humans have done forever.”
Thought Rings of Power was criticized for Clark’s physical and action-heavy portrayal of Galadriel, a character who was depicted as a stoic sage by Cate Blanchett in the Lord of the Rings movies, Clark was quick to defend the show’s version. “I would say that her serenity is hard-earned,” she explained. “I don’t think you get to that level of wisdom without going through things.”
“Udûn” delivered more than just impressive stunts and ferocious swordplay, however, as it also showcased the birth of the infamous Mount Doom, marking one of the most pivotal moments in Middle-earth’s history. Although Rings of Power has come under much scrutiny since its premiere, recent episodes have been boosting its positive streaming numbers, crushing its competitor, HBO’s House of the Dragonin the Nielsen SVOD charts.
Several cast members have expressed a preference for the show’s later episodes, particularly the sixth, seventh and eighth. Charlie Vickers, who plays Halbrand, revealed that his favorite was Episode 8 but added, “I’m not going to say why, because I’m going to leave a few details unexplored.”
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power releases new episodes on Fridays on Prime Video.
Source: Variety
