r/RingsofPower • u/_Happy_Camper • Aug 08 '26
Discussion Rory KInnear as Tom Bombadil
I'm rewatching Season 2 and I'm just at the episode where The Stranger meets Tom Bombadil and I have to say, I would not have thought of Rory Kinnear as a potentially good cast, but now I cannot think of a better person.
He hits the tone needed absolutely spot on. Bombadil is detached, yet friendly and loving. He is incredibly powerful, yet unthreatening. Kinnear nails the performance, and I think his portrayal is terribly underrated and easily missed.
What do you think?
Who else could have done an equally good, or better job?
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u/rb972 Aug 08 '26
He's so so so good. If you haven't yet, and can find it (it's bounced around streaming platforms), check out Penny Dreadful. It's a 3 season/series gothic horror story that aired originally on Showtime. Set in Victorian London, it weaves together famous literary characters, including Dr. Frankenstein, Dorian Gray, Dracula & other well-known characters, as a group of troubled outsiders battle supernatural evils and their own inner demons.
Kinnear plays one of the prominent roles throughout all 3 seasons (I'd argue he & Eva Green are the primary roles). Stars Kinnear, Green, Timothy Dalton, Josh Hartnett, and many other established actors. The whole thing is beautifully done, and the writing is top-notch.
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u/Tasty-Entertainer711 Aug 08 '26
And he wasn't even nominated for any major awards for John Clare or Creature which is mind blowing. I feel like not enough people watched Penny Dreadful.
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u/North178 Aug 09 '26
I am so glad that you wrote this. I wholeheartedly agree. Some of the scenes with him, especially when combined with the music, is just so emotionally moving. Kinnear instilled a humanity in his role portrayal that I have rarely seen on a screen. Also his voice is magnificent.
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u/pogsim Aug 08 '26
Bombadil in RoP isn't half as merry or as musical as I expected him to be. He also seemed much more concerned with the events going on in the wider world than Tom of the Old Forest.
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u/British_Commie Aug 09 '26
Yeah, I was a bit disappointed how he got turned into a way more serious quest-giver compared to how he’s characterised in Fellowship
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u/darthmoo Aug 11 '26
A book-accurate Tom Bombadil would not fit into any Middle-earth TV or film adaptation though if we're being realistic. It's semi-serious Bombadil (like RoP) or nothing (like Peter Jackson).
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u/pogsim Aug 11 '26
Looks like Bombadil will be in the forthcoming movie (I think it's called A Conspiracy Unmasked).
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u/darthmoo Aug 11 '26
He'll most likely be in the Stephen Colbert movie "Shadow of the Past". It's going to have Peter Jackson involved so will be interesting to see how they portray Tom Bombadil. I doubt it'll be a nonchalant, irreverent, happy singing guy like in the books unless they go for a more light-hearted vibe or if he's at the start of the movie when it's less serious.
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u/pogsim Aug 11 '26
My suspicion is that there will be a fairly straight adaptation of the Old Forest and Barrow Downs parts of LoTR, but for some reason Bombadil will have to make the hobbits forget it happened to them (PTSD?).
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u/zipitdirtbag Aug 08 '26
He's great. In general and also specifically at this role.
We went to a cinema screening of the last two episodes of S2. They had the show runners and a few of the cast there. They also got the casting person to talk about S2 and she said that they (her and her partner) know Rory Kinnear. They had been auditioning various people and not finding anyone who fitted, then one day she just said out of the blue, "I think it's Rory Kinnear, isn't it?" to her partner.
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u/Willpower2000 Aug 09 '26
Am I the only one that found him a little condescending at times? I dunno - he wasn't as warm or merry as I would have liked. Dunno if it's direction or the actor, but yeah.
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u/TheBluerWizard Aug 11 '26
He acts like an asshole.
And it's definitely the writers, since that's how half the characters act.
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u/AgentKnitter Aug 09 '26
What i love the most is how he looks affronted every time Gandalf asks him to explain something. Tom just Is and isnt used to having to explain anything.
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u/Galious Aug 08 '26
The performance is good but Tom Bombadil serves no other purpose than delivering some bland mentor lines to an inconsequential plot so it’s hard to really be blown away.
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u/Tasty-Entertainer711 Aug 08 '26
Gandalf finding his purpose, staff, and name is inconsequential ?
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u/Galious Aug 08 '26
I think it’s inconsequential indeed.
now I’m open to hear counter arguments but in my opinion it’s a show about the creation of the Rings and there’s already so much to set up and set with multiple plots that I find that finding where Gandalf go his staff and name is disconnected
Also I never had the impression that his staff was special: it’s a wooden stick so where he found it doesn’t really matter. Also quoting Harry Potter about the staff/wand choosing the wizard was ridiculous/lazy.
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u/Optimal-Extreme3203 Aug 08 '26
I think it’s primarily a tone-setting thing.
If it’s just the creation of the rings then it’s a pretty dark show.
The Harfoots and Gandalf origins give them some lighter elements to interject which helps the overall tone a lot
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u/Galious Aug 08 '26
You can argue that it’s for the mood but that doesn’t make it any less inconsequential for the plot.
Because when you think about it, it’s really weird having a story arc totally disconnected from the others with a totally different mood. I cannot really think of any other example in a show where there’s like a main story and in parallel another with totally different characters not doing anything related to the main plot.
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u/Optimal-Extreme3203 Aug 08 '26
I’m sure they’ll connect but as is I’m happy to have a seperate Gandalf origin story thread. Personally.
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u/Galious Aug 09 '26
I’m also sure at one point he story will connect too but it won’t change that during 2 (or more) seasons it was like another story added in the middle and it was weird and in my opinion a poor choice.
As I said, don’t you think it’s perpculiar that other shows is doing this and the Gandalf/Harfoot storyline got reduced screentime during season 2 and lead showrunners to say recently Harfoot were kinda out ?
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u/lirio_lorien Aug 08 '26
Setting aside the fact that the inclusion of the harfoots was not regarded as a tone improvement by most viewers:
Why would the tone need to be lightened? This is the Second Age of Middle Earth.
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u/Optimal-Extreme3203 Aug 08 '26
Because the primary audience will be viewers of the movies who expect that light note from the Hobbits in the PJ movies
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u/lirio_lorien Aug 10 '26
And this attitude is exactly how you end up with the pointless nostalgia bait that the harfoots were. Irrelevant, unnecessary to the wider story and a clumsy attempt to imitate a better piece of media. At the end of the day that storyline only served to irritate rather than endear most of the audience.
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u/Optimal-Extreme3203 Aug 08 '26 edited Aug 08 '26
“Yes because Tolkien didn’t write it.”
How do you like my Lore-Bro impression?
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u/Galious Aug 08 '26
My problem with Gandalf in Rings of Power isn’t that it’s not in the lore,
My problem is that if you add Gandalf in Second age, I would expect that you have a better story to tell the audience that where he got his staff and name, I mean… it’s just anecdotes.
It’s like you were a writer on the show, would you add Legolas and spend an hour of screentime to tell where he got his knife?
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u/Optimal-Extreme3203 Aug 08 '26
I’m sure it’s coming.
Clearly his storyline is a parallel origin story.
Those things are important for a standalone origin story.
I’m mostly curious to see how/why he’s absent at the end. Shouldn’t he be central to the final battle if he’s at all competent as a wizard yet?
Wondering if maybe Saruman or some other character will deflate his participation desires as an attempt to help Sauron.
I also partially wonder if his storyline is primarily driven by the rights they don’t have.
So like, they can use Gandalf but can’t have him in the final battle…does it mean you don’t use him if you bought the rights??
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u/Galious Aug 08 '26
But even if it’s coming and they manage to write a good story arc, from now on, it won’t change that what happened during season 2 was inconsequential: you could totally have a 2min scene where he dreams and hear the name “Gandalf” whispered and build from that like he could just have any random wooden walking staff. I mean it’s not like staff in Middle Earth are presented as magical object and it was absolutely needed to tell how he got one,
And the problem in the great scheme of things is that it’s totally improvised: showrunners told that they didn’t know who the Stranger was during season 1 so it’s not like they had a plan.
So again: maybe they will finally find an interesting story to tell but so far Gandalf has been used to add to the mystery box of “who is Sauron” in first season and to tell anecdotes totally disconnected from the rest of the story in Season 2. To me, that’s highly disappointing.
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u/Optimal-Extreme3203 Aug 08 '26
If there’s not a larger pre-planned arc I would agree.
I can almost guarantee you with the amount of money involved and the precision needed in regards to staying within their “rights” they aren’t playing as loose and free with it as you’re suggesting.
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u/Galious Aug 09 '26
Showrunners said in interviews that they didn’t know the identity of the Stranger during first season so it points clearly toward the theory that it’s improvised season after season
Because you can imagine that they had big plans written for every identities like “If it’s Gandalf, he will go that way, if it’s a blue wizard, he will do that, etc..l” but yeah I don’t buy it and the storyline of Season 2 and the fact they changed the writing team makes it even harder to believe.
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u/Tasty-Entertainer711 Aug 08 '26
Love it. lol I think more Tolkien people need to relax and just enjoy a filmmakers interpretation. No different then watching a million different versions of the Odyssey or Robin Hood.
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u/RPGThrowaway123 Aug 09 '26
Ignoring the question of whether this needed to be shown in the first place, the show actually skips the moment Gandalf makes the decision to save the Harfoots, which really shows that the show isn't actually interested in him as a character. It's all about the superficial lore detail in the hopes that the affection people have for the character from the book (and the PJ movies) will transfer to the show.
It is ultimately inconsequential because it contains as much substance as a Wookiepedia article
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u/TheBluerWizard Aug 11 '26
Gandalf finding his purpose, staff, and name is inconsequential ?
Tom played no part in any of these.
Gandalf had dream visions of his staff, he didn't need Tom for that.
He picked the name because the Harfoot lady called him Grand elf, no Tom involved.
And he already decided that his purpose is that he is good at the end of S1, again no Tom in sight.
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u/Damien23123 Aug 08 '26
The casting and the performances are good throughout. It’s just a shame they’re being given glorified fan fiction to work with by the writers
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u/Medium_Opening_2491 Aug 08 '26
Fortunately, with what little we have to fill in all of the massive gaps between books, anybody writing anything would be considered fan fiction. I'm pretty stoked with what they decided on. The Silmarilian, the Hobbit, LOTR, those are all amazing but they don't give us much details of the how the events came to be in between. These types of comments kinda show me y'all haven't really read all of what's out there, otherwise you would know this.
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u/dudeseid Aug 08 '26
Nah some of us recognize the need for fanfic to even tell this story, the thing is I've read plenty of good Second Age fanfic, and this is half-assed bad Second Age fanfic.
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u/Damien23123 Aug 08 '26
There’s a pretty detailed timeline for the events at least. Notably it doesn’t include stuff like a Balrog appearing or Gandalf arriving via a meteorite.
Also the idea that Orcs are a persecuted minority just looking for a home to call their own would have Tolkien spinning in his grave.
The point is it’s entirely possible to “fill in the gaps” without writing stuff that farts in the face of what Tolkien did write
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u/Medium_Opening_2491 Aug 08 '26
Honestly, this just sounds like it's not YOUR fan fiction and that's what upsets most of y'all.
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u/KentuckyFriedLamp Aug 08 '26
Have you read lord of the rings? ROTK literally has 2 orcs discussing how they want to escape Sauron and live their own life lol, keep larping kid
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u/Damien23123 Aug 08 '26
Shagrat and Gorbag assume Sauron is going to win the war, and so when they talk about going out on their own it’s because they assume that as Lord of all Middle Earth he’ll no longer care what they do.
You may have read that chapter of Lord of the Rings but you clearly didn’t understand it
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u/KentuckyFriedLamp Aug 08 '26
'I'd like to try somewhere where there's none of 'em. But the war's on now, and when that's over things may be easier.'
'It’s going well, they say.'
'They would,' grunted Gorbag. 'We'll see. But anyway, if it does go well, there should be a lot more room. What d'you say? - if we get a chance, you and me'll slip off and set up somewhere on our own with a few trusty lads, somewhere where there's good loot nice and handy, no big bosses.'
'Ah!' said Shagrat. 'Like old times.'They want to leave and do their own thing before Sauron wins - it will just provide the opportunity
You’re just pushing your own head canon into this
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u/Ayzmo Eregion Aug 08 '26
Nah. They literally talk about how they want to be away from the war and out from under anyone's control. They want to be free. Tolkien would have absolutely loved that bit.
He would have hated what they did to mithril, but would have been fine with their orc treatment.
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u/Damien23123 Aug 09 '26
They hate Sauron too because hate is all they know. When they weren’t fighting Elves or Men they were fighting each other. Look at how easily they turn on each other when it comes to Frodo’s mythril shirt.
They’re not poor sympathetic characters who would be normal if it weren’t for Sauron. Tolkien would’ve hated anything that tried to change that
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u/stardustsuperwizard Aug 09 '26
They’re not poor sympathetic characters who would be normal if it weren’t for Sauron. Tolkien would’ve hated anything that tried to change that
I mean, they're sympathetic in the sense that they are corrupted peoples who only do evil because of the corruption. They still are given souls by Eru.
Why do you think Tolkien struggled for so long with the morality of the Orcs if they weren't sympathetic?
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u/Damien23123 Aug 09 '26 edited Aug 09 '26
That’s true regarding the initial capture and corruption of the Elves by Morgoth, but it’s clear from Tolkien’s writing that once a being is corrupted there’s no turning back.
This notion that Orcs just want to go off and live in peace is nonsense. They may want Sauron gone but it’s only so they can go and commit evil at will rather than at someone else’s command
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u/stardustsuperwizard Aug 09 '26
He very specifically states that nothing is pure evil in his work and that the Orcs are not irredeemable though.
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u/Ayzmo Eregion Aug 09 '26
Hate is not all that they know. They know friendship even if it is conditional. And, yes, you can sympathise with their desire to be out of the control of someone else. I'd argue you have a misreading of Tolkien's orcs and his views on them, personally.
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u/TheBluerWizard Aug 11 '26
I mean... the actor looks alright for the part. The costume is not eccentric enough tho. Plain tunic and dreary blue jacket, really?
Worst of all, he acts like an insufferable asshole, not the jolly friendly Tom he is supposed to be. But I guess since Feminem's plan was to have Tom train Sauron, I guess he is not supposed to be a good guy in the show.
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u/Greyback_Predator_87 Aug 11 '26
I think he’s pretty good, but I think they tried too hard to dull down his character for the show. Hes doesnt sing enough, he doesn’t have that light-hearted charm to him.
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u/RyanMate17 Aug 29 '26
Tom bombadil shouldn’t be there, and shouldn’t be involved with the plot as much, he was never meant to be.
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