Anya Taylor-Joy cast as brand new Lord of The Rings character with Welsh link
Amelia Jones
Anya Taylor-Joy will be joining the cast of The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum in a role with a Welsh connection.
Taylor-Joy who rose to fame after her role as Beth Harmon in the hit Netflix miniseries The Queen’s Gambit is now taking on the role of an elf called Seren in The Lord of the Rings.
The new film centers on Aragorn (Jamie Dornan) and Gandalf’s (Ian McKellen) search for Gollum (Andy Serkis), the former Hobbit who became a ring-obsessed cave-dweller after initially killing his cousin to take it, to learn more about the ring, forged generations earlier and capable of destroying all of Middle-earth.
Taylor-Joy’s elf Seren is a member of the Sindar Elf clan of the Woodland Realm, and a very capable and dangerous agent of King Thranduil.
Many fans have praised the character’s name for its Welsh origins, highlighting the significant influence of the Welsh language on the world of The Lord of the Rings.
J.R.R. Tolkien had a lifelong love of language, and he was a champion of the Welsh language long before many others outside of Wales.
He famously said: “Welsh is of this soil, this island, the senior language of the men of Britain; and Welsh is beautiful.”
A social media account for Welsh clothing brand Gwalia, spoke more about the importance of Wales in the Tolkien universe.
In the video, the owner Cai Rhys said:”Hollywood’s just named a character a Welsh word. So Anya Taylor-Joy has just been cast in The Lord of the Rings The Hunt for Gollum as an elf called Seren, which is a Welsh word meaning star. But this isn’t the first time Wales has actually lived inside Middle-earth.
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“Tolkien himself built the elvish language Sindarin directly from a Gymraeg. Every time an elf speaks in those films you’re hearing the bones of the Welsh language. I mean even Aragorn spoke Welsh to Legolas in Fellowship of the Ring.
Because Welsh has always sounded like something from another world, ancient, musical, magical. Tolkien knew it, now Hollywood is saying it too.
“So here at Gwalia Clothing we’ve always known the Welsh language as something worth celebrating, worth wearing, carrying, worth being proud of.
“I mean it’s all in our name, Gwalia, which is the ancient name for Wales and it’s also the poetic name for Wales. We put it on everything we make, because our language deserves to be celebrated”
Rhys launched Gwalia Clothing to spark conversations and educate people about Welsh heritage, history, and national pride. The brand uses eco-friendly materials and are planning to release collections inspired by Welsh folklore, legends, and cultural identity in 2026.
You can watch the full video here.
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