I don’t think I realized just how deeply Outlander star Sam Heughan (Jamie Fraser) was mixed up with the Lord of the Rings franchise. According to an interview he did with Audible, he was named after Samwise Gamgee, Frodo’s faithful right-hand man. His brother is named Cirdan, after the elf (don’t worry, apparently that’s more of a normal name in Scotland). He opened his new memoir Waypoints with a quote from J.R.R Tolkien. Guy’s got Middle-earth fever.
So it’s no surprise to hear him say that he wants in on Amazon’s new series The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. “I’m still desperate to be an elf or a dwarf,” he said. “So, if The Rings of Power are still casting, I’m available! I’ve even got a ginger wig, if they’re interested.”
His fantasy obsession goes down to the bone, this guy. “I grew up on the grounds of a derelict castle,” he said, making me wonder about his life. “So I think that fantasy element — I imagined myself as Robert the Bruce or King Arthur. All of these things were great influences for me growing up.”
Sam Heughan basically grew up in Middle-earth
Okay, I had to Google this, and the rabbit hole goes down even deeper than I thought: according to Affair Post, Heughan’s parents were part of a London hippie community called Gandalf’s Garden, which was obviously influenced by The Lord of the Rings. Now I want him to play an elf, too; it sounds like his destiny.
The next season of The Rings of Power won’t be out until 2024, so there may be some time yet for Heughan to board that boat. In the meanwhile, he’s part of the romantic drama Love Again. And of course, the seventh season of Outlander will be out next year.
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h/t Digital Spy
