Animal Rights Activists Trying To Ruin Lord Of The Rings Series?
A horse died on the set of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, inciting PETA to speak out against animal use in films and television.
The Lord of the Rings prequel series, The Rings of Power, has been facing some pushback in recent days after it was reported that a horse used for filming died while on set. While the series shows the battle between good and evil, those backing the production have just met their most powerful and tenacious adversaries yet – PETA. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the famous animal rights group is shaming the crew of the series for using live animals for filming and is pushing them to turn towards CGI-driven effects.
In a statement released following the death on the set of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, PETA senior vice president, Lisa Lange, said that the horse’s death was totally preventable as “they have the option to use CGI, mechanical rigs and other humane methods that wouldn’t run vulnerable horses to death on set.” Not only directing her message at The Rings of Power, but Lange also said that similar productions should avoid using live animal labor at all costs. Further slamming the unnecessary and heartbreaking death, she rounded out her statement by telling producers to find different careers if they’re unable to stop “exploiting animals.”
To catch readers up on the animal cruelty charges being hurled at The Lord of the Rings spinoff, the horse in question died during rehearsals for a scene for the show’s upcoming second season. The Devil’s Horsemen is the company that has been renting out the trained animals to the production and owners of the now-deceased horse, which was reportedly showing no health issues, was one of 30 on set that day. Over 50 years in the biz, also supplying horses for other big-ticket titles including Game of Thrones, The Devil’s Horsemen reported that this had been the first time a horse has perished while on set.
Racing to cover their tracks before the death became a major issue, an Amazon Studios spokesperson confirmed that the animal perished while on-set, adding that they were “deeply saddened” to report the news. Laying out the tragic events of the day, they explained that The Lord of the Rings prequel was just picking up production for the day, with the horses beginning to warm up before their rehearsals. This was when the animal died of “cardiac failure,” something that was confirmed by a veterinarian and an American Humane Association representative who were both on-set at the time.
Despite the death of the horse, production will keep rolling for the second season of Prime Video’s, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. Picking up cameras and getting to work in the U.K. several months ago, the cast and crew of the series have been hard at work to bring audiences more into the story of the world before Frodo and Sam began their journey to destroy the powerful ring. A success to many and a failure for others, the first season seemed to draw up divisive views from its dedicated fanbase.
So far, we know that a slew of stars will be returning for the second season of The Lord of the Rings prequel series, with Morfydd Clark, Cynthia Addai-Robbinson, Robert Aramayo, and Owain Arthur all signed on to return along with a slew of new members that include Game of Thrones star Ciarán Hinds. With one headline-making shakeup, we’re hoping that the team behind The Rings of Power has nothing but smooth and safe sailing from here on out.
