Right now, The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim is playing in theaters. This marks the first time in a decade that a new Lord of the Rings movie has graced the big screen, and for fans of Middle-earth, it's a fun way to visit their favorite fantasy world for the holidays.
Which is not to say that The War of the Rohirrim is a light movie. Helmed by Japanese director Kenji Kamiyama, The War of the Rohirrim tells the story of legendary king of Rohan Helm Hammerhand (Brian Cox) and his daughter Héra (Gaia Wise), who have to withstand a brutal siege by the Dunlending lord Wulf (Luke Pasqualino) at the castle known as the Hornburg, otherwise known as Helm's Deep. Ever wonder how it got that name? If you've seen the movie, now you know!
You may also be wondering if there's anything after the credits in The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim. Post-credits scenes have become a popular trend in movies these days. Does The War of the Rohirrim give us a final tease or bit of closure on our way out the door?
The answer to that is no, The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim does not have a post-credits scene. It does have some beautiful credits music though, which is nice to listen to as you process Héra's epic journey from unwillingly betrothed daughter of a king to the hero of her people.
The War of the Rohirrim ending explained
One large question I had throughout The War of the Rohirrim is if Héra was such a hero to the people of Rohan, why does no one remember her by the time of The Lord of the Rings? After all, Éowyn goes on a somewhat similar arc as the daughter of a noble house who is told she cannot fight, only to commit acts of great heroism in her peoples' darkest hour. If there had already been a famed shieldmaiden of Rohan like Héra, you'd think Éowyn wouldn't have met quite so much resistance.
Thankfully, The War of the Rohirrim does explain this. In J.R.R. Tolkien's writings, the daughter of Helm Hammerhand is never even named. Throughout The War of the Rohirrim, we learn that Héra does not want to become a queen or marry for power; instead, she wants to go on adventures across Middle-earth. Following the defeat of Wulf at the Hornburg, Héra gets her wish, with her cousin Fréalaf (Laurence Ubong Williams) becoming the new king of Rohan. This gives Héra leave to pursue her dream of becoming an adventurer, unbound by the obligations of rule.
We even find out her first destination: a meeting with the wizard Gandalf. The beloved wizard from The Lord of the Rings is curious about the orcs that Héra encountered at the Hornburg — you know, the ones who were searching corpses for rings. At this point in Middle-earth's history, Sauron is laying low and the fate of the One Ring is unknown. That orcs are searching for the Ring during this time means that Sauron already has his forces at work, unbenownst to the forces of good.
Of course, by this point in time, the One Ring had already come into the possession of Gollum, who is already hundreds of years old by The War of the Rohirrim. But Gandalf won't learn that for a long time yet, and by then Héra's adventuring days on Middle-earth will have long ended. I wonder if we'll ever learn what else she got up to during those years?
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