The producers of the upcoming film about J.R.R. Tolkien may have tried to depict the author’s life as accurately as possible, but his family is not in support.
The Lord of the Rings creator was raised in England in the late 19th century and obtained a love for literature and language early on. When the First World War broke out, Tolkien was deployed to France.
The film Tolkien covers the late writer’s friendships with a group of fellow artists and writers, and the impact that the war had on them, as well his relationship with Edith Bratt, who went on to become his wife.
Nicholas Hoult and Lily Collins play the two lead roles, with Colm Meaney, Anthony Boyle, Patrick Gibson, and Derek Jacobi forming the rest of the cast.
The Tolkien family has now confirmed that they “do not endorse it or its content in any way.”
“The family and the Estate wish to make clear that they did not approve of, authorize or participate in the making of this film,” read the statement.
In response, Fox Searchlight said, “We are so proud of Dome Karukoski’s film Tolkien, which focuses on the early years of J.R.R. Tolkien’s extraordinary life and does not depict subject matter from his novels. While we did not work with the Tolkien Estate on this project, the filmmaking team has the utmost respect and admiration for Mr. Tolkien and his phenomenal contribution to literature.”
Tolkien opens on the 10th of May.
