Will Poulter has exited Amazon’s Lord of the Rings series

In September, Will Poulter (MIDSOMMAR) joined the cast of Amazon's upcoming Lord of the Rings TV series, but it seems that the actor will not be adventuring in Middle-Earth after all as Variety has reported that Poulter has departed the series.

The nature of Will Poulter's exit seems to come down to scheduling conflicts, and given Amazon's ambitious plans for the series, I can certainly understand why. Amazon recently renewed the Lord of the Rings series for a second season, but it was also announced that production on the series will go on a 4-5 month hiatus following the filming of the first two episodes in order to map out and write the scripts for the next season. It's said that this change is what caused Poulter to run into scheduling conflicts. The nature of the role Poulter was to play is still unknown, but the search for a replacement is currently underway. At the moment, the rest of the cast includes Markella Kavenagh, Joseph Mawle, Maxim Baldry, and Ema Horvath. The series is being developed by J.D. Payne & Patrick McKay, who will serve as showrunners, and JURASSIC WORLD: FALLEN KINGDOM director J.A. Bayona is attached to direct multiple episodes.

Little is known about Amazon's Lord of the Rings series, except that it will take place dring the Second Age of Middle-Earth, a time before the events of "The Hobbit" and "The Lord of the Rings" in which the Rings of Power, including Sauron's One Ring, first came into existence. The series will explore new storylines based on the original writings of J.R.R. Tolkien's original writings.