Karl Urban opens up about how he landed the role of Éomer in The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Directed by Peter Jackson, The Lord of the Rings was a uniquely ambitious endeavor, as the trilogy filmed all three epic fantasy movies back to back. The films are based on The Lord of the Rings books by J.R.R. Tolkien, who established the world of Middle-earth through his descriptive works. With a love of the source material, Jackson went about crafting the trilogy, which follows the young Hobbit Frodo on his perilous trek to throw the One Ring into the fires of Mount Doom before it could end up in the clutches of the evil Sauron.

The Lord of the Rings trilogy features a stellar cast, many of whom were unknown actors at the time, with the film helping to launch them to stardom. Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Sean Bean, Orlando Bloom, Sean Astin, Andy Serkis, Viggo Mortensen, and Cate Blanchett were among the expansive cast of the films. Urban's Éomer made his first appearance in the second film of the trilogy, The Two Towers, and he returned for the last movie, The Return of the King. Éomer is a warrior who leads the Riders of Rohan, cavalry for the army of Gondor, who assist in the fight against the orc armies of Mordor, aiding Frodo on his journey.

Related: Lord of the Rings’ Fifth Hobbit Explained (& Why He Isn’t In Jackson’s Trilogy)

While speaking with The Guardian to promote the upcoming The Boys season 3, Urban talked about the coincidental situation that landed him the role of Éomer in The Lord of the Rings. Discussing his philosophy on never missing an opportunity, Urban returned to his home country of New Zealand, where he made some smaller films. One of those films, The Price of Milk, was directed by Harry Sinclair, a friend of Jackson's, who was casting in New Zealand for The Lord of the Rings around the same time. Sinclair showed Jackson a rough cut of the film, with Urban front and center, and the rest is history. Check out Urban's comments on his Lord of the Rings casting below:

“I’m a firm believer in the philosophy ‘An opportunity neglected does not often return,' so I went back to New Zealand and did a bunch of New Zealand films. One of them was a little film called The Price of Milk, which was directed by Harry Sinclair. Harry was a good friend of Peter Jackson, so he took a rough cut down to show Peter. And I just happened to be in Peter’s face when he was looking for someone to cast as Éomer in The Lord of the Rings.”

An image of Éomer looking serious in Lord Of The Rings

Éomer was one of many characters present in The Lord of the Rings trilogy, and in comparison to others, it wasn't the most prominent role. However, Éomer was an important character, even ascending to the throne as King of Rohan. Urban's performance also left an impression on viewers, with the actor's career flourishing ever since. Following The Lord of the Rings, Urban has appeared in several high-profile projects, including J.J. Abrams' Star Trek trilogy, The Bourne Supremacy, Dredd, and The Chronicles of Riddick. He currently stars on Amazon Prime Video's The Boys, a subversive superhero series set to debut its third season on June 3.

The Lord of the Rings is also making a splash on Amazon Prime later this year with the release of The Rings of Power. The new Rings of Power series is said to release on September 2, and it will take place in the Second Age of Middle-earth, thousands of years before the events in Jackson's Hobbit and Lord of the Rings trilogies. While Urban is not involved with the new Lord of the Rings series, the show brings Tolkien's work back to the forefront of audiences' minds, with viewers once again ready to see the exploits of Middle-earth.

Next: Sauron vs. Morgoth: Who Is The More Powerful Lord Of The Rings Villain?

Source: The Guardian