Editing Thranduil (section)

===''The Hobbit'' film series===
{{further|The Hobbit (film series)}}

[[File:Lee_Pace_as_Thranduil.jpg|thumb|upright|left|[[Lee Pace]] gave a critically acclaimed performance as Thranduil in [[The Hobbit (film series)|''The Hobbit'' film trilogy]].<ref name="AV"/>]]

[[Peter Jackson]] cast [[Lee Pace]] for his 2012–2014 film trilogy [[The Hobbit (film series)|''The Hobbit'']], stating that Pace had been the filmmakers' favourite for the part after his performance in the 2006 film ''[[The Fall (2006 film)|The Fall]]''.<ref>{{cite web |last=Chitwood |first=Adam |url=https://collider.com/lee-pace-dean-ogorman-the-hobbit/ |title=Lee Pace and Dean O'Gorman Join Peter Jackson's THE HOBBIT |work=collider.com  |date=30 April 2011 |access-date=3 April 2013}}</ref>

The New Zealand screenwriter and film producer [[Philippa Boyens]], a co-writer of the screenplay for ''The Hobbit'', noted that Tolkien only revealed further detailed information about the character, including his name and backstory, in the book's sequel.<ref name="Straight"/> Boyens suggested that there was "a lot more story" behind Thranduil, and that he was an interesting character in terms of what they had to make up or expand as part of the films' storytelling as there is not a lot of information present in the original source material.<ref name="Straight"/><ref name="NT 2014"/>

The Elves of Mirkwood are a minor element in the novel, and Thranduil in particular has no quarrel with Thorin or his company of Dwarves, who are only imprisoned because they are trespassing on the Elvenking's territory and refuse to tell him why.<ref name=Ars>{{Cite web|url=https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2013/12/on-the-hobbit-the-desolation-of-smaug-and-weaknesses-in-the-source-material/ |title=On The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug and weaknesses in the source material |first=Andrew |last=Cunningham|date=18 December 2013 |website=Ars Technica}}</ref> The existing story narrative of Thranduil as an isolationist leader was identified by the writers, who worked with Pace to develop the character's backstory.<ref name="NT 2014">{{cite news |last=Wilner |first=Norman |title=Q&A: Peter Jackson, Philippa Boyens & Lee Pace |url=https://nowtoronto.com/peter-jackson-philippa-boyens-lee-pace |access-date=18 January 2021 |work=Now Toronto |date=10 December 2014 |archive-date=8 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210508163812/https://nowtoronto.com/peter-jackson-philippa-boyens-lee-pace |url-status=dead }}</ref> In the film series, Thranduil rides a giant [[elk]] resembling a ''[[Megaloceros]]'';<ref name="Barnett 2019">{{cite book |last=Barnett |first=Ross |title=The Missing Lynx: The Past and Future of Britain's Lost Mammals |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1W6MDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT56 |year=2019 |publisher=[[Bloomsbury Publishing]] |isbn=978-1-4729-5733-7 |page=56}}</ref> the "elk" was a horse named Moose, made up to look like a [[deer]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cnnindonesia.com/hiburan/20141217145018-220-18787/5-fakta-lucu-the-hobbit-the-battle-of-the-five-armies|title=5 Fakta Lucu The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies |first=Rizky Sekar |last=Afrisia |website=[[CNN]] Indonesia |language=Indonesian}}</ref> This version of the character is depicted as somewhat unhinged.<ref name=Ars/>

{{Quote box
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 |quote = With those little clues, we kind of fleshed out the character, and I'm really excited with what we've come up with. He's complicated. Tolkien’s elves are such fascinating creatures; I've always thought they were less like humans than they are forces of nature, like a blizzard or a dangerous big cat in the jungle. — Lee Pace<ref name="Straight"/>
}}

Pace called Thranduil the "Elvenking" instead of his actual name during interviews, following Tolkien's usage in ''The Hobbit'', which Pace read as a high school student.<ref name="Straight">{{cite news |last=Caddell |first=Nathan |title=The Hobbit's Lee Pace relishes playing Elvenking |url=https://www.straight.com/movies/790136/hobbits-lee-pace-relishes-playing-elvenking |access-date=18 January 2021 |work=[[The Georgia Straight]] |date=17 December 2014}}</ref> In an interview with ''[[The Georgia Straight]]'', Pace explained that Thranduil, unlike other villainous characters he had played like [[Ronan the Accuser#Film|Ronan the Accuser]], is morally ambiguous, as he is only at odds with the Dwarves. Pace felt that it was important for him to find enjoyment in playing characters who are larger-than-life, and that it was on him to try to figure out who his character was with what little that he knew.<ref name=Straight/> Pace praised the rest of the cast and crew members of ''The Hobbit'' film project as inspirational, noting that they were collectively telling a big story which was intended to be fully fleshed out on the green screen and which they had no idea how it would ultimately turn out.<ref name="NT 2014"/>