Harfoots or Hobbits? Sara Zwangobani, Dylan Smith from The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power explain the difference

If the anticipation wasn't difficult to handle already, the trailer of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power has made it all the more difficult to wait and figure out what is the new show all about.

On social media, the question that seems to be widely discussed across platform is: Who are the hairy-looking Harfoots and are they related to the Hobbits? 

Described by the makers as an evolutionary predecessors of hobbits, Harfoots, have created a mystery around their existence and journey in the Second Age of Middle-earth. Although their sense of style is a lot similar to the Hobbits, talking in their own language, not much is known about these important creatures of the series. 

Now, in a recently released press statement, ther series' actors Sara Zwangobani and Dylan Smith from the latest The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, delve into how they’re different from the Hobbits. 

Sara Zwangobani will be seen playing the role of Marigold Brandyfoot in the much-awaited series. Revealing how the Hobbits and Harfoots are related but different, she explained in her statement to the media, “They are the ancestors of the hobbits. The difference between them is the way of their living. Harfoots don't have a home base like the hobbits did in later years. They are migratory, they're nomads, they take their homes with them, they travel the lands and they try to stay hidden from the wide world due to elements in their past.” 

Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl actor Dylan Smith will be seen as Largo Brandyfoot. He shared how many from the cast would often tag the Harfoots as the heart of the story, and are excited to witness the world of these integral beings. “I think they are in so far as they're probably the only world that doesn't have agency, over the story, whatever political negotiations, whatever sort of decisions that are made regarding the rise of the evil, all they do is suffer. We just receive, receive, receive,” he said.

“I was thinking of the Harfoots as having a little flame and if that flame goes out the whole Middle-earth is in trouble. So our reason for hiding, for moving is to keep that little flame alive and unlike the hobbits of the shire we're very conscious of what we're fighting for every day because there are no luxuries and we're constantly under duress and suffering,” Smith added. 

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power will release every week on Prime Video starting September 2, 2022, in English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam.