Get ready to return to Middle-Earth! The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim is hitting theaters this Friday, December 13, and while it’s been a few years since we’ve seen Middle-Earth on the big screen, we couldn’t be more delighted.

This is the first animated LOTR film to hit theaters since Ralph Bakshi’s 1978’s The Lord of the Rings. To celebrate, we’re bringing you our interview with the terrific stars of the film Gaia Wise and Laurence Ubong Williams.

The War of the Rohirrim is directed by visionary anime director Kanji Kamiyama, and tells the story of Helm Hammerhand (Brian Cox) and his daughter Héra (Wise) as they are thrust into a war between House Hammerhead and the Dunlending army to determine the fate of Helm’s stronghold Hornberg. Williams plays Fréaláf Hildeson in the film, Héra’s cousin.

Both Wise and Williams bring so much gravitas to their respective roles and performances. Through their vocal work alone, they transcend these characters beyond what was just written in the script, and allowing the audience to truly connect with them on an emotional level, giving weight and investment into characters we’ve never met before in this franchise. Wise in particular does a stellar job with Héra, a character that was previously unnamed in Tolkein’s writings, but proves to be an instant favorite due to her complexity and strength.

We were able to chat with Wise and Williams about their respective characters and what it was like to join The Lord of the Rings franchise. See what they had to say about it here:

The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim hits theaters this Friday, December 13!