Beorn

"I don't need your service, thank you, but I expect you need mine. I am not over fond of dwarves; but if it is true you are Thorin (son of Thrain, son of Thror, I believe) and that your companion is respectable, and that you are enemies of goblins and are not up to any mischief in my lands – what are you up to, by the way?"

- The Hobbit: Queer Lodgings

Beorn was a Northman, a Shape-shifter, and a Beorning chieftain. The people of Beorn once inhabited the North of the Anduin valley between the Misty Mountains and Mirkwood during the last centuries of the Third Age. They guarded the Ford of Carrock from the Goblins and Wargs.

Background
Beorn was a warrior with great strength, who could turn into a great black bear. In human form, he appears as a tall, black-haired man with huge arms and a great beard. Beorn kept many animals at his residence, such as horses and dogs. His animals were all extremely intelligent; his dogs, for instance, could walk on their hind legs while carrying things with their forelegs, set the table, and able to speak. Beorn's horses could also understand what their master said. Beorn was also capable of speaking in the tongue of beasts, as he could communicate with bears. When he spoke to his dogs, his words sounded like barks twisted into some form of speech.

The Quest to Erebor


Beorn provided shelter to Thorin Oakenshield and his company of dwarves (12 others), Hobbit (Bilbo Baggins), and Wizard (Gandalf), and later helped them fight against an army of Goblins at the Battle of the Five Armies on November 23, 2941.

At the Battle of Five Armies Beorn killed the goblin chieftain Bolg. After the battle, Beorn accompanied Gandalf and Bilbo through their journey home until he reached his house.

Beorn's son Grimbeorn eventually took over his duties as chieftain in TA 3018.

The Hobbit film trilogy
Beorn is portrayed by Mikael Persbrandt in the films The Desolation of Smaug and upcoming There and Back Again. His appearance in the films is quite different than his description in the book and portrayals in other media. In the films, he has greyish-brown hair, a forked beard, shackles on his left arm, and a mohawk-like mane of hair. Beorn also mentioned his fellow Shape Shifters, who once lived in the mountains before Azog the Defiler came down from the north and killed or enslaved many of his people for sport. Beorn escaped the terrible fate of his kin (explaining the shackles on his arm), and claims that he is the last of their kind. He gives them horses to reach Mirkwood and provides escort to protect them from roaming orcs. Beorn appears to be aware of the dark presence in Dol Guldur.

His role has been substantially expanded, according to Peter Jackson, and his presence in Dol Guldur. LEGO set has lead to speculations that he will be featured in the Gandalf/Dol Guldur storyline.

Trivia
In early concepts, his bear form was rather monstrous, looking more likely that of a Troll or an Orc.

External link


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