The Lord of the Rings saga created many popular characters, but few are as beloved as the native Mirkwood Elf, Legolas. Serving as the breakout role for Orlando Bloom, Legolas was a key member of the Fellowship of the Ring and a formidable warrior. He was such a fan-favorite character in the original Lord of the Rings trilogy that Peter Jackson changed the source material and included the character in The Hobbit movies as well. While those movies were not as well-received, it was reassuring to have Legolas in the mix.

However, with The Hobbit movies taking place in the Lord of the Rings timeline before the events of The Fellowship of the Ring, there were questions as to what the Elf had been up to in between. Since Legolas was not included in The Hobbit novel, the movies invented a story for him, and it revealed more about the character while also loosely connecting to his journey in the Lord of the Rings movies. From his character growth to the relationships he forms, Legolas’ time between the Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit movies suggests another epic Middle-earth journey.

20Legolas Met Aragorn

“Strider” Was Teased At The End Of The Hobbit Movies

 

One of the major complaints about The Hobbit movies was that they clearly live in the shadow of the Lord of the Rings movies. Legolas’ inclusion in the story is one key example as The Hobbit movies’ runtimes are padded with references and hints to what is to come as if reminding the audience of the more successful trilogy. One standout moment of fan service comes at the end of The Battle of the Five Armies when Thranduil advises Legolas to seek out a man named “Strider.”

While it seems like a pointless nod to another iconic character, it’s interesting that it is implied that Legolas and Aragorn met between the two movies. This would also give more context about why Legolas knows Aragorn is the true high king. Perhaps their meeting made him a more level-headed and open-minded person. However, if they did meet, it was likely brief. When everyone met in Rivendell, they didn’t act like close friends and still had a long way to go in their relationship.

19Legolas’ Feelings For Dwarves Became Complicated

The Elf’s Friendship With Gimli Took Time

Elves often have a poor outlook on Dwarves, thinking of them as thieves and simple folk. Legolas felt no differently, and it was a prejudice that seemed to be inherited from his father. He only helped the Dwarves out because it was what Tauriel wanted. However, through meeting them, Legolas did get to see that there was much more to them than being gold-obsessed mountain dwellers. It made him realize they were capable and loyal warriors, too.

That didn’t erase his ill feelings towards them, though. He still felt betrayed and heartbroken over Tauriel choosing a lowly Dwarf over him and the damage their quest for old wealth and history caused. Indeed, while Legolas butts heads with Gimli when they first meet, it is the Dwarf who is more intolerant. Legolas is the one who seems to be more willing to form a bond with Gimli.

This leads to the memorable Lord of the Rings quote in Return of the King when Gimli suggests annoyance at dying side by side with an Elf, to which Legolas replies, “What about side by side with a friend?”

18Legolas Left Mirkwood

He Went To See The Outside World

Historically, despite times of war, Elves didn’t stray far from their homelands, and even then, they often only traveled to other Elven kingdoms. After losing Tauriel and falling out with his father, Legolas decided he needed to leave Mirkwood for a time. His fairly sheltered life would now be exposed to the various peoples and races of Middle-earth. Fans may never know where Legolas went during those 60 years.

However, it is these travels that would have proven essential for Legolas’ role in the Lord of the Rings movies. The Elves are generally seen to keep to themselves and avoid getting mixed up with the affairs of other races. When Legolas is introduced in The Fellowship of the Ring, he is more compassionate to others and willing to venture out with the rest of the heroes to escort Frodo to Mordor. It is likely he would not have been so selfless without his experiences outside of Mirkwood.

17Legolas Changed His Preferred Fashion

His Clothes Became More Practical

 

In The Hobbit, Legolas sports a fair amount of ornate outfits. He has some with impressive leaved shoulder adornments and a lot of layers covering him. While they separate him from the other bowmen in Tauriel’s guard and ensure that people know of his high-born status, these outfits are clunky. It wouldn’t be surprising if they sometimes got in the way of battle. By contrast, his clothing choices were simplified a lot by The Lord of the Rings.

Though he appreciates his high-born status more, he wears simple tunics and thin armor that fit his fighting style. They’re light and airy for flexibility and agility but still have a little protective padding. Legolas has become a stronger, smarter warrior in the years between, and it shows. It is another clue to how his adventures on the road and away from his usual comforts changed him for the better.

16Legolas Kept His Travels Close To Home

His Sense Of Elf Community Was Important To Him

Legolas didn’t want to abandon his homeland completely

Legolas is implied to have spent quite a few years traveling after the Battle of the Five Armies, but it’s clear he didn’t want to go too far away from home. Many important places that don’t seem that far away from Mirkwood are foreign to him in The Lord of the Rings. Though he wanted to explore and focus on righting himself, Legolas didn’t want to abandon his homeland completely.

Despite all of his disputes with his father, he still cares about the kingdom he’s built. It is only during The Lord of the Rings, when the fate of the world is at stake, that Legolas starts to travel much further from home. While The Hobbit movies can be criticized for a lot of things, one aspect they improve on over the Lord of the Rings movies is Legolas’ role as an Elf. The first trilogy didn’t see him interact with the Elf community much, but the prequels do a great job of demonstrating how important it is to him.

15Legolas’ Social Skills Deteriorated

The Lord Of The Rings Presents A Friendlier Yet More Awkward Elf

During The Hobbit, Legolas’ character is much more troubled and headstrong. He’s focused on hunting with the guard and spending time with Tauriel. In the majority of The Lord of the Rings, the bowmaster is known for a lot of head-scratching, off-putting, and even hilariously obvious statements. While Orlando Bloom barely looks like he aged between the two trilogies, these aspects of Legolas’ personality do make him appear more youthful and awkward in the Lord of the Rings movies compared to his brooding intensity in The Hobbit movies.

However, this awkwardness could be another sign of how he changed over the years. While Legolas is more of a conversationalist in The Hobbit movies, they show him around his own people and in his world of comfort. Perhaps the Lord of the Rings movies showcase how poor his social skills are once he ventures outside of his isolated world and has to interact with other people. In any case, Legolas is a much more lighthearted and even funny character in the Lord of the Rings movies.

14Legolas Began Taking His High-Elf Status Seriously

The Elf Embraced More Responsibility

The Legolas whom fans meet in The Hobbit has little to no interest in the larger issues of the world. Instead, he just wants to adventure through the woods with his bow and his good friend/object of affection, Tauriel. Despite being the high-born son of the king, he has no interest in those duties. He’d rather be a common member of the guard.

Over time, between The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, Legolas grows a respect for his high-born status and the duties that come with it. Now, he works as an ambassador for his people and is very willing to go on dangerous missions that will save Mirkwood and the world. Before, however, all he cared about was the small world around him. As he matured, though, he grew into the high-born hero he was always meant to be.

13Legolas Got Over Tauriel

He Doesn’t Seem Concerned With Romance Later In Life

Tauriel truly threw a wrench in Legolas’ life when he fell in love with her. She was brave, fierce, and a protective leader of the guard. He was meant to be the dutiful son of King Thranduil, but in loving her, he became a stubborn, masterful archer instead. He loved exploration and adventure over his duties. Once she fell in love with someone else, though, that lifestyle was shattered for him and he focused instead on adventuring on his own.

In The Lord of the Rings, Legolas doesn’t speak at all of lost love. Instead, he’s wholly focused on saving the world he loves and protecting the people in it. She broke his heart, but he refused to let losing her break his spirit. This adds to the unpopularity of this love triangle in The Hobbit movies. With the Lord of the Rings presenting Legolas as this stoic hero, it didn’t feel right that he would be so childish in a romance like this even if he was a slightly younger Elf at that point.

12Legolas Reconciled With His Heritage

He Embraced His Elf Community

The rebellious Legolas seen in The Hobbit is hardly the person he ends up becoming. Fed up with the rules of being high-born, or the restrictions his father insisted upon, or who he was expected to be, the Elf was more than happy to traverse the woods with “common Elves.” He seemed exhausted with his heritage and what it meant for him, a conflict the likes of Arwen also had to contend with.

After some time to reflect alone, though, he came to more of a compromise between his interests and his heritage. In The Lord of the Rings, Legolas is still an explorer, a fighter, and a bit of an outlier. However, he takes his history and what he needs to do to help his people seriously. It is one of the themes of the Lord of the Rings movies, with these characters stepping up to take their place in history.

11Legolas’ Priorities Changed

The LOTR Character Went From Self-Centered To Selfless

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Much like in the books, a younger Legolas had very simple priorities: he did the things that made him happy. During The Hobbit, he wanted to be a forest archer and spend time with Tauriel. These things were very selfish and also deliberately against his father’s wishes. In The Lord of the Rings, however, Legolas isn’t a carefree woodsman in love with his guardsman. He’s now very focused on doing what’s best for Middle-earth and using his bow skills, “Elf eyes,” and general experience to help make that happen.

His priorities have shifted towards the greater good, not just what’s good for him. Between the two movie series, Legolas grew into an impressive member of the Fellowship who took the responsibility of their mission very seriously. Unfortunately, this is one of the factors that also makes the Lord of the Rings version of Legolas a lot more likable than the version in The Hobbit movies.
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10Legolas Became More Cooperative

He Learned To Follow

Given the Elves’ tendency to look out only for their own interests, it is not surprising that Legolas is not much of a team player in The Hobbit movies. Even when his goals align with the goals of the Dwarves, he shows reluctance in working with them. He follows his own instincts and doesn’t take orders from anyone but himself, showcasing the arrogance of his youth.

Once the high council meets in The Fellowship of The Ring, however, he is one of the first people to offer his support and the only Elf to do as such. Even in such a dire situation, he was the only one willing to cooperate and try to get the Ring safely to Mordor. He recognizes his place in the larger mission and he even begins to see Aragorn as the leader, taking instruction from him without hesitation.

9Legolas Earned His Father’s Trust

Legolas And Thranduil’s Fractured Relationship Seems To Have Healed

Thranduil and Legolas fight all throughout The Hobbit, arguing over what is best for the Elves — particularly, of course, Legolas. By the end of The Hobbit, through his valor and dedication, Thranduil gave his son his respect and even encouraged his travels. However, that didn’t mean that Thranduil trusted his son with the safety of the kingdom. That trust was broken when he chose Tauriel over his people and chose travel over staying.
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Over time, though, the two eventually built up that trust. After all, Legolas was the representative Thranduil sent to Rivendell not only to warn of Gollum’s escape but also to help plan the destruction of the One Ring. It is likely that Thranduil saw the maturity Legolas gained during his travels, while Thranduil may have also softened his stern demeanor. He clearly has more faith in his son to do right by his people.

8Legolas Was Named An Ambassador For Mirkwood

The Elf Adopted A True Position Of Power

Legolas was merely running with the guards of Mirkwood in The Hobbit when Bilbo and company first meet him. He may have been the son of the king, but he hardly enacted any of the duties that one might expect from him. He wasn’t a dignitary or a diplomat. The rebellious Elf was just a great bowman of the woods and couldn’t match the stature of an Elf like Galadriel.
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Clearly, many things changed by the events of The Lord of the Rings. After all, Legolas became a representative of his people and an ambassador to important councils. While his father watches over their lands, he takes care of faraway matters. It is another sign of Legolas forming more of a connection with his community and embracing the responsibility that he felt he owed to his people by serving them.

7Legolas Became A Legendary Bowman

His Skills Made Him One Of Middle-earth’s Greatest Warriors

Legolas proved himself to be one of the greatest warriors in the Lord of the Rings universe, so it is interesting to see him in The Hobbit before he had fully honed his skills. While he was certainly still an impressive fighter and bowman, he was under the tutelage of Tauriel who was helping him to truly master his bow and arrow skills. He is formidable in The Hobbit movies, but he becomes legendary in the Lord of the Rings movies.
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Depending on the order fans watch the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit movies, Legolas’ chronological journey as a warrior can be quite dramatic. He is responsible for some of the best action moments in the trilogy, such as scaling the troll, using a shield like a surfboard to ride into battle, and single-handedly taking down an oliphaunt. It would be hard to believe he would be capable of such things after only seeing him in The Hobbit movies.

6Legolas Started To Diverge From His People

He Goes Against Certain Traditions

Legolas eventually reconnected with his people

Though Legolas was rebellious in The Hobbit, it wasn’t much about rebelling against Elves. Instead, it was about rebelling against his father. When it came to Elven customs and heritage, he was much like his other Elves: sheltered, married to the woods, and staunch isolationists. However, The Hobbit ends with Legolas deciding to stay out of the forest and continue to explore.

Legolas eventually reconnected with his people, but he began to diverge from their traditionalist views. He often left the forest. He was making close friendships with other races, even Dwarves. When The Lord of the Rings ended, he even brought Gimli to the Undying Lands as his dearest companion, which is unheard of. While proud of his people and their culture, Legolas became an outlier among his race. Seeing him as more open-minded compared to the rest of the Elves further cemented him as a lovable hero.

5Legolas Abandoned Romance For Friendship

His Greatest Relationship Was With His Friend, Gimli

Loving Tauriel was a particularly harrowing event for Legolas. So much so, in fact, that he never shows any interest in romance ever again. He never even talks about romance in The Lord of the Rings trilogy. While he became averse to falling in love, he did not become loveless. Legolas traded romance for strong, loving companionship among friends.

In the years after The Hobbit, he began finding heroes like him that he could relate to and learn from — the kind of people who could make him stronger. He met Aragorn and Gandalf first. By The Fellowship of The Ring, he grew close to the entire group and those friendships lasted him the rest of his life. He even brought Gimli, his dearest companion, into the Undying Lands with him. He was the only Dwarf ever to be invited.

4Legolas Kept Gollum Captive

The Elf Met Several Key Characters From The Lord Of The Rings

Though The Fellowship of the Ring was the first time many of the key characters met each other, Legolas was acquainted with several of them from a previous event. Before The Fellowship of the Ring, Gandalf saw the danger in Gollum and worked with Aragorn to capture him. They brought the deranged creature to Mirkwood to keep him captive and away from Mordor. However, Gollum was able to escape with the help of orcs.

As the son of Mirkwood’s king, Legolas undoubtedly was a part of keeping watch of Gollum. However, even if he didn’t, the initial reason he was heading to Rivendell was to pass along the information that Gollum had escaped. Unfortunately, almost all of the Fellowship had to deal with the warped, tortured monster at one point or another. However, in a twisted way, this means that Gollum helped bring the Fellowship together and kick off the entire saga.

3Legolas Stopped Mourning His Mother

He Healed From His Past Loss

The biggest barrier between Thranduil and his son was the passing of his wife. Legolas always wanted to talk more about losing her, but Thranduil refused. It’s implied that Legolas was too young to know her very well, which helped cause this rift. Though his affection for Tauriel could be blamed for his rebellion in The Hobbit, it was more likely due to this tension with his father. After all, this conflict is exactly why he is more interested in a “common Elf” than any high-born expectations.

In The Lord of the Rings, though, Legolas has resolved this conflict within himself and with his father. It’s not weighing on him like it does in The Hobbit. Instead, he has evolved into a well-balanced Elf. Once again, this helps to present him as a more entertaining character in the Lord of the Rings movies, instead of the Elf who is still brooding over his past losses.

2Legolas Aged 60 Years

The Elf Barely Aged But Matured Greatly

The passage of time is complicated in the Lord of the Rings universe, especially when it comes to the Elves. For instance, Galadriel and Elrond appear in both The Rings of Power TV series as well as the Lord of the Rings movies, despite them taking place centuries apart. Likewise, after 60 years passing between The Hobbit movies and the Lord of the Rings movies physically, Legolas didn’t age a day. However, the passage of time did affect him mentally, as he has grown from the hot-headed Elf he once was.
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Over more than half a century, this king’s son matured greatly. He started The Hobbit brash, heartbroken, rebellious, and lovestruck. During the saga of destroying the Ring, he is a much more responsible, dutiful, and calming presence. Legolas has changed into an admirable hero instead of a headstrong young bowman. For Elves, that’s a lot of growth in such a short time, especially when they’re known to live for thousands of years.

1Legolas Established His Individuality

He Discovered His Strengths & Used Them To Help Others

He’s not a leader

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The Legolas of The Hobbit struggles greatly with finding his own ground. He’s either following what Tauriel wants, rejecting his father’s wishes, or generally following someone’s orders. He’s not a leader and he doesn’t have a sense of what he would choose in dire situations. His role changes depending on who he’s with, never feeling like he has his own direction in life.

In The Lord of the Rings, he has grown into a grounded, confident individual. Legolas knows who he is, what he’s good at, and what he needs to do very well. In any fight, he is quick to spring into action and get things done. The turmoil he felt at the end of The Hobbit series and the growing he did over those next 60 years made him into the invaluable archer who helped save all of Middle-earth.