Tauriel: “The Hobbit”s Failed Heroine

July 1, 2022 | Dara Marie | @thornfield_lane

Earlier this week, I discussed the hate The Hobbit film trilogy gets from fans. Today, I’m focusing on one plot piece that has received significant negative traction. 
Almost every Tolkien fan I’ve discussed The Hobbits with complains about the character Tauriel.

Tauriel, portrayed by Lost and Marvel’s Evangeline Lilly, is the captain of the guard in the woodland elf realm. She serves under King Thranduil alongside his son, Legolas. All we know of her backstory is that she is at least six hundred years old, having been under Thranduil’s protection and favor in this time. She first appears in the second movie, The Desolation of Smaug, when the dwarves are attacked by giant spiders in Mirkwood forest. She remains a side character throughout as well as in the third and final movie, The Battle of the Five Armies. 

Personally, I was obsessed with this character as a twelve-year-old watching The Desolation of Smaug in the theater. I have had to defend her many times. It’s bugged me over the years how much she’s railed on. 

Most people say they hate her because she wasn’t in the book. Fair. But, guess what? Legolas wasn’t in The Hobbit either. Nor was Galadriel. Or Radagast. But are you complaining about those characters? No. Sorry, you have to come up with a better argument than that. 

As much as I love Tolkien, he lacks female characters. The Lord of the Rings notably has Eowyn, Arwen, and Galadriel, but The Hobbit hasn’t a single female important to the plot. (Unless you count Lobelia Sackville-Baggins who tries to make off with Bilbo’s spoons as an antagonist.) It’s honestly frustrating as a female Tolkien reader to not have many relatable perspectives to see through. I will forever mourn that almost no one knows my favorite female Tolkien character–Idril, elfin princess of the fallen stronghold, Gondolin–because she’s featured in an obscure anthology novel, The Fall of Gondolin. 

Growing up the youngest and only sister to two older brothers, I was never allowed to play lightsabers or anything like that with them. I received standard sexism from boys in school about not being as strong as them and it affected me. A lot. And still does. So, I have always been drawn to strong female characters who disprove those stereotypes and worked to do the same in my own life. Tauriel symbolizes that for me, and therein lies the problem:

It’s not that she wasn’t in the books, it’s that people think she pushes a so-called ‘feminist’ agenda. What they fail to realize is feminism’s goal in movies isn’t to replace men but to put women on the same playing field, either in strength, quality character arcs, or screentime. 

As a writer and feminist, I can strongly proclaim: Tauriel does not represent feminism. Yes, she adds a female perspective and shares screentime alongside Legolas. But she fails in one key area that completely ruins her character: she does not have an arc of significant depth. 

I’m aware I’m often critical and have said this several times before about other adaptations/books, but I truly believe the screenwriters squandered Tauriel’s potential.

Her main role is as a love interest to both Legolas and the dwarf Kili. There’s nothing inherently wrong with this. Its downfall is that she is nothing more, making her simply a cheap plot point used to stretch a single child’s book into three movies. Her presence adds nothing to the plot. 

You could argue she is the reason Legolas is involved in the final battle because he follows her to Lake Town, but considering he wasn’t in the book and doesn’t do anything significant in that battle to change the plot, this doesn’t count. 

With both Kili and Legolas, there was so much potential for the romance to become something more. 

First, let’s look at her and Kili. 

I honestly adore the idea of this couple. I love the interracial aspect seeing as how elves and dwarves are mortal enemies. As a twelve-year-old, I geeked over these two. Watching them as an adult, I mostly cringe. 

They first meet when a giant spider corners a weaponless Kili away from the other dwarves. Tauriel glides through the trees, sweeping in and saving him. Then, she–rather romantically–locks him in a prison cell with some mild flirtatious banter. Their next encounter lasts slightly longer and they bond over a curiosity about nature. After just these two instances, undying love leads her to defy orders and follow him to ensure his survival after suffering a deathly injury. 

Huh?

That’s not…that’s not how it works. 

It’s staged to seem like ‘love at first sight’. Or, what I like to call ‘an excuse to lack depth’. Love at first sight does not exist. Attraction at first sight, for sure. Love takes far longer than a moment. 

Look: I get it. I go to school across the country from home so I have spent a lot of time in airports. You see a cute someone across the room and for the next four hours imagine your life together including your summer vineyard wedding and firstborn son named Jimmy who hates Brussel sprouts and grows up to be a collegiate athlete. Been there, girl. And, don’t get me wrong: I have a massive crush on Aidan Turner’s Kili. I would choose his short stature and smoldering eyes over Legolas any day (you can fight me in the comments). 

But is that initial attraction enough to risk (and receive) banishment for? To Romeo and Juliet commit-suicide-after-two-days level hopeless romantics: sure. The rest of us who try to stay at least partially grounded say: no. 

This couple could have been so much better if it wasn’t so rushed. I’ll touch more on that in a minute. For now, let’s take a look at her and Legolas: 

I think they could have done something similar with this couple that they did with Han Solo and Qi’ra in the Star Wars anthology film, Solo. In it, we see a young Han Solo who we know as a smuggler when he is older in the original Star Wars trilogy; similar to how we see a younger Legolas prior to Lord of the Rings. Han leaves his lover Qi’ra behind and when he finally finds her again years later, it’s clear she had a rough life due to his actions. Many fans view this as motivation for why he suddenly returns to help Luke in the original trilogy when he said he was going to leave: he tried to but knew he couldn’t live with himself because of what happened last time he abandoned someone in their time of need. 

With dwarves and elves being mortal enemies, perhaps Tauriel’s fondness for and the consequences of her favoring Kili softens Legolas, allowing him to become friends with Gimli down the road. Or her being so passionate about fighting against the Orcs even when it didn’t directly impact her could motivate him to become part of the fellowship.

Now that I’ve presented the concepts of what it could have been, let me tell you how I would have written her storyline if I had been the screenwriter:

Having been under the king’s protection for six centuries, the woodland elves are prejudiced against Tauriel. They believe she got her title as captain of the guard out of favor, not skill; the title should have been given to an older, more deserving elf. She does her best to prove herself but there’s only so much to do in the realm without any real enemies. The forest is beginning to feel small and unwelcoming. Her only true friend is prince Legolas, having grown up with him. His feelings for her have grown beyond friendship but she does not feel the same and mistakes his fondness for pity, just one more elf she has to prove herself to. 

All her life, Tauriel has been taught dwarves are dirty, rude, and selfish. But when she rescues Kili from giant spiders, he is far from ugly. In fact, he’s grateful. His awe makes her feel needed, worthy–something she hasn’t felt from the elves in a while, if ever. She wonders if she could be that for people if she were to use her skills beyond the forest. The spiders give her a purpose to bring this idea to Thranduil but the king shuts her down with no room for questions. She appeals her proposition to Legolas after Thranduil reveals his suspensions over his son’s love for her; she believes the prince will take her side, but he also discredits her with explanations of tradition and loyalty. 

Frustrated, she roams away from the feast of starlight and observes Kili from afar, trying to convince herself that tradition and what Thranduil taught her of the world are true. But they aren’t. This dwarf is nothing like she imagined; he’s a curiosity she can’t help striking up conversations with. He tells her of Erebor, their quest, and his mother’s talisman. She tells him about the elves’ love of starlight and her desire to travel beyond the forest. Soon, she has a fondness for him. 

Bilbo releases the dwarves via the river and they are immediately set upon by Orcs. They narrowly escape due to Kili’s bravery and the elves' assistance with the Orcs. Tauriel is initially distraught: who will respect her after letting the prisoners get away? But then she realizes: it will be enough to convince the king to let her lead hunters beyond the borders. Thranduil and Legolas once again refuse her, but her mind is already made up. She takes her weapons and leaves to carry out her plans without caring about the consequences. 

The following events remain the same: Legolas catches up to her and tries to get her to return but she refuses. They together travel to Lake Town where she saves Bard’s children from Orcs and heals Kili’s wound. 

As he’s recovering, he calls out to her and they talk quietly. There is no mention of love. Only gratitude and pleasure at seeing each other again. He tells her more about his travels and his mother.

In The Battle of the Five Armies, she gets Bard’s children and the dwarves into the canoe to get to safety, but seeing the dragon setting the town ablaze, she directs the children on where to go and jumps from the boat, helping people from their burning houses. The dwarves follow, trusting her after she healed Kili. Kili tries his best but falls a bit behind. He warns her when Smaug is flying near. 

When Kili asks her to come with them to Erebor, he does not go as far as to proclaim love. Instead, he invites her to be the first elf in over sixty years to see Erebor and notes her skills as useful to their cause. He gives her his talisman stone as a token of goodwill in case she changes her mind and ever wishes to come to the dwarf kingdom. 

The following events remain the same: Thranduil banishes her and she and Legolas travel to Mount Gundabad. (In my mind, Tauriel’s parents died in the same battle Legolas’ mother did and that is why she has been under Thranduil’s protection). She tries to stop Thranduil from leaving the battle, although I would change the dialogue between them:

Tauriel: You will go no further! You will not turn away. Not this time.

Thranduil: Get out of my way.

Tauriel: The dwarves will be slaughtered.

Thranduil: Yes, they will die. Today, tomorrow, one year hence, a hundred years from now. What does it matter? They’re mortal.

Tauriel: You think your life is worth more than theirs?

Thranduil: Is it not?

Tauriel: No. It is far less. That is what you will prove by running. Not strength, benevolence, honor–or whatever it is you convince yourself of. You will disgrace our people, disgrace the Valar with your weakness.

Thranduil: And what will you be? You think you know so much of the world? Of strength? Shall I show you what true weakness feels like?

Thranduil is about to initiate a fight when Legolas stops him. He and Tauriel run to Ravenhill where Thorin, Kili, Fili, and Dwalin are attempting to kill the Orc leader, Azog.

Upon encountering Bolg, she fights with skill befitting a captain of the guard defending a friend. By that, I mean she fights longer than what is in the final film because having her beaten so easily is sexist. (No, I will not elaborate, and yes, you can fight me in the comments. Moving on–). Bolg eventually wears her down and Kili dies saving her. 

Enraged at seeing Kili killed so savagely in front of her, she pushes past her injuries to charge Bolg with what strength she has left. She defeats Bolg but not before sustaining mortal wounds that kill her almost immediately after. 

You’re probably surprised I would kill her considering I just spent all this time trying to build her up. Honestly, I was surprised Peter Jackson left her alive. Considering her moral resolve and actions in the films, she definitely would have been with Legolas as part of the fellowship had she survived. I went into the final movie expecting her to die. At thirteen, I was relieved, but now, I think they swapped a potentially gripping plot piece with cheap romance. (“Why does it hurt so much?” “Because it was real.” …You knew him for maybe three days. Calm down.)

Letting her die would solidify her as Legolas’ motivation in Lord of the Rings: that’s enough for me. 

But, if you’re set on keeping her alive, here is how I would have done it:

When she kneels at his corpse, she mourns a new friend and what they could have been: the love that could have developed. 

She chastises Thranduil for his refusal to challenge his prejudice. She swears to never address him as her king or return to the woodland realm again. Legolas overhears and likewise refuses to return. 

The End. 

When creating this storyline, I tried to change as little as possible to make it obvious how easy it would have been to fix her character. Had they put in minimal effort, she could have been a highlight of the films. But no. They went with cheap romance instead. And for that, I will forever be disappointed. 

Had The Hobbits not been stretched into three movies, Tauriel would not have been needed at all. With the films as they are, however, she is. She serves her most basic purpose. No more, no less. 

I will always love this character but forever mourn her lost potential. 

Do you like Tauriel? How do you think she could have been improved? I'd love to hear from you! You can connect with me through thornfield.lane@gmail.com or on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and Twitter: @thornfield_lane.