'Lord Of The Rings' actress wants Amazon’s Gandalf to be a woman

Amazon’s adaptation of Lord Of The Rings is already deep in development.

Over the summer we’ve learnt that Jurassic World’s J.A. Bayona will direct the first two episodes of the series, which won’t be a direct adaptation of the books and will revolve around stories set before The Fellowship Of The Ring.

Read more: Scotland loses out on lucrative Lord of the Rings shoot

We also now know that Game Of Thrones veterans Bryan Cogman and D.B. Weiss are working in consulting roles, production will once again take place in New Zealand, and it will cost in the region of £1 billion ($1.3 billion) to produce, making it the most expensive show television series ever.

We’ve also had some casting news, too, as it was confirmed that Will Poulter will take a lead role in the series, but now a veteran of Peter Jackson’s Lord Of The Rings movies has offered up her own advice on who should play Gandalf.

In fact, Kiwi actress Robyn Malcom, who portrayed Morwen in The Lord Of The Rings: The Two Towers, believes that Gandalf should be female in the TV show.

"Those old legends, those old mystical stories, they're so based within a patriarchal landscape," Malcolm explained to New Zealand’s Stuff. "Why not look at the magic of a matrilineal world where the magical powerhouses are women?"

Read More: Amazon Studios' 'Lord of the Rings' series will film in New Zealand

After recommending New Zealand actresses Rena Owen (Once Were Warriors) and Rachel House (Hunt for the Wilderpeople), Malcolm continued, "You need actors who have got gravitas and a real lot of personal power and a bit of brilliant —and they'll take this in the absolute way that it's meant- witchy poo energy.”

“If you need a big star and somebody that everybody knows and everybody already thinks of in Ian McKellen terms, then of course you go to Dame Judi or Eileen Atkins or Maggie Smith."

She even took to Instagram to show off several more potential candidates for the role.

Malcolm isn’t concerned about the Tolkien purists that might be offended by the idea of a female Gandalf, too, rightfully pointing out, “We’ve had female Hamlets. Why not?”

We’ll find out if the Lord Of The Rings TV show actually decides to go this way when it is released at some point in 2021.