Azog

Azog the Defiler
Vital statistics
Birth	Third Age
Death	TA 2941
Age	Unknown
Fate	Killed by Thorin.
Physical attributes
Hair color	Bald
Eye color	Blue
Gender	Male
Weapon	mace
Race	Orc
Actor	Manu Bennett

Azog the Defiller is the central antagonist of Sir Peter Jackson's The Hobbit movie trilogy (with Smaug as the true main antagonist).

He is the main antagonist of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies, and a supporting antagonist in The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug.

He was an Orc Chieftain who commanded the Orcs of Moria and had sworn allegiance to Sauron to destroy the Line of Durin. In TA 2790, he led legions of Orcs at the Battle of Azanulbizar and killed Thrór, but lost his hand by the king's grandson Thorin, would cause Azog to seek revenge on the Dwarf.

Biography

Early life

Of Azog's origins we know little; he was the chief of the Gundabad Orcs that took Moria, the grandest and most famous of the mansions of the Dwarves. The average lifespan of an Orc is unknown, but he was one of those sent to Moria by the Dark Lord Sauron in the year TA 2480.

Battle of Azanulbizar

In the year TA 2790, Azog led a legion of Gundabad Orcs to attack an army of Dwarves, led by Thrór, Thráin, and Thorin, that attempted to retake ancient kingdom of the Dwarves. Due to King Thrór's desire to revisit and refound the lost realm, this led to the start of the Battle of Azanulbizar, the final battle in the War of the Dwarves and Orcs. During the battle, Azog swore an oath to his forefathers that he would wipe out the line of Durin and the first dwarf to engage was Thrór. Azog and Thrór battled each other throughout the battle, but the mighty Chieftain managed to overpower him and slew Thrór by beheading the King.

After killing Thrór, Azog continued to fight and engaged Thráin, who was destined to avenge his father and prevent the Chieftain from killing his own son. Azog managed to beat him and sliced off his finger in order to take the last of the Seven Dwarf Rings. After ordering his servants to take Thráin to Dol Guldur as a prisoner, Azog fought against Thorin and dueled him throughout the battle. As he was this close in finishing the dwarf prince, Thorin used an oaken branch as a shield and managed to cut off his left forearm. Azog screamed in pain and was dragged off by a few fellow Orcs that came to his rescue. Thorin believes Azog to have died from his wounds, but it is revealed that he survived the battle.

Behind the scenes

• Azog was portrayed by Manu Bennett in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, The Desolation of Smaug, and the upcoming The Battle of the Five Armies, through voice and motion capture.
• Azog was the last minute digital addition to the first film, originally, he was going to be an actor in prosthetics, but Peter Jackson declined the idea twice because he found the effect lacking prescene and had Weta Digital to create Azog as a digital character. The first design appeared as Bolg in the first film being injured by Dwalin in the Battle of Azanulbizar (which he would later be replaced with a digital character for the second and third films) and the second design appeared as Yazneg, the ill-fated lieutenant.

Azog in the teaser trailer of The Desolation of Smaug.

• In the teaser trailer of The Desolation of Smaug, Azog was present during the ambush in Mirkwood, climbed up the walls and roared at his party's enemy, but in the theatrical cut however, he was replaced with an unidentified Orc.

Appearances

• The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (First appearance)
• The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
• The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies
• LEGO The Hobbit: The Video Game

Sources

• The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey: Chronicles: Art & Design (Mentioned only)
• The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey Chronicles: Creatures & Characters
• The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug: Chronicles: Art & Design
• The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug: Chronicles: Cloaks & Daggers