‘Rings of Power’ star: Makeup was hell, beard ‘weighs as much as a newborn baby’

nypost.com:

“Rings of Power” star Owain Arthur carried around a “newborn baby” while filming the new Amazon Prime Video series — in the form of a beard.In order to play Prince Durin IV in the show that debuted Thursday, he went through the wringer in the makeup chair and it didn’t stop there.The Welsh actor, 39, said the bushy, braided beard he wore all day on set weighed several pounds and came in 16 separate pieces.“[It was] attached to my face so it would move but not pull,” Arthur told Variety, adding the beard “weighs as much as a newborn baby.”“[The] hook takes a lot of the weight.

It’s also attached to the wig at the back,” he explained.Arthur said the team also decided to have him wear the beard lower on his face so he could “express” emotions “and not have the makeup be a hindrance.”Given the complicated process, Arthur had two artists working on him for over two and half hours daily to get his look just right for the part.

Jane O’Kane, head of the makeup and hair department for the fantasy series, broke down Arthur’s transformation process with Variety, noting she wanted Durin IV “to be larger than life and to have a big presence in a room amongst the heightened elves.”Makeup and hair artist Aly Webby would first apply Durin’s prosthetic ears and nose, and then fasten his beard.

Since the hair process was so extensive, it consisted of a full wig with neck-hair pieces, an under beard, sideburns, split chin parts, a mustache and even nostril strands.However, the hairs were not made from fake pelts: They were actually created from a mixture of human, angora goat, horse and yak hair. “We integrated real copper threads to give it something unique in light reflection and texture,” O’Kane explained. “There were also felt dread.