Robyn Malcolm has hit back at a troll who sent her a death threat after she said the next actor to play Gandalf in The Lord of The Rings franchise should be a woman.
Malcolm said in an Instagram post her opinion attracted a death threat, with a person responding: "If you play Gandalf I will hunt you down and kill you".
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It was announced last month Amazon Prime will spend at least 1.5 billion producing the series in New Zealand.
The New Zealand actress told Heather Du Plessis-Allan on Newstalk ZB's drive show "we don't need another old dude" to play the wizard Gandalf.
The actress refused to put up with the hateful comment.
"I have blocked and reported you," she wrote about the troll.
She continued: "The [Lord of the Rings] books are what they are, no matter what, and clearly are very precious to many of you. But they are fiction, fantasy, and it's always important to have an open mind when you spend 5 billion to, once again, reimagine these stories."
She said people should keep an open mind and "examine all possibilities" for new adaptations of novels.
"I do understand that to some people mucking about with gender is an insult to the original work. LOTR devotees are incredibly passionate about the books."
"And always take heart that I have nothing to do with the show."