Fans have particularly celebrated the runtime. At approximately 21 hours (the Martin Shaw version is about 15 hours due to a slightly faster pace), Serkis takes his time, letting the sorrows and glories of Beleriand breathe. Listeners report re-listening to specific chapters—such as “Of the Ruin of Beleriand” or “The Voyage of Eärendil”—simply to re-experience the vocal high points.
Andy Serkis is no stranger to Middle-earth. His portrayal of Sméagol/Gollum in Peter Jackson’s film trilogies set the gold standard for motion-capture acting. Yet, narrating an audiobook requires a different set of skills. There are no visual effects or fellow actors to bounce off; there is only the microphone and the text. silmarillion audiobook andy serkis