Conservative Commentator Jack Posobiec Calls 'Lord Of The Rings' "Overtly Pagan"

An upcoming "Lord of the Rings" film has been the subject of online discourse this week, first after an announcement that Stephen Colbert would co-write the script. Now, the focus is on conservative commentator Jack Posobiec, who claimed the books on which the franchise is based are "overtly pagan."

"I’ve heard people try to make the argument that Lord of the Rings is overtly Christian and I hate to burst the bubble guys, but you’re just wrong. There’s nothing overtly Christian about Lord of The Rings. Uh, there’s no church in it. There’s no faith in it, There’s no Christ figure, there’s none of these things, and, honestly, Lord of the Rings, if it’s anything, Lord of The Rings is overtly pagan," Posobiec said this week.

There is certainly a question about how Christian the new film will be with Colbert's influence. But Christians and Catholics have long championed the religious themes of J. R. R. Tolkien's novel series.

Posobiec's take was quite polarizing on X.

"Only someone who has zero understanding of LOTR, or maybe has only watched the Peter Jackson films, would say this. A deeply embarrassing take," senior editor at The Federalist John Daniel Davidson responded.

"Are we surprised that the guy pretending to be Catholic – to the point of using an Etsy image to claim he owns a rosary – can’t identify Catholic themes in creative works?" NewsBusters' Nicholas Fondacaro responded.

"Love Jack but LOTR is so Catholic that Tolkien lost his friendship with CS Lewis due to his ardent support of Francisco Franco and his defense of the church against murderous communists," added Auron MacIntyre of The Blaze.

"Dumbest take of 2026. Maybe ever," said OutKick's Jon Root.

Scarlett Johnson offered perhaps the harshest criticism of Posobiec.

"J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of Rings is a masterpiece. The epitome of the heroes journey. A reminder that even the smallest person can carry the greatest weight… and still choose the right path," she began,

"J.R.R. Tolkien was a devout Roman Catholic, and his faith deeply shaped how he saw the world and told stories. Don’t let influencers think for you."

Posobiec might be influenced, no pun intended, by the adaptations of the film. But the religious themes of the novels are obvious. 

Now, whether this is an indictment on the influencer field as a whole is up for interpretation.