The first Dark Lord of Middle-earth has been defeated, yet, evil still lurks in the shadows. From the deep north emerges, the second Dark Lord, the servant of Morgoth, none other than Sauron (Charlie Vickers) himself. The second season of Prime Video‘s big-budget series, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, returns on August 29, and with it comes the full emergence of the enemy of Middle-earth. While he hid behind the human persona of Halbrand in the first season, Sauron will return with an even deadlier deception in the coming season, with the sinister elven disguise of Annatar, the Lord of Gifts. When Rings of Power returns, audiences will watch as Sauron builds up his strength, and deploys a whole host of deadly creatures to torment the inhabitants of Middle-earth.
By the end of the first season, Mount Doom had been born in the heart of the Southlands, marking the dominion of Sauron. With Sam Hazeldine‘s Adar as leader of the Orcs, Sauron will plot to unleash war on the rest of the world soon. One of his means of bringing Middle-earth to its knees will be the Barrow-wights. Empire Magazine has released a first look image of these ghoulish beings which are set to arrive in Season 2. In J.R.R. Tolkien‘s lore, wights were evil spirits who roamed and harassed the world of the living. In particular, the Barrow-wights in Tolkien’s works were sent by the Witch King of Angmar to inhabit the burial ground of Tyrn Gorthad and prevent the resurrection of the fallen Dúnedain kingdom of Cardolan.
It will be interesting to see how the second season of Rings of Power incorporates the Barrow-wights into its storyline, given that, according to Tolkien’s lore, the Barrow-wights emerge after the formation of the Arnorian Kingdom and the sinking of Numenor. However, it will be the first time the wights appear in any live-action adaptation except for a little-seen Russian TV adaptation in 1991. Peter Jackson‘s trilogy cuts out the wights as the ghoulish creatures encounter the Hobbits on their way to the Prancing Pony to meet Aragorn in the novel. Incorporating the Barrow-wights will help the series continue building on established lore, following the previously announced addition of Tom Bombadil (Rory Kinnear).
It’s the Age of the Villains on ‘The Rings of Power’ Season 2
Much of the promotional material for the second season has been driven largely by the perception that Sauron will grow immensely powerful this coming season and take the fight to Men, Elves, Dwarves, and Hobbits (Harfoots). Showrunners J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay have teased the battles to come, noting that the coming season is about the villains, not the heroes. They said:
” But Season 2 is all about the villains . This time, Sauron’s agenda sets everything in motion: Adar (Sam Hazeldine , taking over the role from Joseph Mawle) and his army of orcs; Galadriel (Morfydd Clark), Elrond (Robert Aramayo]) and Gil-galad (Benjamin Walker) and their armies of elves – all of which will come crashing together in the most ambitious battle our show has seen yet, a battle from which many big players may not make it out alive.”
While Sauron’s strength grows, the rest of Middle-earth will not stand idly by and watch him run them over. High King Gil-galad (Benjamin Walker), Galadriel (Morfydd Clark), and Elrond (Robert Aramayo) will rally their allies of men and dwarves to combat the forces of evil. The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2 will premiere onPrime Video on August 29. Season 1 is streaming now on Prime Video. See the new image above.
via Collider