In 2022, "Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power", a new prequel from Middle-earth, was released. The series from Amazon ties in with Tolkien's stories, even if the studio has taken some liberties on the plot. The reviews for the first season were pretty mixed - nevertheless, the second season is due to start this year. As there is some movement in the cast and initial information about the plot is already doing its rounds, we want to take a closer look at the sequel of the billion-dollar project.

Storyline

"The Rings of Power" Season 2 continues to be set in the Second Age of Middle-earth and revolves around the battle against the newly strengthened Sauron. Having previously had to hide his true self, the dark ruler can now give free rein to his malice. Three of the 20 famous rings have already been forged. The question now is how he can spoil the remaining rings for the dwarves and humans despite unmasking himself. No doubt he will also start on the further shaping of Mordor, which he founded by creating Mount Doom.

However, this endeavor should certainly not be that simple, because in addition to Adar, the lost Isildur will also play a role for sure. The showrunners have already teased that the season finale will include a major battle that will take place over two episodes. It will also continue the story of the Stranger, who was introduced in the final episode of last season as the good equivalent of Sauron. Apparently, a powerful master is placed at his side to teach him the art of magic.

On the island of Númenor, a change of power, following the death of the king, is imminent . As we know, the kingdom is threatened with a grim fate and total destruction. On the other hand, the founding of Rivendell is going to play a role in the series. However, it is not known yet, whether we will see this in this season or not.

Having said this, one piece of news should make the hearts of all Lord of the Rings fans beat faster: Tom Bombadil and his wife Goldberry are going to make an appearance in the second season. We can well imagine that the Harfooters will bump into him on their journey. The spider Shelob, which we already know from "The Return of the King", is also set to make an appearance in this season.

Cast

The cast of the first season remains largely the same: Morfydd Clark will once again take on the role of Galadriel and Charlie Vickers also returns as Sauron. Robert Aramayo also plays Elrond again and Owain Arthur the dwarf Durin IV.

However, there is one important change: the recasting of Adar. The orc father and fallen elf was one of the most interesting characters in the first season. This made the news that his actor Joseph Mawle would be replaced even more surprising. No official reason has been given for this yet. However, the decision seems to have been made long before the release of the first season, as Mawle did not take part in the promotional tour for the series. The actor will be replaced by Same Hazeldine. The British actor most recently had roles in the Apple production "Slow Horses" and in the Netflix series "Sandman". As Adar was one of the most popular roles in the first season, Hazeldine is definitely taking on a difficult legacy.

But there are also all kinds of new roles: So we finally get to see Celeborn, the husband of Galadriel. He is played by the young Brit Calam Lynch. Lynch had his breakthrough in the World War II drama "Dunkirk" and was lately starring in "Bridgerton". A new important character will also appear among the dwarves: Navri- the dwarf who, together with Celeborn, will build the magical doors of Moria. Navri is played by Kevin Eldon, who last played a role in "Napoleon". Nia Towle, on the other hand, is still new to the movie business - she will play a human woman named Estrid, although her significance is not revealed yet.

A new group of humans from Middle-earth, which we have not yet seen, will also make an appareance in the second season. One character of the group will be played by Gavi Singh Chera, but his role is still unknown. But Adar and Sauron will also have support. Amelia Kenworthy will slip into the role of an evil Elf. Two other newly introduced elves are also known: These will be played by Jamie Bisping and Selina Lo.

Production

A total of three women are directing "The Rings of Power" season 2: Charlotte Brändström already directed the first season. She will be supported by Louise Hooper and Sanaa Hamri. The second season is due to be released in the fall or winter of 2024. An exact date has not yet been set, but it shouldn't be too long before we have more detailed information. You will definitely hear about it in our news. In total, the series is set to include 5 seasons.