Spoiler Warning: Contains spoilers for ‘The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power’ season 2
Three Rings for the Elven-kings under the sky. Seven for the dwarf-lords in their halls of stone. Nine for Mortal Men doomed to die, and with last year’s TheLord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 2 finale, that just leaves One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne to go.
With Elendil himself, Lloyd Owen, set to join us at this year’s Supanova in Melbourne (29-30 March) and on the Gold Coast (12-13 April), we thought it timely to take a look into the forbidden Palantir and see what lies ahead for the peoples of Middle-earth in Rings of Power season 3.
First announced in 2017 and making its record-breaking premiere in 2022, Prime Video’s The Rings of Power has taken already taken audiences back to an age of Middle-earth where the Shire was yet to become home to Hobbit-kind, and the world had finally begun to heal from the fearsome wrath of the Dark Lord Morgoth during the First Age. However, Morgoth’s servant, and eventual successor, Sauron (played by Charlie Vickers) had his plans for dominion over the lands of Middle-earth, and last year’s season 2 finale saw those plans inch ever closer to fruition.
Cynthia Addai-Robinson as Queen Regent Míriel; Lloyd Owen as Elendil
With all the rings of power now forged, saved Sauron’s own One Ring, and the kingdom of Númenor now on the brink on destruction, things are beginning to look pretty bleak for the citizens of the Second Age. However, not all hope is lost, and showrunners Patrick McKay and J.D. Payne have not only confirmed that season 3 is on the way, but have also recently dropped a few hints about what viewers might expect.
THE FALL OF NÚMENOR WILL START TO BECOME A MAJOR FOCUS
Those familiar with Tolkien’s original lore will know that the island Kingdom of Númenor has a dark and watery fate ahead of it, and with Pharazôn (Trystan Gravelle) usurping the throne throughout season 2, the show is now poised to deliver on that promise.
In December last year, McKay revealed to ScreenRantthat while the primary focus for season 2 was “more about the creation of the Rings, and the Sauron and Celebrimbor story,” there are some major events planned for Elendil’s island home moving forward. With Sauron now done with his Elvish disguise as Annatar, Lord of Gifts, it is possible that season 3 will see him return to Númenor and put Pharazôn deeper under his malign influence.
THE DARK WIZARD WILL LIKELY BE REVEALED AS ONE OF THE BLUE WIZARDS
Ciarán Hinds as the “Dark Wizard”
The Rings of Power showrunners seem to enjoy creating mysteries with each of their seasons, with the show already seeking to obscure the true identities of both Sauron and Gandalf before their eventual reveals. Season 2 also introduced viewers to another mysterious character in the form of Ciarán Hinds’ Dark Wizard.
While many viewers were quick to see the parallels between Hinds’ character and the cinematic version of Saruman played by the late Sir Christopher Lee, during a recent Q&A on Reddit McKay and Payne were quick to shoot that idea down. Stating that they “have no plans or intention to have him be Saruman,” McKay admitted that he fully anticipates that of the five Istari in Tolkien lore (which include Gandalf, Saruman, and Radagast), the Dark Wizard represents one of the two unnamed Blue Wizards.
THE ONE RING WON’T COME EASILY TO SAURON
With season 2 showing the nine rings of men being forged and falling into Sauron’s hands, everything seems poised for the aspiring Dark Lord to craft his own ring and bring them all into darkness. However, in killing the Elven smith Celebrimbor in a fit of rage during the season finale, Sauron may have inadvertently put a major spanner in the works.
While Sauron’s own skills developed during his time as a servant to the Vala Aulë the Smith played a major role in aiding the forging of the first rings of power, Payne has revealed that he does not yet know everything he needs to in order to make the One Ring on his own. Likening the creation of the rings to the discovery of atomic power, Payne suggests that “Sauron was there for all the theoretical physics… but he wasn’t actually there when the first bomb was built in the laboratory.”
GALADRIEL WILL COME ONE STEP CLOSER TO BECOMING THE LADY OF LIGHT
Morfydd Clark as Galadriel; Charlie Vickers as Sauron
When Morfydd Clark’s Galadriel was first introduced in The Rings of Power season 1, it was a very different take on the character to the more serene Elvish lady featured in Tolkien’s writings and the Peter Jackson movie adaptations. Fearless and tempestuous, Clark’s Galadriel was obsessed with tracking Sauron down and delivering vengeance for her slain brother.
However, late last year, Clark spoke with ScreenRantand has hinted at some major changes ahead for her character in season 3. Citing the showdown her character had with Sauron in the season 2 finale as a pivotal moment in her character’s development, Clark suggests that moving forward “she’s kind of becoming so much closer to the Lady of Light that we know, which is the thing that will separate her from Sauron.”
WHEN TO EXPECT RINGS OF POWER SEASON 3
At this stage, Prime Video is still yet to announce when The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 3 will arrive, and even an official filming start date has not yet been confirmed. However, given the previous gap between seasons 1 and 2, it is unlikely that audiences will get a chance to see it until sometime later in 2026, or potentially even 2027.
Thankfully, however, Supa-Fans can help ease the wait by coming to pledge their allegiance to the leader of Númenor’s faithful and the future first King of Gondor, Elendil himself, when Lloyd Owen joins us at this year’s Supanova in Melbourne (29-30 March) and on the Gold Coast (12-13 April).