The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power unleashed Sauron (Charlie Vickers) in its Season 1 finale, ending with a shot of the Dark Lord striding into Mordor with a menacing grin on his face. Now, in our first look at Season 2, we get to see what J.R.R. Tolkien’s most iconic villain plans to do next.
The teaser for The Rings of Power‘s second season sees Sauron ditching his Halbrand disguise for a blonde, elven look. Could this be Annatar, his fair form from Tolkien’s legendarium? Or, since The Rings of Power differs majorly from Tolkien’s work, is this more of a remix of Sauron’s story? Either way, this new version of Sauron is committed to slaying, both in terms of rocking his new golden locks and in terms of literal murder. Just look at how he blasts a castle to icy smithereens!
Elsewhere in Middle-earth, elf Galadriel (Morfydd Clark) is determined to stop the monster she’s unwittingly unleashed upon the world. Her allies include Elrond (Robert Aramayo), the High King Gil-galad (Benjamin Walker), and the smith Celebrimbor (Charles Edwards), who forged the elves’ three rings of power.
Based on the teaser above, it looks like these won’t be the only magical rings in Middle-earth for long. We see dwarf Durin (Owain Arthur) contemplating a ring of his own. But was this made with the help of the elves, or with Sauron’s interference? How long until the Dark Lord corrupts the peoples of Middle-earth, one by one?
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2 premieres Aug. 29 on Prime Video.