Everything You Need to Know About Amazon’s Upcoming Lord of the Rings Series
Since it was first announced, Amazon’s new series The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power has had Tolkien fans burning with excitement and anticipation. Amazon’s tight-lipped approach to revealing any details about the upcoming series has only stoked that fervor even further.
But fear not. We at COGconnected have been collecting all the tidbits and breadcrumbs dropped in the last few months. And we present you with a Complete Guide with everything you need to know about The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power (with thanks to TVLine).
When will it debut?
We know that the series will premiere on September 2nd, 2022. It will air exclusively on Amazon Prime, the streaming service that comes with your Prime membership. So, if you already have Prime, then The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power is essentially free. If you don’t, then you might want to sign up sometime before September.
When and where will it take place?
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power will be set in Middle Earth during the Second Age. That means it will take place in the same place as The Lord of the Rings trilogy, but thousands of years earlier. It’s important to note that the Rings of Power will condense the events of the Second Age into a much shorter time frame than Tolkien’s original stories. This is so they can fit into a season.
Which characters will be in it?
The bad news is that no, The Rings of Power won’t feature Frodo, Sam, Merry and Pippin. But, it will have a few characters from The Lord of the Rings Trilogy. Here is a list of the characters we know will appear in The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power:
Sauron – while it isn’t clear how much we’ll actually see of the arch-villain, The Rings of Power is confirmed to be about his ascension to power, and his forging of the Nine Rings.
Galadriel – the elven queen of Lothlorien will be a prominent figure in the new series. However, she will be younger and more brash than the character we met in The Lord of the Rings trilogy.
Elrond – the series will partly chronicle Elrond’s rise to fame in the elven capital of Lindon.
Isildur – although he wasn’t a part of the Trilogy, his story was partly recounted in the Prologue of Peter Jackson’s movie. His big moment in the series will be that famous act of cutting the One Ring from Sauron’s finger.
High King Gil-galad – he helps to found the Last Alliance of Elves and Men.
Disa – a dwarven princess, she’ll have the distinction of being the first female dwarf depicted in an adaptation of Tolkien’s stories.
Prince Durin IV – from Khazad-dum, the ruined dwarf kingdom seen in the Trilogy.
Arondir – an elf character who is among the characters created just for the series.
Bronwyn – a human healer, she’ll apparently be involved in a “forbidden” relationship with the elf character Arondir.
Halbrand – another character new for the series, Halbrand will be a fugitive on the run from his past.
Celebrimbor – this is the elf who actually forges Sauron’s Rings of Power, the nine rings that cause so much trouble in the Trilogy.
Elanor “Nori” Brandyfoot – one of the more interesting additions made by the series will be the Harfoots (Harfeet?), a race distantly related to Hobbits. Elanor or “Nori” will be one of this new race.
Sir Lenny Harry – another Harfoot, this time an elder.
The Stranger – we still have not been given any information on The Stranger other than the fact that they will be in The Rings of Power.
** Gandalf (?) – to be clear, our favorite wizard has not officially been revealed as a character in The Rings of Power. But, he is an immortal being and it isn’t a crazy idea that we could see him (at least in some form) by the time the series reaches its final episode.
What will it be about?
Basically, think back to when you saw the Prologue to Peter Jackson’s The Fellowship of the Ring, and you’ll get the basic idea. The intro outlines Sauron’s rise to power, including his scheme to have nine Rings of Power forged. He gives those rings to nine kings — who would later become the Nazgul, or Ring Wraiths. The Rings of Power will also delve into the Last Alliance of Elves and Men. That was the force that repelled Sauron in an epic battle. Along with these events, of course, we will see many side stories and character arcs related to the main players.
Is it going to be like Peter Jackson’s movies?
Peter Jackson is not involved in The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. But the trailer indicates that it will look and feel a lot like his movie versions. That is good news. One change, though, is that The Rings of Power will include actors of color playing many roles, such as dwarves and elves. Whereas in Jackson’s movies, white actors played all these characters. That seems like a welcome change, honestly. It brings more diversity to the Tolkien universe. It’s also in keeping with what we’ve seen in other franchises, like Thor.
Should I watch it?
You know the answer to this one. Yes, of course you should watch The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. This is shaping up to be one of the biggest, most epic TV series ever made, and we guarantee you’ll regret it if you miss this one. Rumors are that Amazon has shelled out close to $1 Billion for this production, meaning no expense has been spared to bring Tolkien’s fantasy world and characters to awesome life onscreen. Make sure you’re there come September 2nd.
Well, that all we know so far about The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. But stay tuned to COGconnected as we continue to update you on all the latest intel on this epic series. How about you? Are you pumped for The Rings of Power? Let us know in the comments below!