Charlie Vickers, who plays Halbrand in Rings of Power, has revealed his reaction to discovering the identity of Sauron in the fantasy series. Warning, major spoilers ahead for the Rings of Power finale!
Of course, anyone who has seen Rings of Power episode 8 (or, anyone who had been paying attention throughout the series) knows that Halbrand himself is the dark lord of evil, Morgoth’s servant, Sauron. That, alongside the reveal that the Stranger is the wizard Gandalf, was the big twist at the end of Rings of Power season 1.
Rings of Power season 2, then, looks set to explore the fallout of that reveal, which will have huge implications. Importantly, it will want to address what it all means for Galadriel, who seemed to harbour growing romantic feelings for the ‘King of the Southlands‘. This was made possible by the fact that Galadriel’s husband Celeborn is missing in the series.
Now, Vickers has spoken about what it felt like to learn about his character’s true identity. Speaking to Screen Rant, the actor said that, when the showrunners told him about the truth behind his character, the knowledge was “thrilling”. He also said that along with the responsibility of playing the character, there was “a sense of privilege.”
Vickers explained “It was really cool [to learn that Halbrand is Sauron] because it was nice to know that the character had a lot planned for him. But to be honest, I felt a weight of responsibility and a real sense of privilege.”
He continued “And it was amazing to be able to portray this character at this stage in his journey because we’ve never seen him like this before. And I made sure I just took real care with my portrayal and learned as much as I could about the character. But it was more thrilling and exciting than anything.”
Vickers’ comments make it clear that he understands how important the Lord of the Rings character is. Sauron is one of the most significant characters in all of Middle-earth, responsible for the wars at the end of the Second Age and the Third Age. So, playing the character is a big responsibility, and it’ll be exciting to see where Vickers takes the character in Rings of Power season 2.
For more Middle-earth magic, check out our guide to Galadriel and Halbrand’s relationship explained.