MANILA, Philippines – With a legacy spanning decades and a strong fanbase to boot, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power showrunner J.D. Payne has the source material’s timelessness to thank.
“You’re always talking about [J. R. R. Tolkien’s] works, not being allegorical, but applicable to whatever’s going on in the world,” Payne told Rappler.
Whether they’re themes on the consequences of environmental devastation, the beauty of fellowship, and the corrupting influence of power, the fantasy series mirrors the best and the worst of the human condition. The same couldn’t be more true for its cast of mighty yet conflict-ridden protagonists, all of whom portray varying depictions of the classic hero.
In anticipation of the show’s season 2 premiere, Rappler spoke with the cast of The Rings of Power as they reflect on where they left off last season, and how each of their characters fare in what lies ahead.
Southlanders on never-ending trauma
One must not look too far from the tragic events of Season 1, which have since seen the likes of the characters played by Tyroe Muhafidin and Ismael Cruz Cordova deep in the trenches of strife and struggle during their last battle with Adar’s legion of Orcs and its turncoats.
“I mean it’s just like real life, it doesn’t stop. You know, it doesn’t matter what we’re going through, it doesn’t matter what happened yesterday. You can’t be like ‘Hey guys, let’s just chill, let’s just stop living for a second so that I can recover,’” Cordova said, likening the formidable elf Arondir’s journey to everyday life.
“So yeah, unfortunately, you won’t see Theo and Arondir just going on a picnic and like, having some pints,” he quipped.
When asked what’s in store for the grieving teenager after going through the most last season, Muhafidin also joked: “We go through more.”
For the two scene partners, there seems to be no end in sight for their trauma bond. But for Muhafidin, it’s how both men and elves act in the face of loss that ultimately defines their characters moving forward: “I think a big message, especially for our story in the season is that grief is not linear, every day is different. Everyone’s recovery is, some days are worse than others, but at the same time, life doesn’t stop moving. Time doesn’t stop.”
“The big thing about this season [for Theo] is learning to grow up and become a man and push past this stuff while also giving himself the space to breathe,” the Australian actor said.
Young Harfoots on a quest for something greater
In stark contrast to the trials encountered by young Theo, a duo of wide-eyed and hopeful Harfoots are gearing to, quite literally, step out of their comfort zones in answering the call of adventure. Played by Markella Kavenagh, Nori Brandyfoot assumes this new responsibility of The Stranger’s companion, finding herself realms away from the safe space that is her home and community.
“They have none of that protection, no kind of veil of ‘everything’s going to be okay,’” says Kavenagh.
“They’ve always been quite savvy so even if they had that [protection], they were always really resilient and stoic. That’s just within their nature.”
While the Harfoots’ storyline can come across as a drastic change in tone from the rest of the chaos akin to Middle Earth, Kavenagh finds this to be one of the more heartwarming opportunities to build on the show’s most universal messages.
“They know they have to continue, they know that all of this going around them but it feels true to life again when so much is happening around you but something that catastrophic happens. It kind of grounds these characters in a way and really the gravity really sets in.”
Once the cautious onlooker yet supportive friend, Megan Richards’ Poppy is now in for the ride as she veers off course from the rest of the Harfoots, joining Nori and The Stranger in their travels.
As Richards puts it, these young women are “carrying and creating history.”
“And there’s so much importance in that. Especially, you know, when were also sort of building on storytelling too. But yeah I think for Poppy anyway, it’s scary. There’s a different kind of weight on her shoulders,” she said.
Numenorians on hashing out political disputes
The double-edged sword of wielding power is also present beyond the conception of the three rings in season 1.
Plagued by immense loss both in Numenorian lives and their now-tainted reputation within and outside their picturesque society, it’s up to Cynthia Addai-Robinson’s Miriel to stand up for her people as Queen Regent. That is, while being contested by close consigliere and cousin Pharazôn, played by Trystan Gravelle.
“There’s a lot of interplay with these characters and because we’re looking at the sort of political intrigue of Numenor, it’s very rich for storytelling and drama,” Addai-Robinson told Rappler.
She adds: “I think it’s interesting for Miriel because it’s not really about her desire to have power, the position of Queen. It’s more about, you know, feeling she has to be the one to sort of lead and guide her people based on what she and only she has seen in Tar-Palantir.”
However, despite bearing the weight of interpreting Numenor’s “cataclysmic future” as well as being the rightful heir to the throne upon her father’s demise, Addai-Robinson reveals that very quickly into season 2, audiences will witness how that “doesn’t quite go according to plan.”
As for Gravelle, the conflict appears more inward, playing more into the dynamics between Tolkien’s fictional species and their unfair dispositions towards mortality. “I think Pharazôn is dealing with this fear, that desperation that one day, he will be no more. And that terrifies him. He’s absolutely beside himself.”
“I think with fear and the unjustness of it, that there’s another species there that will live forever and [he thinks] why should he have to deal with [being] a secondhand humanoid?”
In that same light, Gravelle suggests that, at the end of the day, Tolkien’s humankind couldn’t be any less different from that of reality: “We go about things and we go about our lives and sometimes you know it’s the right or the wrong way you know. But we’re just trying to, we’re humans and we’re just trying to survive.”
The first three episodes of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2 premiered on August 29. New episodes are available for streaming every Thursday on Amazon Prime Video. – Rappler.com