‘I have no idea’: The Rings of Power’s Daniel Weyman doesn’t know if The Stranger will meet Sauron in season 3, but he’s open to it
Is a first encounter between The Stranger and Sauron on the cards next season? Don’t bet on it, one of The Rings of Power’s stars says.
Full spoilers immediately follow for The Rings of Power season 2’s final episode.
The Rings of Power‘s Daniel Weyman doesn’t know if The Stranger/Gandalf will encounter Sauron next season, but he’s certainly not ruling it out.
Speaking to me ahead of The Rings of Power season 2‘s final chapter, Weyman – who’s still processing the fact that he’s actually playing Gandalf – admitted he had “no idea” if Middle-earth’s most famous wizard would run into the Dark Lord. Nevertheless, it’s something that the Prime Video star would be open to, even if he acknowledges that Gandalf wouldn’t even know if he’d crossed paths with Morgoth’s successor.
“I’m still not sure how much Gandalf knows what Sauron means,” Weyman confessed. “The only thing he’s got to go on is this line that Tom [Bombadil] has fed him. You know, that his task will be to defeat, or try to defeat, the Dark Wizard and Sauron. He understands it as a kind of ‘close your eyes’ feeling of darkness enveloping Middle-earth, but I don’t know if he knows about Sauron’s links to Morgoth, Sauron’s history, his ability to shapeshift, or where Sauron physically is, but that’s all stuff to look forward to.”
Sauron has other things on his mind heading into season 3 (Image credit: Prime Video)
There are things, though, that Weyman and Sauron star Charlie Vickers already know and/or have teased about future seasons. As I mentioned, Weyman can finally tell the world that The Stranger is Gandalf, even though we’ve all suspected as much since The Rings of Power season 1 finale and The Rings of Power season 2 episode 4. Meanwhile, Vickers has three big wishes for Sauron’s season 3 arc, one of which includes the “next piece of the puzzle” for the Dark Lord in forging the One Ring.
Speaking of rings: now that The Stranger’s true identity has been revealed, it may only be a matter of time before he acquires his own Ring of Power. Indeed, in J.R.R. Tolkien’s supplementary Lord of the Rings materials, it’s revealed that Círdan the Shipwright passes his ring Narya onto Gandalf early on in Middle-earth’s Third Age.
The Lord of the Rings‘ prequel series is only expected to cover events during the Second Age, so it’s highly unlikely that Gandalf will come into possession of Narya before one of the best Prime Video shows ends. However, showrunners J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay have played fast and loose with some of Tolkien’s texts in their TV adaptation, so it’s not out of the realms of possibility for Weyman’s Istar to acquire one of the 17 titular rings, even if the actor himself hasn’t considered that outcome.
Nori and Gandalf parted ways in the season 2 finale, too (Image credit: Prime Video)
“These things are like wonderful Christmas presents for people who care about the story,” Weyman said with a smile when asked if he thinks Gandalf could acquire Narya before The Rings of Power‘s final season. “But, gosh, I hadn’t even thought about Gandalf having a ring yet. Now there’s a little voice in me saying ‘oh, it would be lovely to have a ring’. I have no idea where it [the story] is going to go – I mean, he just got his staff. But yes, what a wonderful thing to dream about.”
For more coverage on one of Amazon’s most popular TV Originals, read my article explaining the ending of The Rings of Power season 2. After you’re gorged yourself on that, check out more of my exclusives with the show’s cast below.
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