The Rings of Power showrunners have concretely denied a common theory regarding the Dark Wizard character, which is a total relief after season 2’s Gandalf reveal. After two seasons of establishing his character, the Rings of Power season 2 ending finally delivered the true identity of The Stranger, though fans had already speculated that it was him since season 1. The decision to obfuscate The Stranger’s name for so long was met with a divisive response from audiences who believed the answer to be frustratingly obvious, especially after pulling direct Gandalf quotes from The Lord of the Rings.
With that in mind, introducing yet another unnamed Istar (Wizard) in The Rings of Power created more confusion and some frustration over the redundancy. The Istar were known for arriving in Middle-earth during the Third Age, while The Rings of Power takes place in the Second Age, so the characterization of the Dark Wizard is something that can’t be confirmed by Tolkien’s text. However, given the likeness of the character and the fact that he’s evil, many have theorized that the Dark Wizard is Saruman, which was disproved by showrunners J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay in a Reddit Q&A.
Q3. Now that we know it is Gandalf and a Dark Wizard instead of the two blues, does this rule out the possibility of blues being in the show? Also, can you definitively rule out Saruman being the Dark Wizard?
Patrick: I think it’s hard to say anything is 100%, but we have no plans or intention to have him be Saruman. We are not thinking of him as Saruman. We know there are five wizards talked about in The Lord of the Rings . One of them is Saruman, one of them is Gandalf, one of them is Radagast, and then there are two others. It is our expectation that he will be one of those two others.
JD: What I’ll say is, I think it would be difficult logically to see how he could be Saruman. It would be sort of a “fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me” for Gandalf. If the Dark Wizard was going to be Saruman, then he would be an evil wizard that Gandalf was interacting with and fighting in the Second Age. And then he’d have to become good again and regain Gandalf’s trust, only to later turn evil again and betray him. It would just sort of strain credulity.
Patrick: What I would say to add to that is, you know, again, we’re not sort of playing fast and loose or, or trying to be tricky – characters reveal themselves to you as you go forward with their stories and, you know, The Stranger revealed more and more and more of who he was. It’s just very hard to imagine that the Dark Wizard would be Saruman. I think while we want to be open as creators to every corner of the legendarium, I don’t think that’s going to happen.
It’s A Huge Relief That The Rings Of Power’s Dark Wizard Isn’t Saruman
There’s No Reason To Have Saruman In The Rings Of Power
After The Rings of Power season 1 kept audiences guessing with not one but two mystery box characters in Sauron and Gandalf, making the Dark Wizard be Saruman would have been in poor taste. The TV series has already received flack from a portion of Tolkien lovers for diverting from the source material and trying to appeal to fans of The Lord of the Rings films by integrating things like the Harfoots and Gandalf himself. These elements, which don’t necessarily relate to the events of the Second Age in the books, can feel rather shoehorned in.
The show’s greatest successes have been in the narrative elements that don’t feel like they could’ve been in Peter Jackson’s film trilogy
That’s not to say the show doesn’t have a place for the Harfoots or Gandalf, but to continuously incorporate Lord of the Rings elements to gain fan favor would become increasingly notable. Bringing in Saruman for no distinct purpose other than to have another character from the trilogy would be a drag, and it’s relieving that they’re taking the character in a different direction. The show’s greatest successes have been in the narrative elements that don’t feel like they could’ve been in Peter Jackson’s film trilogy, which has established an original identity for The Rings of Power.
For example, the conflict between Elves and Orcs in season 2, along with the dynamic between Celebrimbor and Annatar, feels entirely different in tone from the Lord of the Rings films. These are the aspects of the show that feel more high-fantasy, embracing the more magical world of the Second Age. The same can be said for the plotline in Númenor, which is headed in an exciting direction. Having the Dark Wizard be an unexplored character can continue to invigorate the show with exciting new life.
A Saruman Reveal Would Have Felt Repetitive After The Rings Of Power’s Gandalf Story
Mystery Box Characters Are Becoming Redundant
After spending sixteen episodes teasing the possibility that The Stranger was Gandalf, only to reveal that he actually was Gandalf, it’s understandable that viewers are slightly tired of the Mystery Box. It’s a narrative element that can work quite well with decent planning and a clever plot twist, but the issue in The Rings of Power was that both mystery characters were exactly who audiences expected them to be. While some hoped for outlandish possibilities with The Stranger, it was always painfully obvious that he was going to be Gandalf.
To then do the exact same thing with the Dark Wizard would be ridiculous. They’ve brought on an immensely talented actor in Ciarán Hinds and suited him up in a costume and appearance that bear an uncanny resemblance to Christopher Lee’s Saruman. To then actually make him Saruman after multiple seasons of obscurity would be extraordinarily redundant and worthy of criticism. The decision to clarify this now, rather than letting the possibility linger, was a wise choice by the showrunners to avoid speculative critique over this mystery going forward.
The Dark Wizard Being Saruman Wouldn’t Make Sense With His Lord Of The Rings Arc
Saruman Being Evil In The Second Age Just Wouldn’t Make Sense
Having Gandalf appear and make a major impact in the Second Age is already a bit of a stretch, but also incorporating Saruman just wouldn’t work. The whole effect of Saruman’s arc in the films is that he’s perceived as an ally to Gandalf until the moment of his betrayal in The Fellowship of the Ring. Not only has he grown jealous of Gandalf over time, but his perception of power is so distorted that he believes there’s no possible way to defeat Sauron, and decides he must join him instead.
So, putting this into perspective of the Dark Wizard being Saruman: he would have already been evil in the Second Age, then he would’ve had to convince Gandalf that he wasn’t evil, completely regain his trust, and then betray him again in the Third Age. As J.D. Payne says in the Q&A, “It would just sort of strain credulity.” The showrunners agree that this narrative choice would feel drastically shoehorned, which should hopefully appease some naysayers that worried about a potential Saruman twist.
The Rings Of Power Introducing A Blue Wizard Is A Way More Satisfying Turn Of Events
The Blue Wizards Are Some Of The Most Intriguing Characters In LOTR Mythology
Out of the five Istari, three play prominent roles in The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings: Gandalf, Radagast, and Saruman. The two remaining Istar are known by many as the Blue Wizards, Alatar and Pallando. Payne and McKay hint that the Dark Wizard will be one of these characters, though there’s not really much known about either one to determine concretely who he’ll be. That’s part of what makes it such an exciting twist in the show, as there’s really not much information regarding these characters to go off of.
Istari is the plural term, while Istar refers to a singular wizard. The same can be applied to Maiar and Maia.
The purpose of the Istari was that they were Maiar sent to Middle-earth to help defeat Sauron. All that’s known about the Blue Wizards is that they traveled east to areas like Rhûn and Khand, along with Saruman. While the White Wizard returned from the journey, the Blue Wizards remained in the east, and their fates were never revealed in Tolkien’s writing. Importantly, they didn’t stay true to their goal of defeating Sauron, and there’s a possibility that they went on to form magical cults, which aligns with the Dark Wizard in The Rings of Power.
