A close-up of Morfydd Clark as Galadriel looking grave in The Rings of Power
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 2 director Charlotte Brändström teases a darker tone for the show’s next batch of episodes. Released on Prime Video in 2022, the epic fantasy series adapts various elements of J.R.R Tolkien’s works, telling the story of the rise of evil in Middle-earth during the Second Age. The Rings of Power season 1 finale ended with some major reveals and developments, setting the stage for an exciting season 2.

During a recent interview with Jonatan Blomberg from MovieZine, Brändström teases that The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 2 will be “edgier” than season 1.

The director, who helmed two episodes in season 1 and four episodes in season 2, doesn’t reveal any story specifics (or a potential release window), but it sounds like audiences are in for a bit of an evolved experience this time around. Check out her full comment below:

“What I know and what I can say for a fact is that it’s going to be darker, and it’s going to be edgier and more character driven. I still think that we have some very interesting episodes coming up. I watched all of them over Christmas, just the cuts. I think it’s going to be a very good season. We tried to make it more gritty, a little bit more dirty I guess. And not in the image, but to make it as authentic as possible. We have some very surprising twists and turns in it as well.”

How The Rings Of Power Season 1 Sets Up A Darker Season 2

Middle-Earth Will Face Renewed Evils

Charlie Vickers as Halbrand smiling in Mordor in The Lord of the Rings The Rings of Power Season 1 Episode 8

The Second Age of Middle-earth, generally speaking, is a time of peace and prosperity, and this is reflected in The Rings of Power season 1. Frodo’s quest doesn’t take place until thousands of years later, during the Third Age, which is more fraught with conflict and despair. The Rings of Power season 1 ending sets up a move toward this darker time in Middle-earth’s history, with Sauron, aka Halbrand (Charlie Vickers), finally having revealed himself.

Season 1 ends with Sauron arriving in Angband, with a title card then replacing Angband with Mordor. As seen in Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy, Mordor is an unpleasant place filled with evil, and its existence in the show itself speaks to season 2’s darker tone. The Rings of Power cast member Sophia Nomvete, who plays Disa, previously teased to Deadline what’s to come in the show’s sophomore outing, promising that the “stakes are higher” and that the show will explore evil’s effect on the various races of Middle-earth.

The Rings of Power arguably gives audiences a taste of this darker tone to come in season 1, with episode 6 depicting a standout battle between the humans of the Southlands and Adar’s Orcs. The whole sequence is quite gritty and violent compared to some of the show’s other action set pieces, and it’s possible that season 2 will feature more moments like this. It remains to be seen how The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 2 will fare with audiences, but it’s shaping up to be an exciting continuation of the epic saga.