Sauron’s role has always been corruption in The Lord of the Rings, and The Rings of Power season 2 could see this continue with an unexpected character. The Prime Video series spent most of season 1 building the foundation for its version of Middle-earth’s First Age, including the setup for several known events from J.R.R. Tolkien’s written works. One such event is the fall of Khazad-dûm. All signs point to the kingdom’s decline in future seasons, and given Sauron’s reveal in The Rings of Power season 1—and the teased hints from the series’ cast—it seems that the Dark Lord will be involved.

Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings revealed that the Dwarven kingdom of Khazad-dûm fell when Durin’s folk dug too deep and uncovered a Balrog. Of course, this was the same Balrog that would one day drag Gandalf the Grey into those same depths, later called Moria. The Rings of Power has allowed fans to see Khazad-dûm at its prime, with the hint that they will also see the great mines meet their terrible end. Of course, it’s currently unclear exactly how this will all come about, but actress Sophia Nomvete has dropped hints about how this could begin in TROP season 2.

Disa Could Be Influenced By Sauron In Rings Of Power Season 2

Nomvete, who plays Princess Disa in The Rings of Power, described her character (via Deadline) as “a kind of joyful Lady [Macbeth],” which says a lot about Disa’s future. The actress explained how Sauron’s influence would continue to grow in Middle-earth, calling the effects “absolutely mind-blowing.” Since Princess Disa was seen in season 1 to be pushing her husband, Prince Durin IV, to oppose his father’s decisions to close up the mithril mines, it appears that future seasons will see the joyful woman become the same kind of driving force behind the throne that Lady Macbeth was—and that won’t be a good thing.

Of course, Lord of the Rings fans know that the greedy search for mithril would doom the Dwarves of Khazad-dûm, so though Disa’s intentions are good, it’s really King Durin III that is right. Still, the prince’s wife has him convinced that the strange ore will be his legacy, and the situation between father and son is tense as of the end of season 1. If Sauron’s influence gets added to the mix —and Princess Disa becomes his newest instrument—things could quickly become Macbeth-like for Khazad-dûm in The Rings of Power season 2.

How Rings Of Power S1 Set Up Disa’s Role In Moria’s Downfall

From the moment she was introduced, Princess Disa was immediately likable. She was cheerful and affectionate while still possessing the stubborn and unyielding nature of a dwarf. However, Disa was hard to root for in The Rings of Power season 1 since audiences knew that the mithril she had placed her faith in would eventually be the downfall of her people. She truly believed that this ore was worth her husband standing up to King Durin III, and by the final episode, she had finally pushed the prince to stand up to his father. The result was a heartbreaking argument, and Prince Durin IV’s royal crest was symbolically thrown onto the floor.

Disa is far from malicious, and nothing she did in The Rings of Power season 1 would indicate the start of a villain arc. However, her conviction that mining mithril is the right thing to do makes her vulnerable to Sauron’s influence. This may not mean that the Dark Lord will directly manipulate Disa and her influence over Prince Durin, but Nomvete’s hints indicate that Sauron’s growing presence could have a role to play in the princess’ future decisions. After all, Prime Video’s version of events saw the Three Elven Rings made from mithril—so Sauron will need the dwarves to mine more to make his titular Rings of Power.

What Disa’s Rings Of Power Season 2 Story Means For Moria

Gimli described the grandeur that had once been Khazad-dûm in the Lord of the Rings, and The Rings of Power season 1 did a phenomenal job at finally bringing it to the screen. Before this, audiences had only ever seen the Dwarven kingdom once it had been given the name Moria—and all that was left were bones and darkness. As beautiful as the sight was when Elrond visited in Rings of Power, it was hard not to think of what it would become, which makes the ongoing argument over mithril—and Disa’s insistence that it will be Prince Durin IV’s legacy—all the more ominous.

Still, Tolkien canon could indicate that Prince Durin IV and his wife won’t be the ones to face the consequences of the mithril mining since it is his grandson, Durin VI, who was ruling Khazad-dûm when the Balrog laid waste to the Dwarven kingdom. Therefore, any influence that Sauron has over Disa and her husband may result only in the creation of the Rings of Power and nothing more. Regardless, The Rings of Power has made it clear that it plans to follow through on the downfall of Khazad-dûm, whether Disa has an unexpected hand in Sauron’s plans or not.