Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 2 release updates and what you should know

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power was a huge boost for the iconic franchise and a hit for Amazon Prime Video. Set a thousand years before the famous trilogy brought to the big screen by Peter Jackson, The Rings of Power explores the origins of the Rings that will eventually tear Middle-Earth apart. The series premiered on Sept. 1, 2022 and had been a long-anticipated release.

It’s now been over a year since the first season hit Prime Video, and we’re not surprised that fans are waiting on the edge of their seats for news about the second season. Let’s break down what you should know so far, including how the strikes may impact the season, as well as reports we’ve heard about the storylines and more!

Fans of the franchise went into the show knowing they’d be along for the ride for at least another season as the series had been renewed for a second season years ahead of its premiere. Of course, this meant the wait for season 2 might not be so long since production didn’t have to wait for a renewal, which was happy news for viewers who fell in love with the show once it began streaming.

Has The Rings of Power season 2 been affected by the strikes?

It’s no secret that Hollywood is facing issues as the Writer’s Guild of America and Screen Actors Guild strikes pushed back productions across broadcast, streaming, and more. There is good news for The Rings of Power, however, as they had wrapped filming on season 2 in July before the actors’ strike began. There is a lot of post-production work to be done, though, due to the special effects and perhaps the need to bring some actors back for reshoots, or audio dubbing, which will affect the season’s release date.

As of the time of this writing, the writers’ strike is officially over, while the actors are currently negotiating with the AMPTP to strike a new deal.

All of this said, The Rings of Power season 2 does not have a release date yet, but we can definitely count out 2023. We are expecting the new episodes to come out in 2024, but Amazon hasn’t teased what time of the year. The first season came out in the fall, so perhaps season 2 will follow suit. This is just speculation at this time.

The Rings of Power season 2 cast

It’s expected the entire cast will be back for the new season of the fantasy show. That includes:

• Morfydd Clark as Galadriel
• Markella Kavenagh as Nori Brandyfoot
• Ismael Cruz Cordova as Arondir
• Robert Aramayo as Elrond
• Benjamin Walker as Gil-galad
• Charles Edwards as Celebrimbor
• Daniel Weyman as The Stranger
• Owain Arthur as Durin IV
• Charlie Vickers as Halbrand/Sauron
• Cynthia Addai-Rbinson as Queen Míriel
• Sophia Nomvete as Disa.

New faces for the cast include the following actors. There’s no word yet on their roles, and it’s likely some more new faces will pop up soon:

• Ciarán Hinds
• Tanya Moodie
• Rory Kinnear
• Yasen’  Zates’ Atour
• Ben Daniels
• Calam Lynch
• Gabriel Akuwudike
• Sam Hazeldine
• Amelia Kenworthy
• Nia Towle
• Nicholas Woodeson
• Oliver Alvin-Wilson
• Stuart Bowman
• William Chubb
• Kevin Eldon
• Will Keen
• Selina Lo
• Gavi Singh Chera

An official synopsis for The Rings of Power season 2 hasn’t been released, however, it’s likely that it will show more of how Sauron builds up his armies and crafts the other Rings, setting up the grand war for control. Galadriel will try to forge alliances to fight him off but face some challenges.

Other subplots could include if the Stranger is indeed a younger Gandalf on his own quest to be a wizard. There may also be a storyline centered on Brandyfoot and her clan’s eventual settlement in the Shire and how they become the Hobbits we know.

It’s been reported that the second season is expected to feature the iconic location of Rivendell, which has not been established yet as of the first season. There’s also been a rumor that a huge battle will go down in season 2 which will span two episodes! This hasn’t been confirmed by Amazon, but that sounds really awesome. We have a feeling the second season will be more exciting than the first.

The season 1 finale rocked Galadriel as she realized her traveling companion for much of the season, Halbrand, was in reality, the Dark Lord Sauron. Having tricked the elves into giving up the secrets of making rings, Sauron fled to Mordor as Galadriel decided to forge the three Rings for the elven kings. That was a wild finale and it set up season 2 as well as the rest of the story Prime Video is ready to have unfold in this epic saga that’ll leave fans gripped.

We do know that there will be a total of eight episodes in the second season. They’ll be directed by an all-female team that consists of Charlotte Brändström, Sanaa Hamri, and Louise Hooper.

Is The Rings of Power season 3 happening?

A third season is expected as there’s a five-year plan for the series. However, official word from Prime Video on a season 3 renewal has yet to be announced. Vernon Sanders, Head of Global TV for Amazon Studios, told Deadline the following in Dec. 2022:

"We are absolutely committed, we have every reason to be excited. They’ve done a tremendous job. It’s a great question about season 3, we’re probably two to three months in on season 3 but I think there could be news certainly in the new year. There’s so much planning and prep that’s necessary for us to get this mounted that the only reason we probably haven’t gotten there quite yet is we’ve just been so heads down in season 2, but I would expect there to be news in the new year."

But although The Rings of Power season 3 hasn’t officially been announced, the fandom is convinced the third season has already started pre-production! According to a report from Winter is Coming, a user on X (formerly known as Twitter) pointed out that the third season was listed in the August issue of Production Weekly. That indicates that work is being done on the third season, whether or not Amazon is promoting it or not.

Unless something major changes, we’re fully expecting The Rings of Power to return for a third season after the second one premieres. The production schedule will likely be similar, and it’s possible the third season will hit Prime Video in 2026.

While it’s going to be a bit of a wait for the second season, it should be worth it for another amazing adventure through Middle-Earth. The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 1 is streaming on Prime Video.

Stay tuned to Hidden Remote for more Prime Video news and coverage!

FanSided Entertainment Staff contributed to this report.