‘Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power’ Season 2 trailer sees Sauron’s evil ascent

By Alli Rosenbloom, CNN

(CNN) — It is time to return to Middle-earth.

Prime Video released the first trailer for the upcoming second season of the “Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” series on Tuesday, giving a sprawling glimpse into how the realm is preparing to battle the Dark Lord Sauron, whose reemergence was chronicled in Season 1.

“An evil, ancient and powerful, has returned,” says dwarven Prince Durin IV (Owain Arthur) in the opening seconds of the trailer.

Sauron (Charlie Vickers) is seen sporting a new look, disguising himself as an Elf with bleach-blonde hair and elven ears. He sparsely appears in the trailer, but his presence is felt throughout as Galadriel (Morfydd Clark), Isildur (Maxim Baldry), Arondir (Ismael Cruz Córdova) and Elrond (Robert Aramayo) are shown fighting to protect Middle-earth.

The trailer impressively showcases fiery battles, Orc armies, nefarious sea creatures, a Great Eagle, three Rings of Power and the land of Mordor shrouded in darkness, all set to composer Bear McCreary’s dramatic score.

The Stranger (Daniel Weyman) – whose identity has yet to be revealed but is speculated to be the all-powerful wizard Gandalf – is also briefly shown slamming a staff into the ground.

“One of the exciting things about this year is we’re going to see Sauron out in the open making everything happen,” Vickers said in a Season 2 behind-the-scenes featurette released on Tuesday. “We’ll be able to watch it all unfold.”

Season 2 will pick up with the return of the cunning Dark Lord, who must rebuild his strength to oversee the creation of the Rings of Power, “which will allow him to bind all the peoples of Middle-earth to his sinister will,” according to an official synopsis.

Plunged into darkness, the characters are each challenged to “find their place in a world that is increasingly on the brink of calamity,” the synopsis reads. “As friendships are strained and kingdoms begin to fracture, the forces of good will struggle ever more valiantly to hold on to what matters to them most of all… each other.”

Season 1 debuted in 2022 and is set in Middle-earth’s Second Age, “thousands of years before the events of J.R.R. Tolkien’s ‘The Hobbit’ and ‘The Lord of the Rings’ books,” according to Prime Video. Markella Kavenagh, Nazanin Boniadi, Megan Richards, Benjamin Walker, Lloyd Owen and Charles Edwards, among others, round out the ensemble cast.

“Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” Season 2 will begin streaming on Prime Video on August 29.

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