Given that Prime Video’s epic fantasy series The Lord Of The Rings: The Rings Of Power was created (or, forged) in the wake of Game Of Thrones exploding the small-screen swords-and-sorcery-saga scene, it was only natural that there’d be some cast crossover. After establishing Robert Aramayo (briefly a young Ned Stark in the later seasons of Thrones) in the first season, Season 2 is now adding Mance Rayder himself, Ciarán Hinds, to the sprawling expanse of Middle-earth. The actor, recently seen in Kenneth Branagh’s Belfast, is one of three fresh cast additions for the next run of Rings Of Power, currently shooting in the UK.
Also entering the cast is Rory Kinnear, perhaps best known for his role as Tanner in Daniel Craig’s 007 tenure. Will the British actor, who recently played all the men in Men, be in the realms of men in the show? Rounding out the new cast additions is Tanya Moodie, aka Meg from Motherland, who recently had a role in Sam Mendes’ Empire Of Light.
Who the three fresh faces are playing is being kept under wraps – but with the new episodes shooting now, hopefully it won’t be too long a wait until we’re taken back to Middle-earth for the next chapter in the Second Age story. The new season continues JD Payne and Patrick McKay’s tenure as showrunners, with director Charlotte Brändström returning to helm four of the eight episodes, joined by incoming directors Sanaa Hamri and Louise Hooper. In the meantime we’ll be passing the time building that epic LEGO set of Rivendell.