Summary

• The Rings of Power season 2 will open with a flashback featuring Sauron in a new form.
• The flashback, set 1,000 years earlier, aims to provide insight into Sauron's motivations in the season.
• The tradition of opening with flashbacks continues in the Lord of the Rings franchise, adding essential context to character arcs.

The Rings of Power season 2's story, which will be primarily used to manipulate Celebrimbor as new rings are forged.

The Rings of Power on X has now revealed that season 2 will open with another form of Sauron in a flashback from 1,000 years earlier in the timeline. Showrunner Patrick McKay explained the creative decision to start the season this way, while Charlie Vickers, who played Sauron in season 1 and who will play him again as Annatar in season 2, clarified that he will not be portraying Sauron in the flashback. Jack Lowden, who is instead playing Sauron in this scene, addressed where it fits into the show's timeline. Read their comments and watch the video below:

McKay: What we’re actually trying to do in season 2, is get deeper in his mind, and we wanted to start from a place where you’re understanding what’s motivating Sauron.

Vickers: And you have a different actor playing Sauron in the first scene of the show.

Lowden: This is a flashback about a thousand years ago, before the first season, after Morgoth has been defeated.

A Flashback Opening Continues A Lord Of The Rings Tradition

The Rings Of Power Season 1 Continued It As Well

Going back to The Fellowship of the Ring, nearly every film and television series in the franchise has begun with a flashback. The Fellowship of the Ring began with a flashback showing the rings of power, how an alliance of Men and Elves came together to stand against Sauron, and how the One Ring came to be in the possession of Bilbo Baggins. The Two Towers opened with a flashback depicting Gandalf continuing to fight the Balrog after his fall in the previous film, while The Return of the King began with flashbacks revealing Gollum's origins.

The Rings of Power season 2's flashback will feel like a natural extension of the franchise while adding essential context to the arcs of Sauron and Adar.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey continued the trend with an opening flashback of the Dwarves losing the Lonely Mountain to Smaug, along with The Desolation of Smaug starting with a flashback of Gandalf and Thorin Oakenshield meeting. The Battle of the Five Armies decided to forgo a flashback to pick up with the cliffhanger of Smaug flying toward Lake-town. The Rings of Power season 1 kept the tradition alive by beginning with flashbacks to Galadriel as a child in Valinor, a montage of the battle against Morgoth, and the hunt for Sauron.

It is fitting that The Rings of Power season 2 will continue the tradition with a flashback to Sauron a thousand years earlier and after the powerful Morgoth has been defeated. This will provide more insight into Sauron's motivations, what transpired after Morgoth's fall, Adar turning against Sauron, and Sauron's eventual return. The Rings of Power season 2's flashback will feel like a natural extension of the franchise while adding essential context to the arcs of Sauron and Adar.

Source: The Rings of Power/X