It’s been nearly two years since The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power returned for season two on Prime Video. While it was renewed for season three back in February 2025, it’s taken a while for the show to make its return to the streamer, given how mammoth an undertaking each season is. While rumours had it that the show would only return in 2027, THR is now revealing that it’s set to return before the end of 2026.
While the THR article paints The Rings of Power as a staggering success, citing it as having 170 million viewers worldwide, it’s been controversial among fans. It was heavily hyped as Amazon’s biggest show ever when it made its debut in 2022, but THR, in its early reporting, also revealed that only 37% of American viewers actually finished the season. The second season apparently scored about 55 million viewers and was more favourably received by fans and critics. Jamie Campbell Bower (who memorably played Vecna on Stranger Things) and Eddie Marsan join Charlie Vickers as Sauron, Morfydd Clark as Galadriel, and Robert Aramayo as Elrond, with the series set to make a significant time jump in its third season. Here’s the official synopsis:
“Jumping forward several years from the events of season two, season three takes place at the height of the War of the Elves and Sauron, as the Dark Lord seeks to craft the One Ring that will give him the edge he needs to win the war and conquer all Middle-earth at last.”
It’s a heady time to be a Lord of the Rings fan, with not only this Prime series ongoing, but also a new Lord of the Rings film, The Hunt for Gollum, about to start shooting. Notably, the creative teams are totally different, with the LOTR films being shepherded by Peter Jackson and his crew, including actor-director Andy Serkis, while the show is run by J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay.
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