Summary
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Powerwill return to screens to address Sauron’s rise to power inTolkien’s Second Agein season 2 andthere are some Celebrimbor storylines from the source material that the show shouldn’t miss. In aTotal Filmprint feature, showrunners revealed that Celebrimbor will “arguably become the principal protagonist” inRings of Powerseason 2, despite being a relatively minor character in season 1. Lore gives showrunners good reasons for this - author J.R.R. Tolkien gave Celebrimbor an important role in the Second Age.
With Celebrimbor’s role in the story about to become central, it’s time for the show to manifest certain highlights of Tolkien’s legendarium. From the appendices toThe Lord of the Ringsto certain parts ofThe SilmarillionandUnfinished Tales, Tolkien’s details on Celebrimbor ranged across multiple passages with one common thread -Celebrimbor was key in the story of the Rings of Power. With these rings cropping up inThe Rings of Powerseason 2trailer, it would be surprising if season 2 didn’t develop Celebrimbor in line with key plot points from the books.
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6The Rings Of Power Season 2 Can Highlight Celebrimbor’s Connection To Fëanor
Celebrimbor And Fëanor Were Related
The Noldor ElfFëanor was Celebrimbor’s grandfather, who was mentioned inThe Rings of Powerseason 1, and will seemingly feature in season 2 as well. Fëanor was one of themost powerful characters in Tolkien’sLord of the Ringsworld, evidenced by the description of Galadriel as “greatest of the Noldor, except Fëanor maybe.” Master smith Fëanor created the Silmarils, the beautiful jewels that drove characters to war inThe Silmarillion. Fëanor’s hammer was in Celebrimbor’s study in season 1 and from set photos, it looks like a statue of Fëanor will grace season 2:
The Noldor were one of the three great families of Elves, Fëanor was one of the greatest Noldor, and Celebrimbor was the last of Fëanor’s line, so the importance of this family tie really cannot be overstated.Celebrimbor inherited Fëanor’s greatness as a smith, coming to be “greatest in skill” among “the craftsmen of the Gwaith-i-Mírdain, the People of the Jewel-smiths” of Eregion. Celebrimbor will need this talent inThe Rings of Powerseason 2, as he steps into the foreground of the series to begin work on the show’s titular magical items.
5Celebrimbor Forging The Rings Of Power In Season 2
Sauron Will Guide Celebrimbor To Forge The Rings
Undeniably,Celebrimbor’s true importanceinThe Rings of Powerseason 2 will be forging more Rings of Power.Season 1 saw Sauron nudge Celebrimbor towards the creation of the three Elven rings, and the season culminated in their completion. The three rings - Nenya, Narya, and Vilya - were made last of all the Rings of Power in canon, but first in the show. Although the show bent canon here, it stuck to canon where it counted - as Tolkien stated of the three Elven rings in a letter:
Though unsullied, because they were not made by Sauron nor touched by him, they were nonetheless partly products of his instruction, and ultimately under the control of the One.
It is now up toRings of Powerseason 2 to ensure it can navigate any further diversions from loreto remain within key canonical guidelines throughout the creation of the other Rings of Power. A disheveled Celebrimbor is seen in the season 2 trailer throwing rings into a fire, presumably trying to destroy them after finding outSauron’sRings of Powerplan. The show could follow these rings as they are divided between Men and Dwarves, or otherwise transpire to be the other Elven rings of lesser importance.
4The Rings Of Power Season 2 Must Explore Celebrimbor’s Most Fatal Flaw
Celebrimbor Wasn’t Perfect
It was not just skill as a smith that ran in Celebrimbor’s family, but Noldor pride, and all the difficulty that came with it. Celebrimbor was heir to a bloody history. Fëanor’s violent pursuit of his lost Silmarils was taken up by his sons, one of whom fathered Celebrimbor. Fëanor was a controversial Elf inThe Silmarillion, to say the least, so thestatue glorifying Fëanor inRings of Powerseason 2may be near the forge, where it would be most relevant and least offensive. Celebrimbor was not without a dose of Noldor pride himself. As Tolkien explained:
Sauron had… fortune with the Noldor of Eregion and especially with Celebrimbor, who desired in his heart to rival the skill and fame of Fëanor.
It is exactly this desire for family honor and glory, as outlined in Tolkien’sUnfinished Tales, that will be the undoing of Celebrimbor, just as it was with Fëanor and his sons.Rings of Power’sCelebrimbor is vulnerable to Sauron’s machinationsdue to this desire, and season 2 will cover Sauron’s “temptation, manipulation, and corruption” of Celebrimbor into the Elf that seals the fate of Middle-earth by making the Rings of Power (viaTotal Film). However, it is uncertain if the show’s version of Celebrimbor will follow his dark path all the way to its canonical end.
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3Sauron And Celebrimbor’s Relationship Will Be Vital In The Rings Of Power Season 2
Temptation, Manipulation, And Corruption Abound
Showrunners said toTotal Filmthat season 2 will be more “personal and psychological,” portraying “arguably the central relationship of the season, between Sauron and Celebrimbor.” Sauron’s temptation of Galadriel failed inThe Rings of Powerseason 1 finale, so it makes sense thatCelebrimbor will step into Galadriel’s shoes as the focus of season 2, as Sauron will have to switch his attentions to Celebrimbor. What Sauron was trying to achieve in tempting Galadriel, according to Sauron actor Charlie Vickers inDen of Geek,is what he will achieve with Celebrimbor:
He thinks with her, he can affect his designs more quickly. With her by his side, he has the ear of the Elves, he has a way in.
According to one tale in Tolkien’s body of work, apocryphal by virtue of being unpublished by Tolkien in his lifetime, Sauron’s manipulation of Celebrimbor and the Eregion smiths was “worked in secret, unknown to Galadriel,” which may transpire in the show. To deceive Celebrimbor in season 2,Sauron will embrace his fair form from the books, since his Halbrand cover was blown. It’s unclear whether the show will address the similarity between the disguises, but producer Lindsey Weber confirmed in anEmpireprint exclusive thatSauron will be “becoming besties with the worryingly pliant Celebrimbor"in this disguise.
2Celebrimbor’s Role In The War Of The Elves And Sauron
Celebrimbor Was A Catalyst For The War
InThe Silmarillion,it was Celebrimbor’s forging of the three Elven rings that precipitated Sauron’s war against the Elves. After Sauron forged the last and greatest of the Rings of Power, the One Ring, he learned of the other rings through the One Ring’s connection to them. He demanded they be handed over but the Elves refused, and “From that time war never ceased between Sauron and the Elves; and Eregion was laid waste.” Celebrimbor’s role in an unpublished version of events inUnfinished Taleswas even more significant:
Before long Sauron had the Gwaith-i-Mírdain under his influence… So great became his hold on the Mírdain that at length he persuaded them to revolt against Galadriel… and to seize power in Eregion… Galadriel thereupon left Eregion… Now Celebrimbor was not corrupted in heart or faith, but had accepted Sauron as what he posed to be; and when at length he discovered the existence of the One Ring, he revolted against Sauron… When Sauron learned of the repentance and revolt of Celebrimbor… his wrath was revealed; and gathering a great force he… made at once for Eregion.
This would be a dramatic turn of events indeed forThe Rings of Powerseason 2.Celebrimbor’s loss of trust in Galadriel and his turning away from her toward Sauron sounds just like a “descent into madness”, which is how showrunners described Celebrimbor’s journey in season 2 toTotal Film. This would make Galadriel’s choice to withhold Sauron’s identity in season 1, before Celebrimbor’s madness took hold, yet more catastrophic, as her warnings would fall on deaf ears here. Sauron’s erosion of Celebrimbor’s mental faculties may also explain why his disguise works. Either way,Sauron’s war will come to Eregion.
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1Celebrimbor’s Tragic Death Could Happen In The Rings Of Power Season 2
Celebrimbor Came To An Untimely Death
“Eregion was laid waste, andCelebrimbor slain” were the words used inThe Silmarillionof Celebrimbor’s untimely deathat the hands of Sauron in his war against the Elves, butUnfinished Talesprovided more detail. In a draft Tolkien never published while alive, Sauron “turned… to battle… bearing as a banner Celebrimbor’s body hung upon a pole, shot through with Orc-arrows.” This rather aggressive response on Sauron’s part to Celebrimbor refusing to give up the Elven rings could be one of the “very dark and quite violent moments” promised by director Charlotte Brändström toEmpirefor season 2’s battle.
Charles Edwards' performance as Celebrimbor had the nuance to portray an ambitious Elf driven to an unhealthy obsession in his craft. It would be a pity to see him leaveThe Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, but Celebrimbor’s death was a gory moment from lore that would makeGame of Thrones’Red Wedding look like prom night.Perhaps Celebrimbor’s death is the shock moment that the show needsto help establish itself as an uncompromising teller of Tolkien’s tales. With or without the “banner” element, Celebrimbor’s death would ensure a faithful adaptation of Tolkien’s doomed Noldorin Elf.
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power
Cast
Set in the Second Age of Middle-earth, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power explores the forging of the iconic rings, the rise of the Dark Lord Sauron, and the epic events leading up to the stories in J.R.R. Tolkien’s classic novels. The series chronicles the creation of legendary characters and the historic alliances and rivalries that shape the fate of Middle-earth.
