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Prime Video Is Officially Rewriting the Most Important Moment in Lord of the Rings Canon
In *The Rings of Power* season 3, Sauron’s struggle to forge the One Ring is tied to a crisis of self-belief, according to actor Charlie Vickers and co-creator Patrick McKay. The series presents this insecurity as a key obstacle to his ambition to rule Middle-earth, complicating the image of an all-conquering villain.
The season begins five years after Eregion’s fall, with Sauron having advanced his plans but not yet made the One Ring. His earlier failures include being rejected by Adar and the orcs after Morgoth’s defeat, an experience that left him without a body. McKay says Sauron is still trying to become the Dark Lord, while the story contrasts his insistence on authority with Aragorn earning others’ loyalty.
In short
- Sauron’s lack of self-belief may hinder his plans.
- He has yet to forge the One Ring.
- The series contrasts his claim to power with Aragorn earning loyalty.
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The case for
A more inward portrayal can make Sauron’s rise feel dramatically earned, showing how rejection and self-doubt shape his pursuit of power rather than treating him as an all-powerful villain from the outset. If the series presents this as an interpretation of his motives, it can add complexity while leaving the established events of Middle-earth’s history intact.
The case against
Sauron’s struggle for self-belief may feel at odds with the established image of a calculating, formidable Dark Lord, especially if it makes his defining act of forging the One Ring hinge on a modern psychological frame. Viewers who value fidelity to Tolkien’s characterisation may see this emphasis as reshaping a central moment in the lore and weakening the menace or moral clarity of the original.
Explained simply
The Rings of Power is a television series set in Middle-earth, the fantasy world created by J.R.R. Tolkien. It takes place thousands of years before The Lord of the Rings, when Sauron is rising to power and seeking to control the peoples of Middle-earth.
Sauron is a powerful being who once served the first Dark Lord, Morgoth. After Morgoth’s defeat, Sauron was rejected by Adar and the orcs and lost his physical form; the series explores how that history shapes his later pursuit of power.
In Tolkien’s wider story, the One Ring is central to Sauron’s plan to dominate Middle-earth, and its creation links the earlier events to The Lord of the Rings. The contrast between Sauron demanding obedience and Aragorn gaining loyalty also touches on different ways of exercising authority.