The War of Wrath is over and Middle-earth is recovering from near destruction. Melkor, the Black Foe of the World, has been cast through the Door of Night into the utter abyss of the Void. The remaining inhabitants of Arda enter a cautious era of peace, unaware that Melkor’s second-in-command, Sauron the Deceiver, is still stirring in the east. Here begins the story of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.
After years of waiting, with Amazon tiptoeing around the edges of revealing more about their live-action adaptation of Tolkien’s world, the company has finally released the first story trailer for The Rings of Power, one that actually gives us some semblance of a plot tease to look forward to.
As you can see above, The Rings of Power is combining several prominent periods from the Second Age of Middle-earth for the sake of chronology. The story is incorporating numerous cataclysmic events in Arda, including Sauron’s rise to power, the creation of the titular rings, the downfall of Númenor, and the War of the Last Alliance.
You’ll see familiar faces in the likes of Galadriel and Elrond, but other side characters or cameo appearances from Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy are also taking up lives of their own on the small screens. This ensemble includes Gil-galad, Elendil, and even Isildur, Aragorn’s ancestor in the main story.
The Rings of Power is Amazon’s most ambitious undertaking to date, and with $450 million spent on its first season, the most expensive television production in history.
The first chapter of this brand new narrative, spanning a five-season arc, is coming to Prime Video on Sep. 2.