The Lord of the Rings trilogy places the highest of stakes on the fate of the One Ring, but where are the other Rings of Power during its narrative? The opening scene of The Fellowship of the Ring sees Galadriel (Cate Blanchett) give a brief history of the forging of all twenty Rings of Power, naturally placing a greater emphasis on the One Ring into which Sauron poured "his cruelty, his malice, and his will to dominate all life." Yet after this opening scene, the majority of the other Rings of Power are conspicuous by their absence, leading audiences to query exactly where the other rings went during the events of The Lord of the Rings.
Galadriel's opening monologue in The Fellowship of the Ring sheds light on who many of the Rings of Power were made for across Middle Earth's Second Age. The Elven queen explains: "Three were given to the Elves; immortal, wisest and fairest of all beings. Seven, to the Dwarf Lords, great miners, and craftsmen of the mountain halls. And nine, nine rings were gifted to the race of Men, who above all else desire power." These Rings of Power were, on a tertiary level, designed to allow their respective wielders the strength and the will to govern over each respective race, although both the seven Dwarven rings and the nine rings for men were part of Sauron's larger plan for dominion over Middle Earth.
Although these Rings of Power form an integral part of Middle Earth's history and shape the events of the Third Age in The Lord of the Rings trilogy, their whereabouts are not always clear in director Peter Jackson's films. Some of the Elven rings, such as Narya, are hidden in plain sight, while others are never again mentioned in the original trilogy outside of Galadriel's opening monologue. Here's where the other Rings of Power are during The Lord of the Rings.
The Three
The three rings for the "Elven kings under the sky" all make appearances in the original The Lord of the Rings trilogy, although their canonical powers are left somewhat understated in Jackson's movies under the premise that they can only be seen by other ring-bearers. The first, Narya, is wielded by Gandalf (Ian McKellen) across the entirety of The Lord of the Rings, although it can only be seen visibly on the White Wizard's hand at the end of The Return of the King during the Grey Havens scene. The second, Nenya, is owned by Galadriel across The Lord of the Rings movies, which she uses to protect the realm of Lothlorien. Nenya can be seen being granted to Galadriel in The Fellowship of the Ring's opening sequence, as well as being shown to Frodo in Lothlorien in the film's extended cut. The third Elven ring, Vilya, is in Elrond's (Hugo Weaving) possession across The Lord of the Rings movies as he safeguards Rivendell, but is only shown in The Return of the King's final scene as he, Gandalf, and Frodo (Elijah Wood) depart for the Undying Lands.
The Seven
Although not explicitly stated in The Lord of the Rings trilogy, canonically, the seven Dwarven Rings of Power's fates have long since been decided. As of the start of The Fellowship of the Ring, the best movie in the trilogy, the dark lord Sauron owns three of the Dwarven rings, the last of which was taken directly from Thorin Oakenshield near the end of the Second Age. As recounted by Gandalf to Frodo in the second chapter of J.R.R Tolkien's The Fellowship of the Ring novel, the other four Dwarven Rings of Power were consumed by dragons over the course of the Second Age.
The Nine
The nine Rings of Power given to the kings of men are the easiest to trace in The Lord of the Rings, with each ring attached to its respective Nazgûl (or Ring-Wraith). The nine rings granted these men unending lifespans and the ability to perceive the ethereal realms, but it came at the cost of their eternal servitude to Sauron as each king inexorably fell to the power of the One Ring. One of the nine rings is showcased in The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring when the Witch King stabs Frodo at Weathertop, with the Nazgûl leader's Ring of Power shown clearly on his hand.