The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power director J.A. Bayona has teased Sauron's past and future role in the series. Sauron is a pivotal character in both Peter Jackson's cinematic trilogy and J.R.R. Tolkien's source material. He is the titular Lord of the Rings and the saga's primary antagonist. As told in The Fellowship of the Ring, Sauron forged the One Ring in the fires of Mount Doom in Mordor and sought to conquer Middle-earth by creating the Rings of Power. Though Amazon has been exceptionally secretive about its new Lord of the Rings series, the Dark Lord is expected to appear in some way.
Set thousands of years before Frodo Baggins departed the Shire to toss the One Ring into the fiery depths of Mount Doom, The Rings of Power will take place during the Second Age of Middle-earth. This period of time is famous for Sauron's rise to power, and this will be a major focus of the show. The series will feature a gargantuan cast of over 20 characters, though only a few have been revealed so far, including a young Galadriel and Elrond, played by Morfydd Clark and Robert Aramayo, respectively.
As part of Vanity Fair's first look at the The Rings of Power, Bayona talked about what fans should expect from the highly-anticipated Lord of the Rings series. Though Bayona didn't mention Sauron by name, he hinted heavily at the villain's presence. For the series, the director drew from his own memories as child growing up in Spain when the country was recovering from civil war from decades before. This led to the title of The Rings of Power episode 1, which Bayona directed and is called “Shadow of the Past.” Read what he had to say below:
"We had a dictatorship for 40 years, so you notice the repercussions of war and the shadow of the past. I think this is all about the repercussions of war. There is an idea that feels very faithful to Tolkien, which is intuition. Galadriel has an intuition that things are not fixed, and there is still something lurking."
Ever since details about Amazon's Lord of the Rings series first emerged, the Dark Lord's role has been of major interest. Since Sauron is integral to this period of Middle-earth's history, it's incredibly likely he will make an appearance, though it's unclear in what way. During the Second Age, Sauron still possessed the power of shape-shifting and infiltrated the Elves of Eregion under the guise of Annatar. This is one possibility, though other evidence suggests the he may take on a more recognizable form.
A recent batch of character posters for The Rings of Power revealed one figure wearing a black gauntlet holding a sword that looks suspiciously like Sauron's from The Fellowship of the Ring. Since Sauron can shape-shift, this may be just one of many forms he takes on throughout the new Amazon series. Hopefully, more details about Sauron's role in The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power will be revealed during the first teaser trailer, which airs this Sunday during the Super Bowl, when many are hoping to catch a glimpse of the Dark Lord of Mordor's return.
Source: Vanity Fair