Where is Sauron in ‘The Rings of Power’?

Could he be hiding in plain sight?

Warning… this article contains plot details from The Rings of Power TV show, as well as from The Silmarillion and The Lord of the Rings, both by J.R.R. Tolkien.

If you’ve been watching the Rings of Power, you are probably expecting Sauron to show up at some point.

After all:

• The characters are constantly talking about him.
• Galadriel is actively hunting for him.
• He made the rings that the show is named after!
• While the show-runners have changed a lot, we know that the Second Age ends with a battle against him.

So where the heck is he? There are two main theories.

One is that he is lurking in the shadows, whispering in the ears of the main characters, and ready to leap out and take over at some point soon. I think this is less likely, simply because it doesn’t seem to be that subtle a show.

The second is that he is hiding in plain sight. Sauron is a character we’ve already met.

If so, who?

There are not that many contenders when you think about it.

It can’t be Isildur, Elendil, Galadriel, Gil-galad, or any other ‘named character’ from the history as told by the books. We know that most of these characters ended up fighting against Sauron.

This leaves the show-invented characters as the most likely candidates, in particular:

• Halbrand
• Theo
• Adar
• The Stranger
• Bronwyn
• Arondir
• Some Númenórean
• Some orc

Out of these, I want to explain why I think that one option is much more likely than the others. I am writing this after episode 6, so I could (of course!) be proved wrong — time will tell.

This is only speculation.

The Halbrand theory

To me, Halbrand is very much the strongest contender. Granted, the show has set him up in the ‘Aragorn’ role, but I think that’s a red herring.

Some evidence includes:

• We have seen Halbrand being very violent when fighting on Númenór.
• Halbrand is clearly good at manipulating people.
• We’ve never actually been given any evidence that Halbrand is a king of the Southlands.
• He is a skilled smith, and Sauron is known for making stuff out of metal (rings, specifically).
• In episode 5, Halbrand, for no obvious reason, appears in armor that is covered in rings, and starts to be referred to as ‘Lord…’ If that isn’t meant to make us think ‘Lord of the Rings’, what is?

Other contenders

Granted, there are a few other contenders out there, as mentioned above. But the field is narrowing!

• Adar specifically said he fought and killed Sauron, and I think he believes this to be true.
• Most of the Númenóreans who are still on the island can be ruled out of taking any further part in the main plot.
• Theo’s arc seems to be going in a different direction, as he rejected the sword and sought help from Arondir (though I still won’t be surprised if he ends up serving Sauron in some way). He also acts too young to have been around for centuries.
• Bronwyn and Arondir are clearly set up as goodies.
• This leaves the Stranger. Possible, I guess, but it seems much more likely that he is one of the Istari — probably Gandalf himself. Although the Stranger did seem sinister at first, we’ve since seem him being helpful (even heroic), though he struggles to control his unfamiliar powers.

I know that some viewers probably think that Halbrand is too much of a good guy to be Sauron, i.e. the epitome of evil.

Perhaps so. And it is perhaps strange that he saved Galadriel. However, at that point in the show/story, he wouldn’t have known who she was, or what she would become.

He might have perceived a potentially useful follower. Someone to corrupt.

Also, we do know that canonically, Sauron repented (at least to an extent) after his service to Morgoth, and he befriended elves including Celebrimbor. So it’s not crazy to suppose that the show would show him at a point where he is struggling with his fate and his place in the world.

Frankly, it makes for a more interesting story than having him being ‘just evil throughout.’

What do you think? Have we already met Sauron on the show, or is he yet to make an appearance?

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