The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 2, episode 7, second unit director Vic Armstrong reveals that one major Elf death in the episode was originally much more gory. After premiering at the end of August, Prime Video’s hit Lord of the Rings series – created by Patrick McKay and J.D. Payne – just depicted the bloody Battle of Eregion. One shocking death in the episode arrives fairly early when Sauron (Charlie Vickers) uses his powers to knock Celebrimbor’s (Charles Edwards) assistant, Mirdania (Amelia Kenworthy), down to attacking Orcs, who promptly kill her.

In a recent interview with SlashFilm, Armstrong reveals that Mirdania’s death in The Rings of Power season 2, episode 7, was almost considerably more violent and disturbing. The second unit director reveals that he was asked to make the death quite “gruesome” during filming, and he ultimately had Orcs chop off part of her upper body before drinking her blood. That version of the death was ultimately deemed to go a bit too far, however, and it was cut down to what appears in the final episode. Check out Armstrong’s explanation below:

“We did a really gory thing where, [Mirdania, during the battle], she gets thrown off the castle wall and the orcs kill her. And Charlotte [Brändström], my director friend who directed [the episode] — she’s a great buddy of mine, fantastic director, good counterpart — she said, ‘Give me some really gruesome bits!’ So I said, ‘OK.’

“So I had [Mirdania] thrown off the roof, you see her go down and hit the ground, there’s a really good shot, and you see this orc chop her. And then he holds up her whole shoulder and arm and starts drinking the blood. But they deemed it a bit too gory, which, I can’t understand why, of course. [laughing]

“All of those sort of things get in there, and then they get taken out, but that’s the mindset you’ve got when you’re in there … If [people] were sitting at the next table in a cafe [hearing] about what I was suggesting — ‘Yeah, have her fall off the wall and then hack her, have the whole shoulder come off, complete with the dress on her sleeve, and the blood’s coming out’ — people would think you’re completely bonkers. [laughing] But that’s the mind of us people who do these sort of things.”

What Mirdania’s Death Means For The Rings Of Power

The Crisis At Eregion Isn’t Over Yet

Image via Prime Video

Just as Celebrimbor is seeing the light and attempting to take back control of his city from Sauron/ Annatar, the Dark Lord uses Mirdania’s death to make sure that Celebrimbor’s fellow Elves still see the legendary smith as unstable and unreliable. Mirdania’s demise helps to further cement just how ruthless and truly evil and irredeemable Sauron is, and the lengths he will go to pursue his rings, but it also helps to spur Celebrimbor to action. Celebrimbor cuts off his own thumb to escape and make sure that the nine Rings of Power for Men don’t fall into Sauron’s hands.

With Eregion now in ruins and the Rings of Power season 2, episode 7, death toll being quite high, Mirdania’s death is clearly part of a much larger tragedy, and it will likely be treated as such in the show. Celebrimbor is sure to carry the death with him, but the surviving characters clearly still have much bigger problems. The episode essentially ends, after all, with Adar (Sam Hazeldine) claiming victory, meaning the remaining Elves of Eregion may not have time to mourn in The Rings of Power‘s season 2 finale.

Our Take On Mirdania’s Death In The Rings Of Power Season 2

Why It’s Good That It Wasn’t More Gruesome

The world of Middle-earth is beautiful and fantastical, and many parts of it are full of joy, but Mirdania’s death helps to reinforce the true darkness that threatens to pollute the land. It also helps to cement the show’s stakes. Mirdania was never a major character in the show, but her death was shocking, and it speaks to just how dangerous the forces of evil can be and how many in world of Middle-earth don’t get happy endings.

That being said, as a Lord of the Rings show, there are certain tonal expectations from audiences, and including the gory version of Mirdania’s death probably would have felt like a step too far. As the death is depicted in the episode, the moment manages to still be shocking and gruesome without feeling gratuitous or jarring in a bad way.