The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power has turned up the heat in its second season, delving into the creation of the Dwarven rings of power and just how quickly they can corrupt their wearers. Middle-earth seems destined to plunge into darkness as the season carries on, with Sauron proving extremely successful in his bid to corrupt the minds and souls of all those around him. While the Prime Video series remains controversial with fans due to its fast-and-loose relationship with elements from J.R.R. Tolkien’s original mythology, The Rings of Power has taken a step up in quality over its first season, including with its character arcs.

After setting up its various storylines in its freshman season, The Rings of Power Season 2 is taking a deeper look at several of its characters, including some who started as minor parts of a much larger story. Among the most interesting characters so far this season is Celebrimbor, the Lord of Eregion who is responsible for the forging of the rings of power. Played by Charles Edwards, whom fans may recognize from his work on series like The Crown and Downton Abbey, Celebrimbor has quickly ascended the ranks of The Rings of Power‘s most interesting characters in Season 2. Celebrimbor’s arc has not only been among the most compelling this season but also hints toward a darker future for the series.

The Rings Of Power Is Nailing Its Celebrimbor Storyline

Celebrimbor’s Hubris And Guilt Make Him The Show’s Most Compelling Character

Celebrimbor is the Lord of Eregion whose forging skill is renowned throughout Middle-earth. This makes him the perfect target for Sauron, who desires to forge powerful weapons that will corrupt their users and put them under his control. After making an introduction as Halbrand, Sauron transforms himself into a servant of light, masquerading as the Elven lord of gifts, Annatar, and appearing to Celebrimbor with a mission: to forge rings of power for the Dwarves. While Celebrimbor is hesitant to disregard High King Gil-galad’s order to shut down the forge, Annatar appeals to his hubris, leading him to believe that the king takes his artistic skill for granted. Even this only partially moves Celebrimbor, but the Elf simply can’t resist the appeal of forging such incredible tools. His love for his craft eventually leads him to partner with Annatar, unaware that he is actually doing the bidding of Sauron.

Charles Edwards’ Selected Filmography

Batman Begins (2005)
Midsomer Murders (guest appearance) (2008)
Downton Abbey (2012-2013)
Trying Again (2014)
Sherlock (guest appearance) (2017)
The Terror (2018)
The Witches (2020)
The Crown (2019-2020)
Under the Vines (2021-2024)
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power (2022-Present)

After being duped by Sauron in the guise of Annatar, Celebrimbor lets his pride get the better of him, going to great lengths to keep his production alive. He even lies to Gil-galad to buy himself more time, fully convinced that his work will be the salvation of Middle-earth. This paints a remarkably complex picture of the character from Tolkien’s legendarium, as he truly believes that he is helping the world though it is clear to viewers that he is only feeding his own ego. However, Celebrimbor is not purely ego, as it is plain that he loves his craft so much that it has blinded him to good sense. The Elf could never have resisted the allure of such a new and auspicious project–and his enemy knew it. Sauron knew exactly which strings to pull to get Celebrimbor on his side and it worked like a charm. The seven rings have already been delivered to the Dwarves and now Sauron focuses on crafting nine rings for the kings of Men.

How The Rings Of Power Is Setting Up The Next Phase Of Celebrimbor’s Arc

In episode 5 of The Rings of Power‘s second season, Celebrimbor finally starts to wonder whether he has made the right decision in partnering with Annatar. After his father brings home a ring, Durin IV personally travels to Eregion with concerns that the new tool may not be all it seems. Although it takes a moment for Durin to break through to Celebrimbor, the Elf begins to question Annatar, even if only slightly. Unfortunately, Sauron’s mind games are still far too advanced for Celebrimbor–or his staff–to see through. Rather than lose Celebrimbor as a partner, Sauron manages to convince him to participate in crafting the nine rings for men–something which he had been set against earlier in the episode. Even so, Celebrimbor is shown at the end of the episode struggling with the weight of his decisions and finding that, despite their typical steadiness, his hands have begun to shake.

Although Sauron’s mind games still hold sway with Celebrimbor, The Rings of Power is beginning to set up a rift between the two partners as the Elf grapples with the weight of introducing the Rings of Power to Middle-earth. Now that Celebrimbor has fed his ego, developed his craft, and enjoyed the fruits of his labor, he is forced to live in a world in which great power has been handed out without checks or balances. He knows that if the rings can corrupt a Dwarf so quickly, they will wreak havoc on the world of Men, yet he is too deep into the process to quit now. Future episodes will show Celebrimbor racked with guilt over what he has done–and things will only get worse. This makes for an extremely compelling storyline for the Elf, who only played a minor role in Season 1. Aided greatly by Charles Edwards, who can simultaneously convey both his character’s pride and doubt, Celebrimbor has become the most interesting character in The Rings of Power.

What Will Happen To Celebrimbor?

Celebrimbor’s emerging guilt and doubt over working with Annatar will eventually feed into his tragic fate, which Tolkien expresses in The Silmarillion. In later storylines, Celebrimbor will come to understand that he is working with none other than Sauron himself and finally break free of this toxic partnership–but too late to stop the production of the last rings of power. In the book, Celebrimbor leads a rebellion against Sauron but is easily defeated by the Dark Lord, who destroys Eregion and takes the Elf captive. Sauron tortures Celebrimbor before finally putting him out of his misery. His body is then waved as a banner for Sauron’s troops during the war to come, making for a horrific and tragic end to one of the most complex characters in Middle-earth.

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power is building up what is sure to be one of the best character arcs in the series as Celebrimbor struggles with the weight of his partnership with Sauron. The famed forger let his hubris cloud his judgment and will one day pay the price for his mistake–as will the rest of Middle-earth.

The Rings of Power airs new episodes on Thursdays, streaming on Prime Video.