It’s going to be a while until we return to Middle Earth now that The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power has finished it’s second season. With ‘Shadow and Flame,’ which aired on October 3rd, we saw the free peoples of Middle Earth struggle against the forces of darkness. Well, one force. Sauron. And if there’s anything that we learned from the season 2 finale it’s that this Dark Lord isn’t going down without taking everyone with him.
Fangirlish got a chance to speak with Charlie Vickers, our very own Sauron about playing one of the most beloved, or hated, villains in fantasy literature. We talked about fighting against Galadriel, that one lonely man tear we can’t stop thinking about, and how killing Celebrimbor is still one of his favorite moments of the season 2 finale. (Sorry Charles Edwards, we love you but it was time for you to go.)
When it comes to Galadriel, there’s been a palpable tension between her and Sauron. She of course has been hunting him because he’s a great evil, led to her brother’s death, and is a tempting force that draws her to the dark side. In ‘Shadow and Flame’ we finally got to see Galadriel confront Sauron after hunting him all season long. And for someone who has been the epitome of poise and grace as Annatar, coming face to face cracks him open and sees Sauron lose it.
MORE: Revisit where it all started in The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 2 premiere. Read more here.
For Vickers, Sauron unleashes his rage and tries to kill Galadriel because his she literally kicked him across the face with the face that she’s not falling for his tempting offer. “He underestimated her again. And he tried again to say, “You could’ve joined me. The door is still open.” And then she says, “The door is shut.” And I think the final rejection enrages him and that she’s stronger than he anticipated, yet again.”
It goes back to one of the key tenants of Sauron as well. One, that for villains like him, is always his downfall. Hubris. Vickers went on to explain, “I think [Sauron] has a lot of arrogance and hubris. And for that to be thrown back into his face, quite literally, he gets booted across the face by her, and it sends him right over the end. He goes to try and kill her in that moment.”
Sauron’s relationship to Galadriel isn’t the only bond for Sauron that is explored in the season 2 finale of The Rings of Power. He showed his rage to Galadriel, but he also showed it Celebrimbor, albeit a more restrained sort of anger. Celebrimbor faces off against Sauron, not giving him anything when it comes to the location of the 9 rings for the humans. And this angers Sauron and leads Celebrimbor to be shot with multiple arrows and finally killed with a spear.
For Vickers, he feels like Sauron lost “a great partner in craft, someone that he could’ve used forever and someone he admired. A revered smith.” But it’s also a rage at himself in that moment that leads him to do the things he does. “His eyes are quite literally burning because it’s been thrown back into his face, this title of The Lord of the Rings. The rings are controlling you. And he’s been defeated in this moment because he needs Celebrimbor alive to find out where the 9 rings are. And he’s kind of been like defeated in that sense that Celebrimbor has kind of coaxed him into killing him.”
His eyes burning ties back to the tear that Sauron sheds for Celebrimbor. His eyes are literally burning with fire and it’s all this emotion coming out in that moment because he’s losing control. That’s Charlie Vickers sentiment. Not mine as the interviewer. And that tear, it wasn’t planned at all. Vickers said, “I think the shedding the tear wasn’t a planned thing in any way. It was just something that happened when I was doing it. And sometimes these things are inexplicable when you’re acting.”
The gruesome death of Celebrimbor is oddly enough, Vickers favorite scene of season 2. Why? As he explained: “I think it’s because it takes you to so many places.” And he’s not talking about as an actor. He’s talking about it as a character and because it’s canonical for The Lord of the Rings. “It goes from like torture. I’m torturing him and he fights back and then he has this amazing speech. And then I get angry and it makes me reflect upon myself and there’s violence. I think but overarching it was about the canon. It was canonical. Like, filling his body with arrows. And that is something that’s in the books and is like an iconic image. And then impaling him on the spear and hoisting him into the air was very cool to do.”
MORE: Want to read more about this fight between Sauron and Galadriel? Read more here.
Besides the death of Celebrimbor, Vickers also enjoyed seeing his fellow cast mates try their hand at pretending to be him in The Rings of Power season 2 episode 8 ‘Shadow and Flame.’ Vickers said, “It was cool seeing Morfydd [Clark] doing her best impression of me. And then Charlie [Charles Edwards] doing the same thing.”
And for Vickers, he hadn’t seen them take on the character of Sauron until a season 2 finale special screening of the show. He was a bit busy transforming from a much beloved version of himself. “While they were doing those bits, I was off-set changing from Halbrand back to Annatar, which takes ages. So I hadn’t seen them. I saw them last night [at the screening] for the first time. And it’s funny. I’m gonna talk to Morfydd about her impression of me. It was good but there’s a few adjustments she could make.” It’s important to note, that he absolutely lit up while talking about his cast mate. And the character they play.
Hopefully season 3 of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power gives more of the cast a chance to play Sauron. Because if it was fun for the cast and audience, why not do it again? As for the terror that this Dark Lord is going to cause, the free people’s of Middle Earth better buck up and get it together. This is only the beginning of what this evil is going to do your homes. And if you don’t band together, you’ll never make it out alive. For some of you across the sea…it might be too late for you anyway…
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power seasons 1 and 2 are available on Prime Video.
