Clark talks about returning to the set, and how much she already knows about Season 2.
With the season finale of Prime Video's The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power now out in the world, once fans recover from the explosive twists and reveals, there will be one question on everyone's mind: when will we get our first taste of Season 2?
Unfortunately, we're likely going to have to wait quite a while longer before we see anything, as Season 2 only recently entered production. But that doesn't mean we can't already begin to get hints at what to expect. In a recent 1-on-1 interview with Collider's own Steve Weintraub, actress Morfydd Clark, who plays Elf commander Galadriel, teased the journey that the characters will be on in the new season, while also giving an inside look at the process.
With Clark having previously revealed that she does know some of the secrets of Season 2, Weintraub asked her what it felt like to know these things ahead of most others. While Clark couldn't divulge anything specific — nor would most curious fans want to know this far in advance — Weintraub went on to ask how much exactly the cast are told about their characters at the start of production on the season.
In response to the question Clark, who in her words will be stepping foot on set "imminently," a prospect she finds very exciting, said that the showrunners tell the cast members the general character arcs with the important beats ahead of time, with them learning the "bits in between" as they go. This has led to a great deal of excitement among the cast, as she went on to add:
"And you do feel every time a new piece of script comes out, everyone's phones start buzzing. It's like everyone check your iPads, it's coming, it's coming. So there's quite nice to have the bit of both, the bit of the hysterics about getting new script and then also knowing where you're going. Because going in just completely without any idea is quite frightening. And I think if you know too little, it's harder to make bold choices because you end up playing it safe to make sure it makes sense. So it's nice that it's not too secretive in that regard."
When asked how long the Season 2 shoot would be, Clark said she wasn't certain, though she felt like the production once again had the "gift of time" after working on the first season for 2 years. Though the first season was filmed in New Zealand, which is famously where Peter Jackson filmed both The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trilogies, production on Season 2 has moved to the UK. On the change in location, Clark reflected on how all-encompassing the filming of the first season was, especially when considering the restrictions put in place by the COVID-19 pandemic:
"But the filming of season one was just so particular because we were in New Zealand, there was a pandemic, no one could leave, we had no other life but the show. And as an artist that was quite an incredible thing to do. To be able to be kind of ... we were just totally obsessed and it won't ever be like that again. I feel just so, that's why it's so exciting this final episode coming out, this was two years of work because of the context in which it was filmed and it was actually all consuming in a wonderful way."
As she prepares to begin filming on Season 2, Clark was asked whether she felt it would be easier returning for the sophomore season, not just in terms of the technical aspects, but also the connection to the characters. While she didn't say whether she considered it easier or harder, Clark admitted it would be different, saying:
"But also it's kind of like every character is also going into season two in a completely different context to what they were in season one, which is just exciting. But yeah, it's nice to know the characters and it's nice...I've never spent so long with a character as this and I'm looking forward to getting back to her because for all of us, I think when we actually stopped filming it was a shock. We were like, what, we're not filming anymore? Felt like this was what we were going to do forever. And ever and ever and ever. So I think everyone's missed their characters by this point."
Though Clark and her cast mates obviously missed their characters very much, she did say that having the show now come out week to week kept the story "fresh in [their] minds." As much as watching the episodes back might help her remember and reconnect to Galadriel's story, she said that she feels most able to step back into her character's mindset on horseback:
"I feel the biggest thing for me in terms of getting to understand her and feel like her was riding, I'd never ridden before this and it feels magical. And so I've been really lucky to be able to get back to riding before starting season two. And that's a really great door into it all, into Middle Earth and its entirety really, I think the horses."
It seems like we'll have a while to wait yet before we know more about Season 2 and Galadriel's role in it. But if this is any indicaton, we can expect to return to Middle Earth in just as epic a style as we last left it.