I Cannot Believe Prime Video Just Spoiled ‘The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power’ Season 2’s Coolest Casting Coup on YouTube

We are a week away from The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2’s August 29 debut on Prime Video, so in industry parlance, it’s time to up the ante on the promo. Last night, Prime Video posted a short promotional clip on YouTube delving into “The Faces of Sauron” in Season 2. We see the typical mix of behind-the-scenes footage, talent interviews, and preview clips in the two minute video, with Charlie Vickers teasing Sauron’s new “Annatar” form. (Annatar is how Sauron disguises himself in J.R.R. Tolkien‘s books to trick the elves, specifically Charles Edward‘s Celebrimbor, to forge the rings of power.)

**Spoilers for The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2’s opening scene, per Prime Video’s own YouTube channel**

However, we also get the major reveal that a different actor has been cast to play a past version of Sauron in the very first scene of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2. Not only that, Prime Video cuts to Scottish actor Jack Lowden in costume explaining that he’s playing a version of Sauron who lived one thousand years before the beginning of the series. And there’s also footage of Lowden’s ginger Sauron talking to a crowd of orcs!

As someone who has spent their life being a fantasy fan, I’ve never seen anything like this before in my life. Usually studios want to keep it a secret they’ve nabbed a buzzy up-and-coming actor to show up in a key cameo in their project. It’s the sort of intel that is intended to be a surprise for the audience to discover in real time while watching the show. It’s the kind of casting reveal that would be called a “SPOILER!” if someone saw it on social media before they watched the actual show. And yet, by putting this information on YouTube, Prime Video has just spoiled the surprise for its entire audience. They’ve shrugged it off. Jack Lowden is “flashback” Sauron and they don’t care who knows it!

The other insane part of this casting, for me, is the Jack Lowden of it all. While Lowden isn’t necessarily a household name (yet), he’s been steadily building the kind of career that all but assures he’s going to mature into an icon of stage and screen. He’s got a steady gig with Apple TV+‘s critically-acclaimed show Slow Horses and is already known for standout work in films like Benediction. In his personal life, he’s “Mr. Saoirse Ronan.” The couple met working on Mary, Queen of Scots and got married recently. Jack Lowden’s the kind of guy you can see winning an Oscar in a decade or so. And he just showed up in Middle-Earth for a day or two to monologue to some orcs? Incredible.

I just have so many questions, like did Prime Video jump the gun on this reveal because they’re worried casual Lord of the Rings fans might be confused when they tune into Season 2? Are they trying to get ahead of the casting leaks that fuel niche nerd sites and their rabid audiences? Do they simply not care if the audience is spoiled? Are they just rolling into The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2 with “YOLO” vibes?

All I know for sure, now, is that Jack Lowden plays Sauron in the cold open of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2, and he seems to be loving the camp of it all: the wigs, the majesty, the pronounced roll of the “r” when you correctly pronounce “Sauron.” Maybe it’s all a sign that Prime Video has stopped being so precious with their Tolkien adaptation and are now just having fun.

The first three episodes of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2 premiere on Prime Video on August 29.