[Warning: The following contains MAJOR spoilers for The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2 finale.]
The Rings of Power has a lot to get done as it tells the story of the Second Age of Middle-earth, and it’s only had eight episodes per season to tell the tale so far. Naturally, certain storylines can’t be as fleshed out because of this time constraint. That was the case for Númenor in both seasons so far, but with Eregion now destroyed, Pharazôn (Trystan Gravelle) on the Númenorean throne like in JRR Tolkien’s books, and Sauron (Charlie Vickers) in possession of the nine rings of power for mortal men, it seems the island kingdom could be more of a focus in the potential third season. With Númenor’s future looking more grim than ever, Cynthia Addai-Robinson tells TV Insider what she wishes could’ve been shown with Míriel and Pharazôn before this point.
As queen regent, Míriel upheld her father’s commitment to the old ways of life in Númenor, a tradition that honored the relationship between the mortals and the elves. Númenor was a gift awarded to these people from the Valar after they helped in the war against Morgoth in the First Age. But many modern-day Númenoreans resent this history, with the kingdom being divided between “the Faithful” and those who want ties cut with the elves. Pharazôn is of the latter, and he staged a coup in Season 2 to steal Míriel’s throne and feed his desires for glory and power.
Míriel stayed in Númenor in the finale despite the danger that poses to her life and urged her lover, Elendil (Lloyd Owen), to flee (and she gave him a fated sword, Narsil, to help him on his journey to claim his “destiny”). Míriel ended Season 2 in shackles, imprisoned by Pharazôn, her cousin and former advisor. Addai-Robinson tells TV Insider that Míriel’s feelings about Pharazôn have evolved beyond hatred, revealing the one thing she thinks their plot so far has been missing.
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“It’s interesting because obviously, hate is a strong word, and I think it’s much more complicated than that. One thing I wish is, I wish we had more time to explore what their relationship used to be,” Addai-Robinson says. “They’re cousins. I think that often gets forgotten, but they’re related.”
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“Presumably they would’ve come up together in the world,” she continues. “Their fathers had different world views, were opposed to each other in a way. But initially [Míriel and Pharazôn] were relatively aligned and had an understanding of what it meant to be in that tier of society. So this shift in him going for this power grab, obviously it’s a betrayal, but I think it would be interesting to get some insight into, well, what did it look like before it was just an advisor-queen situation? There’s definitely more to it than that.”
Addai-Robinson is hopeful this can be covered in potential future seasons.
“Ultimately, I don’t think she actually hates him,” the actor admits. “I think she just obviously has a very, very different view of what the future should look like. And hopefully, again, there’s time to explore, well, what does their dynamic look like now? After the coronation, we haven’t really had a scene to see them together, to see them interacting other than that last visual of her in chains in front of him. So what would that conversation look like? I don’t know.”
Hopefully we’ll all one day find out.
The Rings of Power, Season 2 Finale, Streaming Now, Prime Video
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