This interview contains spoilers for The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2. While all eyes have been on Sauron and Celebrimbor in Eregion, the groundwork for an entirely separate tragedy is being laid in Númenor. In both cases, fans know that it is hopeless .
Eregion will fall and Númenor will flood, just as Tolkien wrote it. But the beauty of the Rings of Power and The Lord of the Rings franchise as a whole is that hope in the face of hopelessness is kind of the whole point, something that will likely remain true for the remainder of the season. And Season 2’s sixth episode feels like the perfect culmination of that pathos as things continue to grow more and more complicated across Middle-earth.
But where the siege unfolding in Eregion is huge and bombastic, the undoing in Númenor is quiet and occurring at a smaller but equally important scale. With that in mind, I sat down with series star Cynthia Addai-Robinson, who plays Queen Regent Miriel, to discuss her kingdom’s fate, bravery in the face of great defeat, her character’s faith, and whatever the heck is going on between her and Lloyd Owen’s Elendil. Back in “Halls of Stone,” we wondered if Miriel’s faith would be what ultimately spelled doom for Númenor .
Now, though, we’re seeing the Queen Regent drop her insistence on stillness as she steps up, while also taking ownership of her commitment to the Valar and her own destiny. When Elendil is faced with the trial of the Valar — a fee.