Summary
Many characters span the movie and TV adaptations ofJ.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle Earth, but it is Elrond(played by Hugo Weaving in Peter Jackson’sThe Lord of the RingsandHobbittrilogies, and Robert Aramayo in Prime Video’sThe Rings of Power) who is typically seen as one of the wisest and most principled.
Elrond has provided sage wisdom to the Fellowship of the Ring and even to Gandalf (Ian McKellen) himself. However, a major detail in theSan Diego Comic-Contrailer forThe Rings of Powerseason twomay provide evidence to the contrary. Screen Rant was at SDCC 2024 with all the latest coverage.
The Rings Of Power All But Confirms A Massive Galadriel Theory Will Come True In Season 2
A Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 2 moment teased in the trailer revealed at SDCC nigh-on confirms a huge twist for Galadriel.
Elrond Criticizes Galadriel For Wearing One Of Sauron’s Rings In The Rings Of Power Trailer
But Wears One Himself In Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings Trilogy
In one of the opening scenes shown in the SDCCRings Of Powertrailer, Galadriel (Morfydd Clark) is seen placing one of the Rings of Power, Nenya, on her finger. Elrond yells “No!” at this, and later tells Galadriel that, because she now wears one of the Rings of Power that Sauron himself designed, she has become one of his “collaborators”.Elrond warns her that, by wearing Nenya, Sauron may be gaining power, but Galadriel shrugs this off, arguing that the ring is guiding her on her journey.
“These Rings may be how [Sauron] attains power. They must be destroyed.”
However, in Peter Jackson’sLord of the Ringstrilogy (which is set a minimum of 3,000 years after the Rings Of Power), Elrond is depicted as wearing another of the Three Rings of Power for Elves, Vilya. This apparently hypocritical move may come as a shock to many viewers who know Elrond as a beacon of principled wisdom in Middle Earth. Nevertheless, the powers and story of the Three Rings of Power may provide important context that explains Elrond’s hypocrisy.
Why The Elves Still Wear Sauron’s Three Rings In The Lord of the Rings Trilogy
Sauron Is Weakened
At the time in Middle Earth whenThe Lord of the Ringsis set, Sauron has long since been ‘defeated’ during the siege of Barad-Dûr by the Last Alliance of Elves and Men. What this means for wearers of the Rings of Power is that,while Sauron is not gone forever, he has been severely weakened, and is no longer able to influence the Three Rings with his evil corruption and deception. As a result,Elrond wears Vilya in an attempt to reverse the destructionand decay wrought by Sauron’s armies, eventually using it to protect Rivendell against any potential threats.
Ultimately,Elrond’s relationship with the Rings of Power is not necessarily one of hypocrisy, but one of honor. After all, it was Elrond himself who tried (and failed) to persuade Isildur to cast the One Ring into Mount Doom following the Siege of Barad-Dûr. While it was certainly an intriguing decision of Elrond to wear Vilya after his intense criticism of Galadriel, this nonetheless should not take away from the heroism, wisdom, and principle that have come to define the character.
