Rings of Power Trailer Shows Sauron Recruiting Future Ringwraiths

Prime Video's full trailer for "The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power" Season 3, released Oct. 22, 2026, shows Sauron assembling the human men who will eventually become his nine Ringwraiths, according to Ars Technica's report published the same day. The streamer's showrunners have given that group a name not found in Tolkien's published text — the Nazgnagol, translated as "Rings-servant" — per the Ars Technica account of the trailer.

When does Rings of Power Season 3 premiere?

The rollout splits eight episodes into three release dates, Ars Technica reports. The first four episodes arrive Nov. 11, 2026. Episodes five and six follow Nov. 18, 2026. The final two episodes close out the season Nov. 25, 2026. That staggered, three-drop structure compresses an eight-episode season into two weeks between the first and last release, a tighter window than a traditional weekly rollout of the same episode count.

What does the Season 3 trailer show about Sauron's plan?

The trailer's marketing line, quoted by Ars Technica, has Sauron declaring: "I will take my place as the conqueror, a sorcerer, a king." The official synopsis, as relayed by Ars Technica, sets the season five years after the fall of Eregion, with Sauron's armies having "marched across the whole of the world, conquering all in their path." Only two strongholds are described as still standing against him: Khazad-dûm, where the dwarves are "sealed deep within their mountain halls," and the elven realms of Lindon and Rivendell, protected by their Three Rings. Sauron, per the same synopsis, works from a newly completed tower, Barad-dûr, pursuing "One ring to rule them all."

Who plays the future Ringwraiths and other new characters?

Ars Technica's rundown of new cast additions lists five names tied to Season 3. Jamie Campbell Bower joins as Celeborn, described as Galadriel's long-lost husband; Galadriel is played by Morfydd Clark. Zubin Varla takes the role of Khamul the Easterling of Rhûn. Eddie Marsan plays Thrain, identified as older brother to King Durin IV, a character played by Owain Arthur. Andrew Richardson plays Anarion, the youngest son of Elendil — played by Lloyd Owen — and brother to Isildur, played by Maxim Baldry. Adam Young plays an orc named Marnukh, whom Ars Technica describes as a character who "might not be what he seems." Simon Pegg is cast to voice the Balrog, per the same report.

"I will take my place as the conqueror, a sorcerer, a king."

That line, attributed to Sauron in the trailer by Ars Technica's Oct. 22, 2026 report, is the closest the marketing has come to stating the character's season-long objective on screen.

How does this fit Prime Video's investment in the franchise?

Ars Technica notes that Prime Video made what it describes as "a major investment" in "The Rings of Power" when it acquired rights to the source material from the Tolkien estate, committing to multiple seasons before the first one aired. Season 3's setting — five years after the Eregion storyline that closed Season 2 — extends a timeline the streamer has built across three seasons rather than resetting it. The season's structure, with four seasons already either produced or planned according to past Amazon statements cited in prior coverage, positions this installment as the midpoint of a longer-arc commitment, though Ars Technica's current report does not specify episode counts for seasons beyond the third.

What role does the trailer give to elves, dwarves and men?

The synopsis relayed by Ars Technica frames the season around a fractured alliance: "all the free peoples of Middle-earth — Dwarves, Elves, Men, and Wizards alike — must find a way to come together, in a race against time to prevent Sauron from achieving his goal of utter domination of all life." That framing pairs two holdouts — the sealed dwarven halls of Khazad-dûm and the ring-protected elven realms of Lindon and Rivendell — against a Sauron whose armies have already taken the rest of the world, per the same synopsis language.

The season's release structure — four episodes, then two, then two — gives Prime Video three separate premiere dates to anchor subscriber engagement across a 14-day window in November, a cadence distinct from the single weekly episode drops some competing streaming series use for genre fare of similar episode length. Full source material and the trailer breakdown are available via Ars Technica's Oct. 22, 2026 report.