The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power is a show about big swings. Its second season might have taken the biggest of all in its attempt to humanize the Orcs, the much-derided horde that occupied Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings trilogy. In The Rings of Power, they’re beings in search of their autonomy: for the first time, we see them forging friendships, even starting families. The Orc army’s choice to align with the very-evil Sauron (Charlie Vickers) instead of their longtime leader, Adar (Sam Hazeldine), is framed as a last resort. It’s hard not to sympathize with their motives, even if they’re obviously making things much harder for our heroes.
As The Rings of Power jumps forward in time in its third season, it will also take its sympathetic portrayal of the Orcs one step further. According to co-showrunner Patrick McKay, that’s mostly personified in the addition of a new character, Marnûkh (Adam Young). At this year’s San Diego Comic-Con, McKay teased the Orc’s role in the battle against Sauron, making him a secret weapon, of sorts, in the mounting battle for the army of the Elves.
