The Rings of Power Set for November 2026 Release

Prime Video revealed that The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 3 will start its run on November 11, 2026. The number of episodes wasn't provided but likely 8 as with previous seasons. Currently Amazon remains committed to completing the five season order of the show. 

The current short description of the season is "Season Three takes place at the height of the War of the Elves and Sauron, as the Dark Lord seeks to craft the One Ring that will give him the edge he needs to win the war, bind all peoples to his will – and at last rule all Middle-earth." 

Its not clear if the "War of the Elves and Sauron" is separate to or an early reference to the War of the Last Alliance which is when Elves and Men join together to eventually defeat Sauron in the Battle of Dagorlad that is depicted in the opening sequence of The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Rings.

Rings of Power Season 3 in 2026

It seems the season three of The Rings of Power may come earlier than estimated. The Hollywood Reporter says the season is set for release in late 2026 instead of sometime in 2027. No specific date was provided. The series is currently expected to complete its five season plan that will possibly end near or during the final battle that is the opening war sequence in The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. They also posted official plot synopsis for the season:

Jumping forward several years from the events of season two, season three takes place at the height of the War of the Elves and Sauron, as the Dark Lord seeks to craft the One Ring that will give him the edge he needs to win the war and conquer all Middle-earth at last.

Core Cast for The Hunt for Gollum Announced

As part of their CinemaCon presentation, Warner Bros. announced the core cast for The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum. CinemaCon is an annual convention for theater owners where the movie studios show them their plans for the next year.

Returning cast members include Andy Serkis reprising Gollum/Smeagol, Ian McKellen as Gandalf, Lee Pace as Thranduil and Elijah Woods as Frodo. New cast members to the franchise are Jamie Dorman (The Fall, Fifty Shades of Grey) as Strider aka Aragorn, Leo Woodall (Nuremberg, The White Lotus) as Halvard, and Kate Winslet (Titanic) as Marigol.

The movie more or less will be set in between The Hobbit and Lord of the Ring films so re-casting was necessary as Viggo Mortensen at 67 playing his then 42 year old self would be difficult in body regardless of how much the mind might be willing, especially for a role that tends to participate heavily in action scenes. The characters of Halvard and Marigol seemed to be made up specifically for the movie but could be inspired from characters in the Appendices.