The Rings of Power star Charles Edwards has revealed how a five-hour crash course in ring-making confirmed he was playing the character in the right way.
Speaking to TechRadar ahead of The Rings of Power season 2's release on Prime Video, Edwards confirmed that he dedicated an intense afternoon to learning about metallurgy and jewelry fabrication to further tap into his character.
That tutorial, led by Kristie Rickwood, gave Edwards a greater sense of appreciation not only for the "intricate" and "detailed" work that goes into crafting rings and other bejeweled trinkets but also the "forensic" manner with which his Lord of the Rings character operates. After all, as the fabled but flawed elven smith who crafts all 17 of the titular rings – 13 of which he forges alongside Sauron in his Annatar disguise – Celebrimbor plays an integral role in the Second Age and Middle-earth's entire history.
"It helped me enormously," Edwards admitted when I asked him how his ring-making experience impacted how he tackled Celebrimbor in the Amazon high-fantasy show's sophomore season. "And I'm so pleased I did it because what it showed me was how – I mean, I always had this vision of the character anyway, that he wasn't a hunk with a hammer, but instead much more forensic and detailed.
"I've always seen him as kind of a jeweler who spends a lot of time leaning or being hunched over a workbench. So, when I had this lesson, that's exactly what it was like, and it highlighted to me how intricate and delicate all this work is. Kristie came in with all the tools that she thought would have been appropriate for our world [and some] very ancient methods of practice, and I really enjoyed it. It formed me enormously. I kind of felt that it confirmed that that's how I wanted to play him or wanted him to be like and, yes, that's exactly how he would have worked, so I was happy with that."
Of course, as The Rings of Power season 1 finale revealed, Sauron – who, at the time, was masquerading as the Southlands' so-called outcast king, Halbrand – wasn't present when Celebrimbor crafted the three elven rings. However, for reasons I won't spoil here, Celebrimbor and Halbrand reunite in season 2, despite Galadriel's warning to Celebrimbor (in season 1 episode 8) that Halbrand wasn't someone the elves could trust anymore. Inevitably, that leads to Sauron replacing Halbrand – through some dark magic – with his new alias Annatar, the apparent 'Lord of Gifts', who coerces Celebrimbor into crafting more of the titular rings.
Being the master manipulator that he is, Annatar knows which of Celebrimbor's buttons to press to persuade him to forge more of the magical artifacts. Key to that is how Celebrimbor feels inadequate to Fëanor, his grandfather and arguably the greatest elven smith who's ever existed. Coupled with Celebrimbor's insatiable desire to create something as famous as Fëanor's various works, plus the fact Celebrimbor doesn't know if – spoiler – the elven rings worked their magic and saved the elven race, it isn't long before Sauron/Annatar is pulling Celebrimbor's strings.
"A lot of it is to do with pride," Edwards admitted, "But Celebrimbor also doesn't know what happened with the elven rings. Halbrand teases and taunts him with that information, which is how they end up working together again."
I'll be covering season 2 of one of the best Prime Video shows in much more detail between now and launch day, including plenty of details on the dynamic between Edwards' Celebrimbor and Charlie Vickers' Sauron/Halbrand/Annatar. So, stay tuned to TechRadar for more when I have it.
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