00:00This is a large, large red carpet. I know you've been on many yourself over the years.
00:07It is a large one.
00:08How does this compare? How does Rings of Power, Lord of the Rings, compare to, say, The Crown,
00:12to Townsend Abbey?
00:13Well, for a start, this one's a gold carpet. Well, they say it's gold. It's actually yellow.
00:17I thought that too.
00:18But I'm not saying that in front of the Amazon people. It's gold-esque. Look, it's a colossal
00:24show, this. And at every turn, we are reminded of that, particularly at times like this.
00:31Certainly on set, because the sets are second to none, it's an extraordinary place to work,
00:35extraordinarily generous place to work. Anything you could want as an actor is there for you
00:41in terms of props, scenery, all those things, costume. So it is a big deal. And I'm very
00:48proud to be part of it.
00:50I guess in the last two years since it's come out in season one, have you had a moment of
00:55realisation when it comes to the fan reaction? Because millions of people watch this show.
00:59Millions of people speculate about what's going to happen next online and everything.
01:02Are you privy to those kind of chats online?
01:04No, I don't. I'm not. I would either just never get off it again, or I don't know. I've
01:11never gone down those rabbit holes. But I am aware of the people, particularly when
01:17we meet fans. It's very different when you actually meet people face-to-face. At
01:20San Diego Comic-Con, for example, we do many events with fans in person, which is always
01:26really gratifying and provoking and interesting, because these guys know a hell of a lot more
01:31than I ever will about the source. So it's always very, very gratifying to meet these
01:38people.
01:38Do you enjoy getting the education, I guess, from the fans who know every single little
01:42detail?
01:43Yeah, I do. I do enjoy it. But obviously sometimes you can't fulfil that for whatever
01:47reason. But I love knowing as much detail as there can be possible to know. I mean,
01:52we're doing Tolkien. You've got to know your stuff.
01:55Let's set the scene for season two. Where do we find your character? And tell us about
01:59the arc he goes on without spoiling anything, if we can.
02:01Yes, well, we've seen him. He's met Halbrand once in season one, and they've worked
02:07together. Then Halbrand goes. Celebrimbor never knows where or why. Galadriel has told
02:14them never to talk to this guy again. However, Halbrand shows up at Celebrimbor's city
02:20at the beginning of season two. Celebrimbor lets him in because he's intrigued by him.
02:24And he knows he's been told that he shouldn't see him. But something in him wants to
02:28ignore that, because he's feeling a bit fed up with all the other elves, because he feels
02:31a bit adrift and ignored. So he's a little bit, you know, gets a bit haughty and does
02:35his own thing. And then they forge this relationship, the two of them, which takes them through
02:40all kinds of twisty, turny, dark, scary places.
02:44We'll hear some twisty, turny, dark, scary places coming up this season. Can you tell
02:48us about what you are most excited for fans to see? An episode, a scene, a moment of yourself
02:53that you can't wait for the fan reaction for?
02:54We have been waiting to tell this story, the story of the forging of the reins with Sauron
02:59and Celebrimbor, since we got the jobs four years ago. And I sense that a lot of fans
03:06are waiting to see that story too. Season one was all about world building, introducing
03:11characters, and there are many, many of them. A lot of people know Tolkien, a lot of people
03:15don't know Tolkien. So all that work was very necessary and thorough. However, now we can
03:20start telling the Tolkien canon stories, which I think people are going to be very pleased
03:25to see.
03:26If that doesn't whet your appetite, I don't know what will.
03:28I hope it does.
03:29Thank you so much for your time. I appreciate you. Have a good night.
03:31No worries.
03:31Enjoy yourself. Thanks a lot.
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