The Lord of The Rings: The Rings of Power: who is The Stranger? Theories around LOTR character explained

Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power will be dropping on Amazon Prime Video this week.

The highly-anticipated series is the most expensive TV show ever made costing a staggering $175 million.

Season one introduces viewers to the character The Stranger, also known as meteor man.

Fans have been left speculating about his identity, with many theories circulating.

Here’s everything you need to know about who The Stranger might be.

Who is the Stranger?

The identity of The Stranger remains a mystery, with plenty of theories circulating online about who it could be.

Played by Daniel Weyman, the character features heavily in the latest trailer.

In it, a meteor is seen crashing into Middle Earth, however after the dust settles, the meteor turns out to be a man, who is discovered by two Harfoots - Nori (Markella Kavenagh) and Poppy (Megan Richards).

The mysterious character’s role in the new season has been kept tightly under wraps.

Speaking about the role to ScreenRant, Weyman said the stranger would go by Annatar.

In the interview he touched on the character’s importance.

Weyman said: “They were pretty clear at the beginning that what they were bringing me was a character who had, at his core, a really deep and primal purpose. He had a need to accomplish something; he had a desire to accomplish this thing. Once I began to tap into that, and feel that deep in the core, then other things flowed out of that.”

Adding: “As much as we don’t know about him, I think what we’re going to do – if we can stay with him – is to see that the way that he impacts communities around him is going to be dramatic. We are going to learn and learn and learn, and finding out what exactly is going on might not be so quick”

*Warning possible spo

Could it be Sauron?

One of the most popular theories about who the Stranger could be is Sauron - the main bad guy from the Lord of the Rings films.

The plot for season 1 will follow the story of Sauron’s return to Middle Earth.

In J.R.R. Tolkien’s novel, Sauron was defeated by Morgoth at the end of the First Age, but stayed hidden in Middle Earth, slowly building his power until he established himself in Mordor.

Sauron then tricks the elves while pretending to be their friend Annatar, with some fans believing this could be an adaption of Sauron’s deception.

One of the main clues pointing at it being Sauron occurs during the trailer.

When the Stranger lands like a meteor he is surrounded by a bright red flame that spreads outwards into a circle, which is eerily similar to the Eye of Sauron, which features in the Lord of the Rings movies.

Also it is a huge coincidence that during the interview Weyman said The Stranger was to be known as Annatar - the same name that Sauron goes by when he tricks the elves.

Could it be Gandalf the Grey?

Another theory that is gaining traction is that the Stranger could actually be Gandalf the Grey.

The wizard has featured in both the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit trilogy, played by Sir Ian McKellan.

Whilst there is nothing in the books to suggest that Gandalf drops into Middle Earth as a meteor, the theory could be plausible.

Before becoming the wise wizard, Gandalf was actually a Maiar spirit called Olórin.

In the books, J.R.R. Tolkien writes that Olórin would stay with the elves to watch over them.

However, there are contradictions to this theory as when the Maiar visited Middle Earth, their sole purpose was to become one with the people they were watching.

They wouldn’t have announced themselves, and coming down to the ground as a flaming meteor is one way to make to an announcement.

When can I watch Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power?

Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power will be available to watch on Amazon Prime Video.

The most expensive TV series ever made will be dropping on Friday 2 September.

Episodes will be added weekly with the finale being held on 14 October.

Amazon has committed to five seasons, with works for the second one rumoured to already be underway.