- The Rings of Power season 3 has added actors from two popular Netflix shows to its cast ranks
- Stranger Things‘ Jamie Campbell Bower and Heartstopper‘s Eddie Marsan have signed on in mystery roles
- I think two particular roles are tailor-made for them
The Rings of Power season 3 just got a serious cast upgrade with the additions of actors from two of Netflix’s biggest TV Originals.
Just two weeks after The Rings of Power‘s third season was officially announced, the first of many (potentially, anyway) new cast additions have been revealed by Amazon MGM Studios. Stranger Things star Jamie Campbell Bower, who plays the villainous Vecna in the hugely popular Netflix series, and Heartstopper supporting actor Eddie Marsan have signed on to appear in season 3 of Amazon’s high-fantasy prequel show.
Jamie Campbell Bower and Eddie Marsan have joined the cast of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power for the series’ upcoming third season, currently in pre-production with filming scheduled to begin this spring. pic.twitter.com/04iCb7Q6AvFebruary 27, 2025
Amazon hasn’t confirmed who they’ll be playing in the Prime Video series’ next chapter, but did reveal that Campbell Bower will be a series regular and Marsan will feature in a recurring role. The tech giant’s entertainment division also reiterated that filming will begin in the spring (that’s autumn for southern hemisphere readers).
The Rings of Power season 2’s final episode set up some fascinating events – ones depicted in JRR Tolkien’s legendarium and wider The Lord of the Rings (TLotR) works – to come. You can remind yourself what happened in that explosive entry by reading my The Rings of Power season 2 ending explained article. Be sure to read my dedicated guide on The Rings of Power season 3, too, to learn more about its cast, potential storylines, and more.
Who could Jamie Campbell Bower and Eddie Marsan play in The Rings of Power season 3?
Full spoilers follow for The Rings of Power season 2 Potential season 3 spoilers are also discussed.
We may not know who they’ll portray yet, but that won’t stop me from speculating. Bear in mind that I have no insider knowledge, so everything from this point on is just me having some fun.
Where Marsan is concerned, he seems tailor-made to play a dwarven character. We already expect that there’ll be one new dwarf in one of the best Prime Video shows’ third season – that being Durin IV’s brother, who’s mentioned in season 2 episode 8. Apparently, he’s going to make a play for the Khazad-dûm throne following the death of King Durin III. He has the support of some key dwarf lords, too, so it would be fascinating to see Marsan’s unnamed character go toe-to-toe (verbally and physically) with Owain Arthur’s Durin IV as they battle to become Khazad-dûm’s next ruler.
Campbell Bower’s role is less clear. He’s most well-known for playing Vecna/Victor Creel in Stranger Things season 4 and he’ll reprise that role in Stranger Things season 5, which is set to debut on Netflix sometime in 2025.
Given his experience playing a terrifying villain, some readers may expect him to be another commanding, antagonistic figure in The Rings of Power. So, he could be another of Sauron’s disguises – indeed, while Charlie Vickers has primarily played Middle-earth’s Dark Lord in the show, Jack Lowden briefly portrayed Sauron during a flashback sequence in season 2 episode 1. There’s previous form for other actors playing Sauron in The Rings of Power, then. Could Campbell Bower play Sauron upon his return to Númenor? I wouldn’t rule it out.
That said, Campbell Bower could also play a more heroic character. Since the cast announcement was made, TLotR fans have flocked to The Rings of Power and The Rings of Power on Prime Reddit pages to say Campbell Bower has the air and appearance of an elf. Maybe he’ll play one of this race’s most interesting and/or important characters, then, such as Glorfindel or – whisper it quietly – Celeborn, aka Galadriel’s husband.
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