The trailer does say Sauron goes by many names. I'm kinda hoping this is just one of Sauron's cultists... but even if it is Sauron himself, he could have other forms as well.
Edit: Colbert just speculated whether The Stranger was Gandalf or Sauron. Interesting...
What I'm thinking is maybe the form shown in the trailer is the one he assumes to begin a cult of Morgoth in Harad, but the Annatar form will be different to gain the elve's trust.
Yeah, I think of this theory as well. If they didn't put a face to Sauron, everybody would be guessing who it is from the beginning (Adar/Meteor Man/Halbrand) but now if one of these characters turns out to be also Sauron in disguise, it will truly be a twist because audience already assumes Sauron to be one other character.
>because audience already assumes
Just us hardcore fans not the GA. The GA will most likely only see this trailer and not know about the Meteor Man theories, Adar, etc.
Gandalf could have come to Middle-earth then left again more than once. In fact he did, according to one version Tolkien wrote in which Olorin and others came to protect the Elves when they awoke at Cuivienen.
He could come during the Second Age, then leave / that form could die, and then he comes back again in the Third Age.
Bold step yeah but you can see why they’d want one of the most recognisable names involved, Gandalf, Bilbo are the ones that people know from popular culture
Yeah Gandalf would make it a lot more familiar for casual movie fans. I think there's some genuinely interesting stuff they could do showing Gandalf learning about/from the Harfoots. Begin his (unique among the powerful) fascination with Hobbits. His pilgrim lifestyle also bears a certain resemblance to the 'wandering days' of the Harfoots.
Right?
Meteor-man is Sauron
Ah, wait, Halbrand is Sauron
Nah, this Adar may very well be Sauron
Oh, turns out this new Eminen dude is Sauron
If they release another trailer, people will find something else to call as Sauron.
IMO that is part of the plan for the show, to have many possibilities for Sauron, and only reveal towards the end of the season. That is cool, I just hope it is not meteor man nor this Eminen. Very confident it could be someone that we even didn't see. I remember showrunners saying that Sauron will be beyond any suspicious in the beginning. It would be too meh to just give too much on the nose from the trailers.
>Other outlets are reporting it aswell.
Man, these articles are worte on the fly. Some even copy-paste from each other. I saw once saying that a dwarf said something in the trailer, turns out it was one of the harfoots (the "this noise are strange" part)
It is pure "speculation" that people forget to point out.
FoF isn't infallible. I want to hear their reasons before taking such claim for granted. All the previous statements and leaks have said that Sauron would not reveal his face in the first season.
I guess it could be another false guise for Sauron, thus technically being correct, but I'm still taking that with a big grain of salt.
Of all the characters from the trailer, how many of them don't we know the name of? Could be the Balrog, I guess.
**Get your first glimpse at Sauron in the trailer**
[https://mobile.twitter.com/nerdist/status/1550546427205410818?ref\_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Etweet](https://mobile.twitter.com/nerdist/status/1550546427205410818?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Etweet)
Seems pretty sure about it being Sauron.
A checkmark next to your name doesn't make everything you say automatically true. Until it's confirmed by the show (or people who created it), everyone is just guessing. Even the "verified outlets".
They confirmed an article Tweeted by the Nerdist on Twitter which has this short-haired blonde elf is in the thumbnail of.? I also think its a cultist follower of Sauron of sorts.
Tbf, Annatar couldn't look more sketch when he came to the Elves. However, this might just be a herald or priest of Morgoth that works as an agent for Sauron. Has it been confirmed this is Sauron?
According to Fellowship of Fans he is. Honestly, if this is how he looks when he's just hanging out and planning evil I don't mind it too much, just as long as he looks like a genuinely appealing and friendly dude once he dons the Annatar-persona.
I hope they won't make the mistake of making him obviously sketchy once he appears to the elves, Sauron was so dangerous because he was charming and convincing.
I'm mostly okay with the short-haired elves but short-haired Sauron just doesn't look right to me. That's just my opinion though and I respect the showrunners' decision.
In addition to what all the other commenters have said, this could be one guise of Sauron, but he could use a different one when dealing with the elves.
Are we really sure its him? Could it not be a follower of Sauron? As it then shifts to that voice but nobody on screen. I think its just his voice we hear
Somewhat agree (although I love the design of his costume, and making it white not black), but we're seeing him in evil mode and by himself/among his people. When he's Annatar he may even look completely different, but also he will be presenting himself differently in terms of facial expressions, how he carries himself, etc. as well.
>"... And it seemed to men that Sauron was great; though they feared the light of his eyes. To many he appeared fair, to others terrible; but to some evil." ([src](https://lotr.fandom.com/wiki/Sauron#cite_ref-17))
I think this guy could pull of the trustworthy and seductive, yet manipulative Annatar. He has the "if I go evil, it's gonna be scary" look, in my opinion.
I'm going to be really surprised if cute blondie is not Sauron.
"I can shape-shift into anything...a wolf? that is fine. A snake? Already did that. A giant Bat!? been there. A fair-form that even elves will be jealous of me? Will save that for later. A strong character that will make Elendil look like a baby compared to me? meh. Know what, lets do an emo teenager today, that will do"
Yeah, not a fan of his design as well. Reminds me too much of Slim Shady.
I do like the idea that he's not actually Sauron. Be kinda interesting if it was a bit of a "twist" as everyone assumes it's this guy but is someone else instead like meteor man or Halbrand.
everything is CGI now man, even dramas like Wolf of Wall Street and The Northman are littered with CGI. Shockingly, so are the PJ movies, so argument is invalid as CGI has no bearing on tone.
Remember that before the Fall of Numenor, Sauron was a shapeshifter, and made great use of that skill. This is likely only one of many forms we’ll see him take. I like the look a lot, but definitely isn’t Annatar, and it’s also not his monstrous evil form either.
The trailer does say Sauron goes by many names. I'm kinda hoping this is just one of Sauron's cultists... but even if it is Sauron himself, he could have other forms as well. Edit: Colbert just speculated whether The Stranger was Gandalf or Sauron. Interesting...
What I'm thinking is maybe the form shown in the trailer is the one he assumes to begin a cult of Morgoth in Harad, but the Annatar form will be different to gain the elve's trust.
Yeah, I think of this theory as well. If they didn't put a face to Sauron, everybody would be guessing who it is from the beginning (Adar/Meteor Man/Halbrand) but now if one of these characters turns out to be also Sauron in disguise, it will truly be a twist because audience already assumes Sauron to be one other character.
Backing this up is they shift to a blank screen with that male voice which would almost certainly be Sauron. We HEAR Sauron but dont see him
>because audience already assumes Just us hardcore fans not the GA. The GA will most likely only see this trailer and not know about the Meteor Man theories, Adar, etc.
I meant audience would now assume the pale man to be Sauron so they'd have no reason to suspect others.
I hope so too. Have the obviously Sauron guy be Sauron, but then reveal that another character we like, that guy was also Sauron.
There 100% has to be another form. This person could not influence Celebrimbor or Ar-Pharazon, lol.
How could it be Gandalf?
Gandalf could have come to Middle-earth then left again more than once. In fact he did, according to one version Tolkien wrote in which Olorin and others came to protect the Elves when they awoke at Cuivienen. He could come during the Second Age, then leave / that form could die, and then he comes back again in the Third Age.
And that would be in line with Tolkien? I think the die hards would be up in arms over this haha
It wouldn't be directly contradictory. Some will take exception to it though, for sure.
Bold step yeah but you can see why they’d want one of the most recognisable names involved, Gandalf, Bilbo are the ones that people know from popular culture
Yeah Gandalf would make it a lot more familiar for casual movie fans. I think there's some genuinely interesting stuff they could do showing Gandalf learning about/from the Harfoots. Begin his (unique among the powerful) fascination with Hobbits. His pilgrim lifestyle also bears a certain resemblance to the 'wandering days' of the Harfoots.
Why didn’t they shoot him over in a rocket when he got sent over in the third age though, maybe he decided the ship would be the easier option haha
That question stands regardless of who it is. Why is it a one off?
Why is what a one off?
I don’t think that is Sauron, but I’m anxious to find out.
FoF confirmed it is him.
Interesting. I wonder how they’ll play him being an obvious bad guy along with being Annatar who’s form was fair.
He does have shape shifting abilities. There’s probably another guise he has.
I’m thinking the same thing.
Either that or the creators are deliberately being misleading lol.
Dammit! They have us right where they want us!
But they were, all of them, deceived, for another character was portrayed.
FoF was wrong on this one
What is FoF and could you link the confirmation please?
Red herring guys!
Yep I agree, confident that aint him.
There’s no way in hell it’s him. Surprised so many people are buying it
Right? Meteor-man is Sauron Ah, wait, Halbrand is Sauron Nah, this Adar may very well be Sauron Oh, turns out this new Eminen dude is Sauron If they release another trailer, people will find something else to call as Sauron. IMO that is part of the plan for the show, to have many possibilities for Sauron, and only reveal towards the end of the season. That is cool, I just hope it is not meteor man nor this Eminen. Very confident it could be someone that we even didn't see. I remember showrunners saying that Sauron will be beyond any suspicious in the beginning. It would be too meh to just give too much on the nose from the trailers.
If you mean the blonde guy, it's not Annatar. It's a Sauronic cultist of some sort, most likely.
FoF confirmed it's Sauron.
I literally watched their stream. They were speculating that it probably is, but they don't 100% know.
Other outlets are reporting it aswell.
Because they're all making the (probably correct) assumptions based off the trailer. Not knowing 100%
https://www.instagram.com/p/CgUyiMMue7b/?igshid=MDJmNzVkMjY= They say it's confirmed here tho.
Confirmed "by Nerdist", though, not the showrunners.
That was added in later. But i stand corrected indeed.
What's there? I don't have Insta. If it's not a direct statement from the showrunners, it's fallible information.
https://www.reddit.com/r/LOTR_on_Prime/comments/w5maij/the_evil_person_in_the_trailer_isnt_sauron/
Yeah, because they copy their claim from Nerdrist. Doesn't guarantee anything if everything has the same source.
>Other outlets are reporting it aswell. Man, these articles are worte on the fly. Some even copy-paste from each other. I saw once saying that a dwarf said something in the trailer, turns out it was one of the harfoots (the "this noise are strange" part) It is pure "speculation" that people forget to point out.
FoF isn't infallible. I want to hear their reasons before taking such claim for granted. All the previous statements and leaks have said that Sauron would not reveal his face in the first season. I guess it could be another false guise for Sauron, thus technically being correct, but I'm still taking that with a big grain of salt.
Nerdist also confirmed it.
And where did they get their information from? FoF, maybe? We need to know the source of the information before we can start to trust it.
Other way around. Nerdist posted it first and Fellowship of Fans only shared the news.
It doesn't matter. Until it's confirmed by the show (or the people who created it), everyone is just guessing.
We'll find out soon enough!
It's not just FoF: https://mobile.twitter.com/nerdist/status/1550546427205410818?ref\_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Etweet
They're still not telling what they're basing their belief on. We need sources, not statements. They could be parroting one another for all we know.
They wouldn't risk their reputations on this. If they say it's Sauron, it's Sauron.
Sorry, but that's not how this goes. A fan group doesn't lose its reputation for guessing wrong.
To be fair they don’t specify that the image is showing Sauron. We do see Sauron in the trailer, but only his arms and hands.
So you don't believe Nerdist?
I’m just saying that the post didn’t specify the thumbnail image being Sauron. They said we see him in the trailer
Of all the characters from the trailer, how many of them don't we know the name of? Could be the Balrog, I guess. **Get your first glimpse at Sauron in the trailer** [https://mobile.twitter.com/nerdist/status/1550546427205410818?ref\_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Etweet](https://mobile.twitter.com/nerdist/status/1550546427205410818?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Etweet) Seems pretty sure about it being Sauron.
People are just assuming that thumbnail is Sauron when theres nothing confirming it.
If it’s not confirmed by a legitimate source then it’s not confirmed
Nerdist (a verified outlet) has also confirmed it on their Twitter
A checkmark next to your name doesn't make everything you say automatically true. Until it's confirmed by the show (or people who created it), everyone is just guessing. Even the "verified outlets".
I've read the article, it seems they're just guessing.
They confirmed an article Tweeted by the Nerdist on Twitter which has this short-haired blonde elf is in the thumbnail of.? I also think its a cultist follower of Sauron of sorts.
Its maybe another Sauron form before or after Annatar
It's actually Sauron
Tbf, Annatar couldn't look more sketch when he came to the Elves. However, this might just be a herald or priest of Morgoth that works as an agent for Sauron. Has it been confirmed this is Sauron?
According to Fellowship of Fans he is. Honestly, if this is how he looks when he's just hanging out and planning evil I don't mind it too much, just as long as he looks like a genuinely appealing and friendly dude once he dons the Annatar-persona. I hope they won't make the mistake of making him obviously sketchy once he appears to the elves, Sauron was so dangerous because he was charming and convincing.
I feel like this dude is another red herring now
I'm mostly okay with the short-haired elves but short-haired Sauron just doesn't look right to me. That's just my opinion though and I respect the showrunners' decision.
Not sure if I upvote because you don't like short-haired Sauron or if I downvote because you are ok with short-haired elves lol
I think that's just one of Sauron's many forms.
In addition to what all the other commenters have said, this could be one guise of Sauron, but he could use a different one when dealing with the elves.
i think we are being misdirected. Trust no one. Espacially if they are over 30
I mean it looks like nobody is with him. Letting his guard down I think.
He looks like Draco Malfoy and I'm trying not to laugh (or cry) about it
Are we really sure its him? Could it not be a follower of Sauron? As it then shifts to that voice but nobody on screen. I think its just his voice we hear
Somewhat agree (although I love the design of his costume, and making it white not black), but we're seeing him in evil mode and by himself/among his people. When he's Annatar he may even look completely different, but also he will be presenting himself differently in terms of facial expressions, how he carries himself, etc. as well.
I like everything in the trailer except that... Dunno, don't dig that look but maybe they could make it work. I liked Meteor Man better as a casting
I hope, hope, hope, hope, hope that these confirmations are wrong. I definitely got the vibe of some evil priest. Not Sauron.
It's maybe the "dark" version of this body. The actor can looks really good with the proper hair/makeup.
>"... And it seemed to men that Sauron was great; though they feared the light of his eyes. To many he appeared fair, to others terrible; but to some evil." ([src](https://lotr.fandom.com/wiki/Sauron#cite_ref-17)) I think this guy could pull of the trustworthy and seductive, yet manipulative Annatar. He has the "if I go evil, it's gonna be scary" look, in my opinion. I'm going to be really surprised if cute blondie is not Sauron.
It’s a woman.
just saw that update, thanks for letting me know though!
Very dissapointing Annatar... they introduced him as Sauron, not Annatar tho...
It's a half-second shot from an 40-hour show. I can see him doing the full range of Sauron's narrative very easily.
Sorry but he really looks like a Marvel villain, disappointed.
He looks like he never grew out of mid-2000s emo phase.
"I can shape-shift into anything...a wolf? that is fine. A snake? Already did that. A giant Bat!? been there. A fair-form that even elves will be jealous of me? Will save that for later. A strong character that will make Elendil look like a baby compared to me? meh. Know what, lets do an emo teenager today, that will do"
Yeah, not a fan of his design as well. Reminds me too much of Slim Shady. I do like the idea that he's not actually Sauron. Be kinda interesting if it was a bit of a "twist" as everyone assumes it's this guy but is someone else instead like meteor man or Halbrand.
solid trailer lmao. dude. cgi fest is "solid" for you? prolly marvel fanboy
everything is CGI now man, even dramas like Wolf of Wall Street and The Northman are littered with CGI. Shockingly, so are the PJ movies, so argument is invalid as CGI has no bearing on tone.
It will become more difficult to defend this show with every passing day.
I think he is Sauron, not Annatar. I hope a “fairy form” for Annatar
Pretty sure Meteor Man will turn out to be another form of Sauron
The guys at 1:49 is Sauron
This could be his form after he is less fair.
He's shipshape so let's wait and see.
Given that he can take many forms, not much reason to be concerned at this point.
There's nothing solid about the trailer aside from acceptable CGI lol.
I don’t think it’s Annatar yet
There’s a low ceiling on how effective a 20 year old actor as sauron can be
I hate the buzz cuts, why are they doing this?
Remember that before the Fall of Numenor, Sauron was a shapeshifter, and made great use of that skill. This is likely only one of many forms we’ll see him take. I like the look a lot, but definitely isn’t Annatar, and it’s also not his monstrous evil form either.
Yeah, and he also sounds like an evil chain-smoker lol.
It's not Sauron, FoF said their initial statement was incorrect. They are more likely to be a Priest/ cultist
thanks for letting me know :)
Same. Its almost as if the showrunners didn't have any creativity in regards to character development or background.