The fallen elf and leader of Uruks has a new vibe, thanks to a new actor named Sam Hazeldine.
Entertainment Weekly got an exclusive interview with the actor taking over the role of Adar, the main antagonist for the first two seasons of The Rings of Power. Hazeldine comes fresh off the huge success of AppleTV+ show Masters of the Air (he’s in the final three episodes as the leader of the Air Force troupe) and it seems that he’s relished the opportunity to play in the fantasy world of J.R.R Tolkien.
“The hardest thing was I had to go straight into speaking Black Speech on day one,” the actor says. “It is hard on your throat, and it is hard to remember because it doesn’t really follow the elvish languages, which have roots in real languages like Welsh and Finnish.” He even had the show’s Tolkien lore experts rewrite some of his lines from English into Black Speech, in order to give Adar the proper gravitas.
EW, quoting Sam Hazeldine for S2
Staffer Demosthenes here. Just quickly, there’s another quote from Hazledine that is ridiculously thought-provoking.
Viewers will also see how previous confrontations between Adar and Sauron unfolded.
“There was an offer for power and for something else, which you’ll find out later on in the show, and Adar willingly took the deal,” Hazeldine says of Adar’s origin. “It’s kind of like he took a red pill and was duped. He was horrifically tortured and maimed.”
EW, quoting Sam Hazeldine for S2
What is that “something else”? Is it the chance to redeem all orcs? Would that be enough to convince Adar to follow Sauron? Is Adar one of those mentioned in The Rings of Power and the Third Age who believed Sauron had “abjured his evil deeds”? What sort of power would be a lure for Adar anyway?
We’re hoping to explore these questions and provide some grounded speculation over coming weeks. Anyway, back to Justin!
We previously shared a Tolkien scholar’s opinion on the invented character Adar with this post after Season 1. Overwhelmingly, fans embraced the character and this new interview has generated a ton of hype going into Season 2, and even Adar fan cams!
Watch TORN Tuesday explain the Adar news (from 1:18:30 on) then join thousands of fans who talk Tolkien daily in our Discord!
