We Misunderstand the NAZGUL - What You Must Know Before Season 3

#RingsOfPower #Nazgul #lordoftherings In 1958 Tolkien read a draft for a movie of his book that never got made, and one of his biggest complaints was about the Black Riders. He called it a misconception of them throughout. Honestly, I think most of us still have it, and season three of Rings of Power is about to show who the Nazgûl were before the black robes. I start with the costume, since that's the part everybody remembers. What's funny is that the movie itself calls the riders disguised, and the book, for instance, says the robes are only there to give shape to their nothingness. And it's no coincidence, because Ngila Dickson, who designed the costumes, began from a king's robes and tore them down into a ringwraith. Then I go through who they actually were, kings, sorcerers and warriors, and the three different answers to who got the rings, from Peter Jackson, from season two and from the showrunners. The thing is, what the ring gave them was time, not power. In other words, Gandalf's "he merely continues". Gollum walks the same road at a smaller size, and Tolkien said so himself in a letter, the small to a Gollum and the great to a Ringwraith. If you think about it, the 1968 BBC interview where he names what the whole book is really about explains the Nine better than any lore list. There's practical stuff too. Their real weapon is fear, which is why Aragorn drives them off on Weathertop with fire. And you can see on Weathertop that the Ring doesn't hide you from them, it does the opposite. A Morgul blade is a short cut to becoming one of them, and in the later letters it's Sauron who holds their rings, not them. Oh, and the scream started as Fran Walsh's voice. Season three starts on November 11, and the face of the Nine is Khamûl, played by Zubin Varla, a warlord who wants his kingdom back, at least the way the showrunners describe him. I don't know yet how much of that we'll actually see. I end with Éowyn. Let me refresh your memory, she's the one person in the books who isn't afraid of them, and what's left under the Witch-king's crown says the rest. Written sources on screen: The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien (letters 156, 203, 208, 210, 212, 246); The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, The Return of the King, Appendix A; The Silmarillion (1977): "Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age"; Empire, MovieWeb, ComicBookMovie, About Amazon (season three cast). Film, video and photos: The Rings of Power, seasons one and two, the season three teaser, the official season three trailer and "The Creatures of Season 3" (Amazon Prime Video); San Diego Comic-Con 2026 panel; Collider interviews; The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001), The Two Towers (2002, extended edition) and The Return of the King (2003); Tolkien interviewed by the BBC (1968); Season three photos: Empire, ComicBookMovie, MovieWeb, SFFGazette, El Fenómeno; Fran Walsh (Wikimedia Commons); David Farmer (MeldaProduction). Tell me in the comments which of the Nine you think says no the longest. And if you like putting the books and the show side by side, subscribing is the easiest way to catch the next one before season three. We Misunderstand the Nazgul, Nazgul explained, Ringwraiths explained, Black Riders explained, who were the Nazgul, Rings of Power season 3 explained, Rings of Power season 3 Nazgul. Black Riders are the Ringwraiths, the Nine, nine rings for mortal men, kings sorcerers and warriors, he merely continues, the small to a Gollum and the great to a Ringwraith, no great physical power against the fearless, did the Nazgul wear their rings, Morgul blade, Nazgul scream, no living man. Witch-king of Angmar, Khamûl the Easterling, Sauron, Annatar, Celebrimbor, Mirdania, Gollum, Sméagol, Déagol, Bilbo, Frodo, Gandalf, Aragorn, Arwen, Éowyn, Legolas, Dark Wizard, the Stranger. Zubin Varla, Charlie Vickers, JD Payne, Patrick McKay, Ngila Dickson, Fran Walsh, David Farmer, Peter Jackson. J.R.R. Tolkien, Letters of Tolkien, The Silmarillion, The Lord of the Rings, The Fellowship of the Ring, The Return of the King, Weathertop, Bree, Prancing Pony, Minas Morgul, Pelennor Fields, Rhûn. Tolkien BBC interview 1968, Comic-Con 2026, season 3 teaser, season 3 official trailer, The Creatures of Season 3, November 11 2026.