Lord Of The Rings: We May Already Know Who Plays The Witch-King In The Rings Of Power

The Witch-king of Angmar is a staple J.R.R. Tolkien baddie. The villain plays an integral role throughout "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy, from stabbing Frodo on Weathertop to being stabbed in the face by Éowyn in one of the best fights in the trilogy. Here's the thing. The chief of the Nazgûl's career starts way before "The Lord of the Rings." In fact, the guy is thousands of years old by that point. He's already fought a ton of wars and has spent countless years as one of Sauron's top generals. The genesis of the Witch-king of Agnmar goes so far back that he's even likely to play a prominent role in Prime Video's "The Rings of Power" series, which takes place several thousand years before Frodo sets out on his quest — and there's a chance that we already know who could be playing the villain as he rises to power in the Second Age: Jamie Campbell Bower.

To be clear, this is pure speculation at this point. However, there are a couple of bread crumbs that could point toward Bower entering the show as the Witch-king. First is the obvious: As of February 2025, it was announced that the "Stranger Things" vet was officially joining the show. So, we at least know Campbell is on board. He is also supposed to be a series regular, which would fit well with the Witch-king role, since he would be involved for the duration of the Second Age story. Campbell is also no stranger to playing creepy, possessed characters, as is evidenced by his performance as Vecna in "Stranger Things." Even better? Campbell's profile description on X has literally read "Witch King" for years. (No, he didn't change it to that after joining the show, but still.) The man was clearly born for the role if they want to give it to him.

If you're wondering how the spikey-crowned, black-robed figure from "The Lord of the Rings" connects to "The Rings of Power," it's pretty simple, actually. When Sauron forges the Rings of Power in the Second Age, he gives some of the overpowered trinkets to important men. "The Silmarillion" says:

"Men proved easier to ensnare [than Dwarves]. Those who used the Nine Rings became mighty in their day, kings, sorcerers, and warriors of old. They obtained glory and great wealth, yet it turned to their undoing. [...] The Nazgûl were they, the Ringwraiths, the Enemy's most terrible servants; darkness went with them, and they cried with the voices of death."

This brief description lays out the blueprint for how the Nazgûl come into being. They are proud humans in positions of power, and they each fall to the lure of a Ring of Power. Sauron uses the One Ring to control them, and they become his most fearsome weapons — immortally prolonged and inhumanly powered. The Witch-king is eventually named as their leader, and he functions as the simultaneously enslaved and empowered leader of the Dark Lord's forces throughout the Second and Third Ages. Since the Nine Rings for Mortal Men doomed to die were forged in the fading moments of season 2 of Prime Video's adaptation, we can expect some Men to show up wearing them soon. Maybe Campbell's character will be one of them. 

Again, I have to point out that this is all speculation. Does Campbell fit the part of the Witch-king? You bet. But nothing is confirmed by the studio yet, and he could just as easily pop up as a good guy in the story.

One obvious option for Campbell's character is an Elf. In fact, fansite Fellowship of Fans recently claimed to have an exclusive scoop that Campbell won't be playing the Witch-king. Along with claims that there will be longer Elven hair in the upcoming season, they reported:

"Exclusive: Jamie Campbell Bower plays a leading book 'Elf' in 'The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power' season 3. His code name is 'Arlen', described as a 'High-born Knight' and the biggest character cast for season 2. He is not playing Thranduil or Oropher."

If this rumor is true, it means Campbell is actually coming in on the good guys' side for once. It also leaves a fairly small pool of candidates he could play. Thranduil and Oropher are Legolas' father and grandfather. So if Campbell doesn't play either of them, maybe he'll play Legolas himself (the Elven prince's age is technically unknown, so he could technically be puttering around Mirkwood at this point). He could also be several other Elven characters from Tolkien's source material, such as the important Elven leaders Amroth and Amdir, but while they're important in the story, they are hardly "leading book Elves." 

The most obvious candidate is Celeborn, Galadriel's husband, who has, thus far, been conspicuously absent from showrunners JD Payne and Patrick McKay's story. My money, though? It's on Glorfindel — the superhero Elf who shows up in "The Lord of the Rings" during the Third Age, takes down a balrog on his own in the First Age, and was supposed to play a critical role in resisting Sauron in the Second Age. Tolkien never got around to fleshing out that last bit in his writings. Maybe Campbell has been brought in to do just that.