Fans of the Lord of the Rings will know the significance of Narsil, the sword that Míriel gifted to Elendil in the final episode of The Rings of Power season 2. The legendary weapon was previously seen in Peter Jackson's Fellowship of the Ring prologue, which detailed its role in the battle against Sauron, before being remade as Andúril and playing a key part in Aragorn's story.
It will appear again in the upcoming The Rings of Power season 3, as confirmed by a behind-the-scenes video of shooting last year, where Elendil wields it. Star Lloyd Owen tells GamesRadar+ that he revisited Jackson's movies ahead of filming to help capture the grandeur of the weapon.
"For a visual reference, I watched the movies when Viggo Mortensen pulls it out when Elrond gives it to him," he recalls. "With Charlotte Brandstrom, who was the director of that episode, we tried to replicate something of that unsheathing of that sort and the effect that it has."
Alex Francis, The Rings of Power's armor master, showcased the iconic sword to GamesRadar+ at a recent event celebrating the behind-the-scenes work that goes into the Prime Video show. Just like with Owen, he acknowledges that the past depictions of Narsil were extremely vital to how they designed it.
"There's already a pre-existing world, right? So there's an understanding that this has already been established, and so there are already blueprints of it, there's already relatability to it," he explains. "So when you start with Narsil, it's an amazing piece, and so therefore it is from the originals. It's from the original books. It's from the original blueprints. So then you just go down to the manufacturing."
As a result, Francis and his team didn't want to deviate too greatly with their designs. "You want to keep it as iconic as you possibly can," he adds.
The Rings of Power season 3 begins on Prime Video on November 11 with a four-episode premiere. For more, check out our guides to the Lord of the Rings timeline and watching the Lord of the Rings in order.
