Warning: Spoilers ahead for The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power episode 3! Turn back now if you haven't caught up on Amazon Prime Video!
In the latest episode of The Rings of Power, we're introduced to Isildur, played by Maxim Baldry. The young man has a great destiny ahead of him, but at the moment, he's a sailor-in-training prepping for Númenor's sea trials.
At one point in the episode, though, Isildur hears a whisper calling his name. There's no explanation given for who the voice belongs to, and the subtitles only label the speaker as "woman". So just who is calling out to Isildur?
One potential explanation is that this is a call from beyond the grave from Isildur's mother. She's not a major presence in the works of J.R.R. Tolkien – she's not even named – but Lloyd Owen, who plays Isildur's father Elendil in the show, revealed in an interview with Collider that his character has "recently been widowed." Could The Rings of Power be expanding the role of Isildur's mother? It's possible, and that could explain who's calling to the young sailor.
Another key detail in this moment is where Isildur is looking as he hears the whisper. There's a mountain in the distance, and though it's not explicitly revealed, it's likely that this is Meneltarma. It's a sacred mountain for Númenor that has a flat peak – look closely at the mountain Isildur is looking at, and you'll see the top is flattened. It's likely, then, that the whisper originates from the rocky slopes.
The mountain is for the worship of Eru Ilúvatar, an all-powerful and all-knowing deity (essentially Tolkien's version of God). Eventually, though (and book spoilers follow!) Númenor will start to worship of Melker – another name for the great evil Morgoth – by Sauron, but that hasn't happened yet at this point on the Lord of the Rings timeline. Sauron's influence over Númenor eventually leads to the island city being drowned by Eru Ilúvatar, but Elendil and Isildur escape. This whisper from Meneltarma could be a subtle foreshadowing of that future apocalyptic event.
Those of you who know your Tolkien – or have seen Peter Jackson's The Fellowship of the Ring – already know the fate awaiting Isildur (and if you don't, look away now). Ultimately, he'll fail to cast the One Ring into the fires of Mount Doom and eventually dies after being hunted by a pack of Orcs. He loses the ring, which is eventually picked up by Déagol, cousin of Sméagol. With such a dark destiny ahead of him, it's no surprise that Isildur is already the subject of so much speculation…
We'll probably find out more about Isildur as the show continues – check out our The Rings of Power release schedule to see exactly when the next episode drops in your time zone. In the meantime, see our roundup of theories about the identity of the Stranger.
