The looming threat of evil is a large part of what makes a Lord of the Rings story a Lord of the Rings story, so it's no surprise that The Rings of Power is as drenched in dread and sorrow as it is hope and magic. Set thousands of years before the events of The Hobbit, the Prime Video prequel series charts the forging of the titular rings and the rise of the Dark Lord Sauron, while Galadriel and the like grapple with their emotional and physical scars from the First Age's War of Wrath.
'Shadow of the Past', the first episode, begins with a prologue that mentions the Great Battle, where Elves, Men, and Valar stood against Morgoth – and ended the malevolent Middle-earth tyrant's reign. For now, it's unclear how much of a presence the big bad will have in the series, or if he'll appear in flashbacks, but if you're curious as to who he was, then we've got you covered.
Below, we break down Morgoth's beginnings, wrongdoings, history with Sauron, and demise, too. So what are you waiting for? Keep scrolling and get up to speed with the being who's keeping Galadriel up at night...
Who is Morgoth?
In Tolkien's works, Morgoth actually pre-dates Middle-earth. Before he was known as Morgoth, he was Melkor, the most powerful of the angel-like Ainur. Unlike the rest of his kind, Melkor was rebellious, a trait that led him to stray from the path of his creator Eru Ilúvatar (think the Christian version of God) and weave his dark thoughts into the creation of the universe. In short, all evil present in Middle-earth stems from him (think the Christian version of the Devil).
While his fellow Ainur went on to become Valar (sort-of angels), or the lesser Maiar, and attempt to build Arda up in accordance to Ilúvatar's vision, Melkor sought to dominate it and the beings who would one day call it home. In his quest, he corrupted a number of Ainur, too. He created orcs and dragons and, with the help of the evil spider Ungoliant, killed the Elven king Finwë before destroying the Two Trees and stealing the Silmarils, kicking off the tension-filled First Age.
It was then that Fëanor, Finwë's son and maker of the Silmarils, dubbed him 'Morgoth'. Along the way, Mairon, one of the Maiar of Aulë, betrayed his own kind and pledged to follow Morgoth. Ultimately, he became his principal lieutenant, and the villain of the Lord of the Rings, Sauron.
It's fair to say that Men and Elves suffered most in the years that followed, and eventually, things got so bad that Eärendil, a Half-elven mariner who sailed into Valinor in the hopes of convincing the Valor to come to their aid. Eventually, the powerful Valar agreed, and the subsequent conflict became known as the War of Wrath. It concluded with a whole section of Middle-earth sinking into the ocean, and Morgoth being banished from Arda into the Void.
Will Morgoth rise again?
Given the fact that Morgoth isn't technically dead, it's often been wondered by Lord of the Rings fans whether the Dark Lord would ever return. That theory is amplified significantly by the fact that a Mandos prophecy throughout Tolkien's works suggested that the villain would rise again, only to be vanquished in the Last Battle, known as the end-times war Dagor Dagorath.
According to the author's youngest son Christopher Tolkien, his father abandoned the storyline, but that doesn't necessarily mean that it wouldn't ever be realized on screen. That said, it's unlikely to happen in The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. To depict an event more apocalyptic than anything we've seen from the franchise so far, the show would have to zoom past the events of Peter Jackson's movies, when The Rings of Power is set to stick to the Second Age. Instead, we're going to see Sauron cause havoc in Middle-earth before ultimately being defeated in by the armies of men and Elves, as seen in the prologue to Jackson's movies.
Perhaps one day, if Amazon ever decides to create another Lord of the Rings series, we could see Morgoth rise in a Fourth Age tale. However, Tolkien once tried to tell a Fourth Age story and abandoned it because it was too dark, and the chances are his estate won't touch a post-Third Age tale.
The first two episodes of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power are streaming now on Prime Video.To ensure you don't miss an episode, be sure to keep our The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power release schedule to hand.
