'Rings of Power': Amazon Casts 8 New Stars in 'Lord of the Rings' Spinoff

Middle-earth is getting a bit more crowded next season. Amazon announced eight new cast members for The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power on Wednesday, joining the returning characters from Season 1. With Prime Video's huge investments in this epic fantasy spinoff, these actors can likely count on job security for quite a while.

Rings of Power had an excellent first season this fall, and it likely has many more to come. According to a 2017 report by Deadline, Amazon committed to 5 seasons of the show in its deal with the Tolkien Estate, though there may be provisions to cut the production early, as the terms were never made public. Regardless, it's clear that Amazon is invested in telling a story that is as broad in scope as The Lord of the Rings itself. That makes it understandable that an entire ensemble's worth of actors was just added to the lineup.

Rings of Power Season 2 began filming in October in the U.K., so it's very possible that these actors have already shot some of their scenes. We don't know who they're playing yet, but since this far-flung prequel is based on slim source material, that doesn't make much of a difference. Here's a look at the new cast members and what we know about them so far.