Only Two Of The Rings of Power Actors Carried the Entire Season
The Rings of Power earned many complaints from all corners of the Internet, from ignoring the lore to looking far too cheap for its humongous budget.
And one of the more common complaints is actors either being poorly cast, or not doing their best for whatever reason. It is particularly salient when comparing The Rings of Power with another high-profile fantasy series which was broadcast at the same time, House of the Dragon, noted for its consistently great performances.
However, there are still actors in The Rings of Power whose outstanding work had elevated their roles above the mediocrity, even if the Internet does not always agree on who they are. The two most commonly praised are Charlie Vickers (Halbrand, aka Sauron – not a spoiler by this point) and Morfydd Clark ( Galadriel), though there are some other contenders, such as Owain Arthur (Durin).
In fact, some go as far as to say that Charlie Vickers and Morfydd Clark and interactions between their characters carried the entire season. Of course, the web being the web, the praise is not unanimous – quite a few people complain that Halbrand's true nature was too transparent from the start and that Galadriel's personality on the screen was consistently abrasive and unpleasant. But as it seems, the majority rather likes them and their whole plotline, which was central to Season 1 as a whole.
We can hope – and likely that was the intention of the writers – that for Charlie, this is only a starting point for building Sauron as a character we know, gradually shifting from "why doesn't everyone just do as I say and follow my plans for once, can't they see that everything would be so great if only they did" to "obey or die". The same can be said about Morfydd and Galadriel, whom we can expect to travel in a completely different direction, overcoming her initial anger and dictatorial tendencies to obtain wisdom and compassion for which she was later renowned.
In any case, we still have seasons ahead, to see what the actors – and the scriptwriters – would do with these roles.