Last year, we found ourselves tiptoeing around a horde of smoothie-sipping orcs in the middle of a battlefield. This peculiar spectacle took place in the muddy expanses of Buttersteep Rise in Windsor Great Park, where Amazon’s high fantasy series, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power was shooting its second season.

From Down Under to the Old Country

Instead of the picturesque landscapes of New Zealand that served as the backdrop for the show’s premiere season, the producers decided to shake things up a bit. Enter the United Kingdom, Amazon’s darling locale for all things mystical in season two. Now, although much can be said about the rationale behind this decision, executive producer Lindsey Weber underscored an undeniable love for the UK’s unique resources, skilled crews, and virgin terrains that Tolkien himself couldn’t resist. As an added bonus, showrunners JD Payne and Patrick McKay were also spotted embracing the park’s 900-year-old trees. With that kind of warmth, who can blame them?

A Moving (and Endearing) Affair

Despite the location switch, the bond between the old and the new was symbolized by the painstaking efforts taken to transport 70 containers filled with doors, windows, and other smaller set pieces from New Zealand to the UK. If nostalgia were a qualifying category at the Oscars, the heartwarming notes from the Kiwi crew attached to the containers would undoubtedly bag the award.

The Tongue(s) and Tale of Sauron

Meanwhile, shaping Charlie Vicker’s Halbrand character into Sauron for season two was a linguistic amusement park for Leith McPherson, the supervising dialect coach. After 18 months of living and breathing Halbrand’s northern accent, she had to envision and introduce Sauron’s unique voice into the mix.

The Importance of Being Orc, Rings, and Stunts

Back to our smoothie-loving orcs, it’s quite a sight to witness 1,500 actors impersonating these beasts with such credibility, one might forget they’re just humans underneath those prosthetics. Each prosthetic is a work of art, consisting of a cowl, a forehead, a chin, and a face, taking two people two and a half hours to apply. In terms of rings, season two catches Celebrimbor’s Elven ringery fever employing artistry, research, and real gemstones.

In case that’s not enough action, the second instalment also promises more heart-thumping scenes from our beloved characters Galadriel and Elrond, who will be displaying their equestrian skills with élan, thanks to Ben Cooke, the supervising stunt coordinator.

The Hairy Chronicles

Staying ahead in the hairy race isn’t easy. With hero wigs, scale wigs, stunt double wigs, and sometimes picture double wigs, it won’t be an exaggeration to call it an organizational rollercoaster ride. While human hair suffices for the wigs, Dwarven beards are an entirely different beast, calling for the stronger and coarser yak hair. So the next time you see Pharazôn flexing his beard, know it’s a sign of his growing power.

As we leave the set behind, the memory of orcs adorning their prosthetics while sipping smoothies is a testament to the delightful absurdities and painstaking details that come together to birth another riveting season of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.

The second season is set to premiere on Prime Video on August 29. Be there, or be square!