The Rings of Power's Morfydd Clark on "shattered" Galadriel and show's future beyond season 2

A powerful Elf warrior made famous by Cate Blanchett (as an older version) in the Lord of the Rings movies, season 2 finds her down at heel and ready to face a rising evil.

Here's what the star had to say about what's in store…

Morfydd, in playing the Elf Galadriel, you’re following in the footsteps of Oscar winner Cate Blanchett – did you ask her for advice?

"No, I did not reach out to her – I still can’t believe that! I actually didn’t know I was playing Galadriel until two weeks after I got to New Zealand.

"I knew I was an Elf, but I had no idea. When they told me, I was like, 'They’re completely mad, and I need to go home.' And then I was kind of like, 'Wait, I’ve been training for this for years.' I was obsessed with those films.

"And it’s really nice— I don’t know how much of the other stuff I’ve done that you’ve seen, but I often die and suffer. So it’s lovely to know [from the films] that my character will end up with some semblance of peace in Lothlórien."

Before that, though, where do we find Galadriel in this second season?

"So, the worst has happened, and unfortunately she’s massively culpable in that. So her sense of self has completely shattered, and she’s been betrayed terribly. But also this huge evil, [Sauron], has risen. She can’t really stop and take any time for herself.

"So she kind of feels like a wounded animal, having to keep running. She’s really just put through the wringer. You can watch me suffer, again!"

As you say, it's sort of her fault Sauron gets this foothold with the Rings – what was it like to explore that more morally grey side of her?

"I’m quite timid, so I think I was more with Elrond, like, 'Careful!' But I kind of really love they’ve done with it, because I think something that’s explored always in Tolkien’s work is hope. And she has hope that [the Rings] have to work, because she has more of an insight than anyone else now into how cruel and dark Sauron’s work would be.

"So I think it’s hope that drives her, and that’s something I’ve got to admire her for. But I can totally see how Elrond is like, 'She’s still behaving rogue.' She’s acting, now, more for a greater cause than just herself."

Is there less pressure coming back for a second run, your feet under the table?

"Yeah. I just had no concept of how many people were going to be on set when I first started this. I remember going onto the first day, and saying, 'Oh my gosh, it’s like opening night at the theatre.' I now feel far more at home in the environment of filming."

What are the biggest challenges of working on a show like this? Is it things like the stunts? Is it the performance? Is it the sheer scale of it? Is it the eyes the show has on it from people outside?

"I’d say it’s a bit of everything. I would say this is something that’s shared between actors and crew: it’s just incredibly time-consuming when you’re filming it. So, you do kind of have to surrender your other life, and completely immerse yourself in it. That can be quite challenging.

"In terms of the eyes of the outside – I just personally have to just shut that off when I’m doing that, because that way madness lies, I feel."

You can't be thinking about how someone else thinks about it.

"Yeah. And, through that, it’s about really trusting your directors."

Were you a big fantasy fan before joining the show?

"Yes! I didn’t love school, I felt very stifled because I was fidgety and hyperactive and naughty. So I just loved delving into these fantasy worlds where I could imagine myself doing these fun things, and where being quiet wasn’t important.

"The fantasy I truly love isn’t just ones that have a particular magic or particular beasts and creatures, even though I love all that. It’s one that’s create a new status quo, and those are the things I felt really rescued me in my childhood and adolescence."

What kind of fantasy were you reading back then?

"I was born in Sweden. So Astrid Lindgren. She did Pippi Longstocking, but she also had these books called Ronia, the Robber’s Daughter, which was just about this mad girl running through the forest. It’s a kind of love story between two warring robber clans, and there’s loads of magic within it.

"Also The Brothers Lionheart, which is about these brothers who continue to die and come into different worlds, and they keep finding each other. It’s an amazing, tragic sibling story.

"At the moment, I’m really into Robin Hobb. I’m currently taking a pause from The Ship of Destiny."

And were you a big Tolkien reader before you joined the first season? Or did you have to educate yourself?

"I read The Hobbit when I was little, and then had the audiobook of Lord of the Rings, and then was kind of obsessed with the films.

"I thought of myself as quite knowledgeable. And then once I delved into this, I had no idea of the extent of everything he’d written, and also the extent of work that’s been written about him. There’s so many things it’s exploring, like the philosophical questions his work brings up.

"I hadn’t appreciated how beloved he obviously is by environmentalists. It’s this love letter to the natural world. I feel very chuffed that part of my work is just reading this, and I know it’s going to go on and on and on. It’s fascinating. His world was so rich and particular."

Like you say, there’s an awful lot of lore, appendices and background though – is it hard to keep on top of it all?

"I think I have to accept that I’m always going to be a learner, not a teacher. And that’s also what’s been so nice about becoming connected with the Tolkien community. Last season, we met lots of people that are super knowledgeable, and are professors of Tolkien stuff.

"But there’s this feeling of like, 'I can’t wait to learn from you. What do you think?' I think because of the philosophical questions that he brings up, everyone’s insight is really interesting."

You’ve spoken before about your dyslexia and ADHD – does it make it hard to learn reams of Elvish?

"No! For some reason, I’ve always found learning lines to be really easy. I feel lucky that that’s not something that has a lot of anxiety with it.

"And I was lucky also with the Elvish, because I spoke Welsh. They’re sort of similar in the sounds. I actually feel that the life I live couldn’t be more dyslexic and ADHD-friendly. You’re doing one job, then have a slight recovery period, and then another job."

Wales is becoming a bit of an industry hub, with loads of TV shows filmed there, from Doctor Who to Industry. As a Welsh actor, is that something you take pride in?

"I find it so funny that Industry is filmed there. But yeah, it’s wonderful. I now know loads of people that kind of work in the film industry that also didn’t expect to. Because I think people don’t realise what type of work you can do in TV. To be able to do it without uprooting yourself and moving to London – because lots of my friends stayed in Wales, and have no desire to leave.

"It’s wonderful that there’s more opportunities happening now. And it’s such a beautiful place. I’m not surprised it’s being used. I also think there’s something about kind of filming with a crew who everybody knows someone’s auntie. That keeps everyone in check a little bit, as well! It’s nice to be in a small community."

Your next film, Starve Acre, is a horror, and your co-star is Matt Smith, who's in the other big TV fantasy show of the moment, House of the Dragon. Did you swap war stories?

"Yeah! There was a lot of us saying, 'God, the armour is uncomfortable, isn’t it? You can’t sit down between takes.'"

This wig is itchy….

"Exactly! I feel really lucky that I worked with Matt. My stars really aligned there, because he basically just told me that everything was going to be fun. It was very much my first rodeo, and he’s kind of done it before [with Doctor Who]. It was a funny little coincidence that we’ve both been in blonde wigs for the last few years, rolling around in armour.

"And then it was really fun to be doing Starve Acre, which was obviously so small. We were on one set, pretty much. Everyone could kind of fit into one room."

You do a lot of horror, a lot of period stuff – do you ever worry about getting pigeon-holed?

"Not really. I just think I can’t believe I’m working. I never had any sense of mapping out my career. I just was desperately hoping that I could manage to work.

"But I do feel really lucky that if I was going to be pigeonholed in anything now, it does seem to be quite weird stuff, and that would continue to excite me."

You once said that as a woman, the characters you're playing in the theatre are usually more interesting than on screen. Has that changed?

"I think it has, yes. We’re seeing loads more female grossness and female weirdness, as well as frightening women on screen.

"But we’ve got to see it as a continuous thing. We’re never going to have reached a spot where we’re 'done'. People have to keep banging on the doors. But also, people within, we have to keep opening them, and then our work is just going to get more and more interesting."

Do you feel you're flying the flag for 'female weirdness' a little with things like Starve Acre and the other horror films you've done and things like that?

"I guess so. It’s slightly weird to be made aware of your casting type when you’ve been acting for a while, and it’s like 'freaky, weird, unnerving'. Is that the vibe I’m giving off? But it’s fun to get to play those characters. And I’m happy to be working!"

Back to Lord of the Rings before we finish – what's next in the already-confirmed season 3? Have you had any hints?

"We know there’s moments we have to get to. So, for example, in the first episode [of this season], as we see the Elves get their Rings, that’s one of them. But there’s loads of those. But we don’t know how we’re going to get to them.

"It’s kind of frustrating! We know there’s this little room with these little brains working hard, and all these wonderful writers, and our showrunners coming up with stuff. And we’re just kind of waiting for when they decide they’re ready to show it to us. I’m really excited for it."

A condensed version of this interview appears in the latest issue of Radio Times magazine.

The Rings of Power season 2 will launch on Prime Video on 29th August – you can sign up now for a free 30-day Prime Video trial.

If you’re looking for something else to watch in the meantime, check out our TV Guide and Streaming Guide, or visit our dedicated Fantasy hub. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.