Who is the Stranger? ‘The Rings of Power’ Season 2 finale has a major reveal: I learned about identity ‘right before filming that scene’

nypost.com:

Spoilers below for the Season 2 finale of “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.” The Stranger on Prime Video’s “Rings of Power,” played by Daniel Weyman, finally revealed his identity– as some viewers guessed, he is indeed a younger version of Gandalf.

Weyman told the Post that he didn’t know he was playing the famous wizard when he first landed the role. “Literally right before filming that scene was the first time I learned that I was going to utter those words,” Weyman told The Post, referring to the Stranger proclaiming that his name will be Gandalf.

He added that the showrunners, J. D. Payne and Patrick McKay, sat him down to break the news shortly before filming the Season 2 finale. “It was a pretty special moment.”The English actor continued, “There was lots of talk around who he’s going to become, and [while] I wouldn’t have minded if he was any other version of a character who we’ve seen, or haven’t seen, I think there is inevitably something about the child in me going, ‘wait a second, you’re going to be playing this amazing heartwarming character who everybody knows.’ That’s a massive ‘pinch me’ moment.”“The Rings of Power” is set in J.R.R.

Tolkien’s fantasy world thousands of years before the events of the Peter Jackson movies.The show follows various characters during the forging of the rings of power and the rise of Sauron (Charlie Vickers), including the elves Galadriel (Cate Blanchett in the films, Morfydd Clark in the show), Elrond (Hugo Weaving in the films, Robert Aramayo here) and a host of other characters such as the dwarves Durin (Owain Arthur) and his wife, Disa (Sophia Nomvete), and the Harfoot — a type of hobbit — Elanor “Nori” Brandyfoot (Markella Kavenagh).